Leiden University council puts an end to PhD student experiment

The PhD Network Netherlands (PNN) is pleased with the news that Leiden University will not participate in the PhD student experiment . The University Council of Leiden University expressed its opposition to the experiment and issued a unanimous negative recommendation to the Executive Board. Charlotte de Roon, chair of PNN, is pleased with the participation body's stance: "The University Council has sent a strong message to the Executive Board regarding participation in the experiment. We hope that other university councils will also have the courage to say no to their boards when it comes to participating in the PhD student experiment."

Now that Leiden University will not be participating in the experiment, it joins the ranks of universities that have already decided not to. Only a handful of universities are still discussing participation. Charlotte de Roon: "We hope that it becomes clear elsewhere that there is no support for the idea of ​​converting PhD candidates into students, so that this plan can be scrapped once and for all." Along with many other parties, the PhD Network Netherlands (PNN) has repeatedly raised strong objections to the experiment with PhD students . The University Council's reasoning can be read here .

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