Dean of FSE: ‘Dutch universities are already losing international momentum’

The Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE) must significantly increase the intake of master students who can work in the semiconductor industry this year.

It’s a challenge, warns dean Joost Frenken, as the Netherlands is already losing international momentum.

The reason: due to restrictions proposed by the Internationalisation in Balance act, international students feel less welcome in the Netherlands. As a result, many are opting to study in other countries instead.

Project Beethoven

Through Project Beethoven, the University of Groningen (UG) and its northern partners will receive 29 million euros until 2030 to train students for the chip sector. In return, they must educate over 600 additional students by 2031, followed by an annual increase of 290 graduates per year.

This means that by 2025, an additional 30 master students must enroll in FSE’s technical programmes, increasing to 160 per year from 2030 onwards. For bachelor programmes, this number will grow from 30 extra students in 2025 to more than 300 annually from 2030.

Not an easy task

However, this won’t be easy, Frenken admitted on Wednesday during an FSE faculty council meeting.

‘We need to increase our student intake, despite the downward trend. We are already seeing that enrolment numbers seem to be dropping significantly. We are losing international momentum.’

Despite this, Frenken remains optimistic. Although the government wants to limit the international student intake, this specific programme is still allowed to recruit internationally. A recruitment campaign has been launched in collaboration with other universities and regions participating in Project Beethoven, including Enschede, Eindhoven, and Delft.

Competing for international talent

Frenken is confident that the UG can compete with technical universities, even when attracting students from the same international pool.

Although tuition fees for non-EU students at the UG are higher than at technical universities, Groningen offers better housing conditions, making it a more attractive destination.

Additionally, more bachelor students should transition into the UG’s own master programmes, which can be encouraged through improved student guidance and information campaigns.

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