World Education News and Reviews

March/April 2004

The Netherlands

Legislative Framework

The Dutch higher education system is a binary system consisting of a university sector, which includes 14 universities, and the non-university sector known as hoger beroepsonderwijs (HBO) comprised of 60 hogescholen (universities of applied science). In 1993 the Higher Education and Research Act was passed and abolished all previous reform laws affecting higher education. The Act greatly increased the autonomy of institutions to define the content of study programs and educational objectives in responding to the changing needs of the society. It also introduced a system of credits to define the length of a given program – one studiepunt (credit) representing 40 hours of study. Most undergraduate programs comprising 168 credits requiring 4 years of full-time study.

In addition, the 1993 reform measure also introduced the concept of internal quality control to be exercised by the institutions themselves, by external experts and--on behalf of the government--by the Inspectorate for Higher Education. In the wake of the Bologna Declaration, the government approved amendments to the Law on Higher Education and Research in 2002 making it legally possible for institutions of higher education to issue the new bachelor and master’s degrees; introducing a new law on accreditation; and introducing the ECTS (European Credit Transfer System).

1. Easily Readable and Comparable Degrees

• As of November 2003, the Netherlands has signed but not ratified the Lisbon Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications.

• The Center for International Recognition and Certification, under the Netherlands Organization for Cooperation in International Higher Education (Nuffic) serves as the Dutch ENIC-NARIC.

• The use of the diploma supplement is not currently obligatory in the Netherlands. According to a 2002 European Commission report, a small number of higher education institutions issued an earlier version of the diploma supplement, and it is likely that the current model will become increasingly popular. A ministry report from April 2003 suggests that many more institutions are now using the European-model diploma supplement. The report also shows that the Association of Universities in the Netherlands and the Association of Universities of Professional Education, together with student organizations and the Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education are helping to promote its use.

• The Association of Universities in the Netherlands recently reported that all Dutch universities have agreed to comply with the Berlin declaration recommendation that all institutions of higher education adopt the diploma supplement by Jan. 1, 2005.

2. Degree Structure

• Up until 2002, the first major degree in the Netherlands before the doctorate has been an integrated degree known as the Doctoraal. Academic programs leading to the doctoraal are not divided into undergraduate and graduate cycles, and in many countries this qualification is considered comparable to a master's degree. The doctoraal programs require four years of study in most fields, and five years of study in engineering, mathematics, natural sciences and agriculture. Holders of the doctoraal use the academic title Doctorandus (drs.) unless their field is engineering or agriculture, in which case the title is Ingenieur (ir.), or law in which case the title is Meester (mr.).

• In September 2002, the Law on Higher Education and Research was amended to include the two-tiered, bachelor/master’s structure. Institutions of higher education are currently introducing new programs leading to bachelor and master’s degrees. However, some institutions actually preempted the new law and had already begun offering the new two-tiered structure long before legislation was passed.

• Universities have restructured most of their traditional integrated (doctoraal) programs to conform to the new two-tiered system. However, for the time being, the old long, first degree programs still exist in parallel with the new programs in the fields of medicine and dentistry.

• The hogescholen have likewise restructured their professional and technical programs to fit the bachelor-master format. Since the summer of 2003, HBOs have been eligible to seek accreditation and official recognition for their master's programs. New master’s programs will be especially promoted in the fields of education, architecture, health and fine arts. Contrary to the universities, HBO master’s degree programs will not be financed by the government, but rather through tuition fees.

• Since 2002/2003, university graduates have been permitted to adopt the title of bachelor and master in addition to the traditional diploma titles of doctorandus (drs.), ingenieur (ir.) or meester (mr.).

• The nature of the program, rather than the type of institution offering it, will now determine whether the program is accredited as “higher professional” or “academic”. The differentiation between the two types of degrees is made by adding “of arts” or “of science” to the academic master’s degrees.

• Implementing the master's degree has been more gradual than the bachelor’s. It is hoped that the new master’s degree structure will be in place by 2005. Until that time, the traditional four-year integrated doctoraal is being maintained for those students who are currently enrolled in a university program.

The new degree structure is as follows:

Phase I: Academic bachelor’s degrees, mainly offered by universities, last a minimum of three years (180 ECTS credits). Higher professional bachelor’s degrees, mainly offered by HBOs, last a minimum four years (240 ECTS credits).

Phase II: Academic master’s degrees require a minimum of one year of full-time study (60 ECTS credits), totaling a combined credit load of 240 ECTS credits. This may cause recognition problems within the European Higher Education Area, which generally requires a combined minimum credit load of 300 ECTS credits for master’s degrees. In engineering, agricultural disciplines, life sciences and natural sciences two years will be required (120 ECTS credits), and in the field of medicine a restructuring decision has not yet been made. Master’s in higher professional education require a minimum of one year (60 ECTS credits). Access to academic master’s programs is based on entrance requirements determined by individual institutions. In general, students are admitted to master’s programs on the basis of their having completed a relevant bachelor’s program.

Phase III: The doctorate cycle has remained largely unchanged. The successful completion of a master’s degree confers eligibility for the pursuit of a doctorate through a process known as the promotie. This entails four years of full-time research following the master's under the supervision of a promotor, who must be a full professor at a university. To earn the title of Doctor, a student must write and successfully defend a dissertation.

3. Credit Transfer

• Under the new law on higher education (2002), an ECTS-compatible system of 60 credits per year was introduced, replacing the old system of 42 credits.

• Dutch institutions of higher education are redesigning their curricula to accommodate the new credit structure. The restructuring process is scheduled for completion by September 2004. Course duration is already being expressed in ECTS terms.

• The new credit system is not obligatory in the context of lifelong learning programs (e.g. post-experience master's programs), but may be a condition for accreditation of these programs.

• A system-wide ECTS grade equivalency has not been offered, although a number of institutions are offering equivalencies:

4. Mobility

• The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC) acts as an intermediary organization and serves as a link between educational institutions, the central government and international organizations with the aim of promoting Dutch education abroad.

• According to the latest Bologna report from the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture & Science, “Dutch immigration procedures often prove to be a serious hindrance to foreigners wanting to study, do an internship, teach or conduct research in the Netherlands.” A team of experts at Nuffic has been selected to address problems regarding visa, residence permit and work permit procedures for foreign students and research staff.

• Starting in 2000/2001, additional funds have been dispersed for promoting Dutch education abroad. As part of this drive, grants have been awarded to encourage foreign students to study in the Netherlands. These grants mainly target students from countries applying to join the European Union and students from outside Europe (Asia and South Africa).

• Nuffic manages a large number of programs for purposes of exchange and cooperation in higher education both on a bilateral basis and a multilateral basis. The main multilateral programs are run through the DELTA (Dutch Education: Learning at Top level Abroad) program and the European Union SOCRTAES (ERASMUS) program.

• The Dutch Council for International Cooperation in Education (BISON) has monitored trends in international mobility, based largely on information from the scholarship programs. The results can be viewed HERE.

5. Quality Assurance

• In 2001, a committee was set up to assess the needs of quality assurance mechanisms in the Netherlands. Their ensuing report recommended the establishment of a frame of reference concerning the accreditation of all bachelor and master’s programs in public and private higher education institutions, and the establishment of the Netherlands-Flemish Accreditation Organization.

• In 2003 the Netherlands Accreditation Council was founded. The council is an entirely independent body established to accredit all programs in the Dutch higher education system. Flanders participates as an observer on the board and a treaty is being developed to formally ensure that the new accreditation organization operates in both the Netherlands and the Flemish community of Belgium.

• The universities have a long-established system of internal and external quality assurance mechanisms. The external quality assurance procedures are carried out by the Association of Universities in the Netherlands, and each program is assessed every six years. The external assessments complement the internal assessments carried out by the universities themselves.

• The HBO Council performs similar quality assurance services in the hogescholen sector.

6. Promotion of European Dimensions in Higher Education

• In 2001, the University of Maastricht and the Limburg University Centre in Flanders signed an agreement to offer programs at the Transnational University of Limburg (TUL). Students enrolled at TUL will be eligible for financial assistance from the Dutch government or the Flemish Community. Students graduating from the TUL will be awarded both a Dutch doctoraal and a Flemish licentiaat degree. Dutch government or the Flemish Community. Students graduating from the TUL will be awarded both a Dutch doctoraal and a Flemish licentiaat degree.

• A Franco-Dutch Network for Higher Education and Research has been set up. It is intended to provide a strong new impetus to the cooperation between Dutch and French institutions.

— Nick Clark
February 2004

References

• Survey on Master Degrees and Joint Degrees in Europe, Christian Tauch and Andrejs Rauhvargers, Sept. 2002

• The State of Implementation of ECTS in Europe, European University Association, Oct. 2002

• Diploma Supplement – State of Implementation, European Commission, last update June 2003

• Lisbon Convention Status Reports, Council of Europe, status as of August 29, 2003

• The Information Network on Education in Europe – Eurydice, European Union

• Country Report of the Netherlands: achievements so far relating to the goals mentioned in the Bologna declaration and in the Prague Communiqu, Ministry of Education, 2003

• P.Boezerooy, Higher Education in the Netherlands, University of Twente Center for Higher Education Policy Studies, 2003

• ECTS Grading Scale, Delft University and Maastricht University of Management

• Erasmus Mobility by Country 2001/2002 – ECTS Workshop, Feb. 20-21, 2003, UK Socrates Erasmus Council

• The Information Network on Education in Europe – Eurydice, European Union, 2003

• Higher Education in the Netherlands, NUFFIC, 1996