PNN presents the Employment Conditions Monitor

No decrease in dubious contracts for PhD students, but large differences per institution

Last year, a total of 231 dubious contracts were offered to PhD candidates. This represents 12.3 percent of the total number of vacancies published that year. This is evident from the Employment Conditions Monitor  published annually by the PhD Network Netherlands (PNN). This picture is consistent with previous years: the share of dubious contracts fluctuates between 10 and 15 percent. For the first time, the Monitor also shows differences between types of institutions, disciplines, and universities.

There are significant differences between universities in the proportion of dubious contracts they offer. The percentage of dubious contracts offered per university ranges from 20.3 percent (VU Amsterdam) to only 1.5 percent (TU Eindhoven). Moreover, there is sometimes a large proportion of contracts for which no contract duration is specified: sometimes up to 11.7 percent of the positions offered (University of Amsterdam). Furthermore, the length of the PhD program appears to vary by type of institution. In 2019, 84.9 percent of positions at research institutions were offered for a four-year period, and 82.6 percent at universities. This contrasts with only 59.0 percent of positions at other healthcare institutions, 57.4 percent at university medical centers, and only 41.4 percent at other providers. This last group also most often fails to mention the contract duration at all (44.8 percent).

A second important finding is that few vacancies for PhD candidates are transparent about employment conditions. Only 3 percent of all vacancies met all the basic criteria, such as the applicable collective bargaining agreement, contract size, salary, and teaching load. Furthermore, transparency varies significantly by field. For example, three-quarters of vacancies in law score well on the criteria. This is different for economics, where almost half as many vacancies meet sufficient criteria.

PNN observes that the vast majority of vacancies offer good employment conditions and working conditions. At the same time, the proportion of dubious contracts remains substantial. Because the Employment Conditions Monitor only looks at formal vacancies, which account for approximately half of all PhD positions, this is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Therefore, PNN calls on universities and graduate schools to critically examine where the margins of employment conditions are being tested. They should also learn to recognize and actively discourage dubious contracts.

PNN also calls on institutions to be more transparent about the appointments of PhD candidates. This includes not only the most basic components such as contract length and scope, but also characteristics specifically relevant to the PhD trajectory and the well-being of PhD candidates: what is the teaching load? Is there an evaluation period?

By highlighting the differences between universities, PNN aims to convey the message that there aren't only negative developments, but that there are also universities that demonstrate good employer practices and truly value PhD candidates as employees. Employers can therefore take the results presented in this Monitor as an example.

Due to persistent efforts to cut PhD candidates' employment conditions, PNN has been monitoring developments in the employment conditions of PhD candidates working in the Netherlands for five years with its Employment Conditions Monitor  . This is based on vacancy data from Academic Transfer, the Dutch academic job board. In 2019, 1,872 vacancies targeted at PhD candidates were posted on Academic Transfer.

NB: The number of questionable contracts also includes vacancies for so-called PDEng positions. For the University of Twente, this is 18 out of 20 contracts (15.1%), and for Delft University of Technology, this is 2 out of 3 contracts (1.0%).