Independent journalism about VU Amsterdam | Since 1953
3 October 2026
Magazine
Nederlands

Science & Education

Science 1 October 2026

Sense of community could improve mental well-being of academics

Academia should place less value on individual success and more on collaboration and a sense of community. That was one of the conclusions at a meeting of The Young Academy on the mental well-being of researchers.
Science 24 September 2026

Hungary set to rejoin funding programme Horizon Europe

The European Commission appears ready to end Hungary’s time on the sidelines. Hungarian researchers are set to regain access to European research funding, and the country could receive billions of euros that had previously been withheld.
Society 24 September 2026

Research universities look to strengthen collaboration with Defence Ministry

Research universities have signed a letter of intent with the Ministry of Defence to deepen their cooperation. They did so after a series of discussions about academic freedom.
Society 24 September 2026

Law scholar Itamar Mann (46) leaves Israel due to shrinking academic freedom

International law scholar Itamar Mann is joining VU Amsterdam on a Tulip Fund grant, after growing threats to academic freedom in Israel left him searching for a new place to continue his work. ‘VU is my new academic home’
Politics 16 September 2026

Throne Speech: ‘There must be room for international students and knowledge workers’

The labour market needs talent in sectors such as AI, digitalization, energy and biotechnology, King Willem-Alexander said in the Throne Speech today. “That talent is present at every level of higher education, from secondary vocational institutions and universities of applied…
Politics 13 August 2026

Netherlands brings 29 leading scientists here from the United States with special Tulip Fund

Thirty-four researchers from abroad are coming to the Netherlands to continue their academic work here. Of these, 29 were working in the United States. They are the first grants awarded from the new Tulip Fund.
Internationalization 13 August 2026

Guideline: academic freedom must sometimes give way to knowledge security

Measures around knowledge security are intended to protect core values such as openness and academic freedom, a new guideline states. But the measures sometimes work against those same core values, it adds.
International 2 July 2026

Number of highly skilled migrants coming to Netherlands has halved since 2022

The number of highly skilled migrants from outside the EU has halved since 2022, according to Statistics Netherlands. Universities of the Netherlands (UNL) calls the trend worrying: “Highly skilled migrants are essential for research and innovation in this country.”
Key People 24 June 2026

‘I don’t want to leave too much of myself at home to be a researcher’

Abongile Sonkosi obtained a joint PhD from VU and Rhodes University (South Africa). She studied the experiences of female, black PhD- candidates, and was one herself. During her months at VU she missed a sense of belonging. 
Enrolments 18 June 2026

Number of international students falls for the first time

According to the internationalisation organisation Nuffic, the number of international students in the Netherlands has fallen slightly for the first time in twenty years. This is mainly due to students from Germany and China staying away.