Voorjaarsmarap 2022 - For advice
The Management report Spring provides insight into the financial development from January to April 2022 in relation to the budget and what the forecast is for the entire year based on this development. This MARAP also included the undergraduate first year student pre-registrations for upcoming year, you can find this information in the table below. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Lease of Deprez building - For advice
With a strongly growing population of students in the bachelor Entrepreneurship & Business Innovation and an increasing interest among students for entrepreneurship, there is a great need for expansion of educational and startup accommodation. Tilburg University aims to realize this expansion with Deprez building in the Spoorzone, at the heart of Tilburg's’ ecosystem for new entrepreneurship and innovation. The negotiations with the municipality have resulted in a definite and suitable rental proposal. In addition, in consultation with the users, a plan was made a new layout of the building.
The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Campus Vision 2040 - For advice
This university council we discussed the campus vision 2040. This vision focuses on a sustainable campus that stimulates the sense of community and connection. Many buildings will be renovated, and new ones will be built. The table below shows all the projects and when they will take place. The goal is to have a fully circular and CO2 neutral campus by 2040. There will be a completely new sports center, places like MindLabs and Deprez in the middle of the city center and a new education building next to the cube. There is also an ambition to turn temporary empty buildings into student housing. Furthermore, we noticed that the student board rooms did not reappear in the plans, while there were first plans to build new offices on the location of Prisma. The Executive Board indicated that they were going to expect a way of hybrid working from the employees and that this was then also expected from the student boards. We indicated that for many boards it is necessary to have an office on campus and they are going to look into it.
Ambition Document Sustainable Business Operations - For discussion
In this memo the university describes their ambitions in the field of sustainable business operations. Next University Council will have a more detailed document on it that will further explain the following goals. The ambitions are in line with the SDG’s:
1) sustainable mobility,
2) energy,
3) sustainability and circularity,
4) space efficiency,
5) sustainability in procurement,
6) enhancing biodiversity,
7) healthy campus,
8) sustainability rankings,
9) sustainability reporting and
10) communication. This year is used to translate these ambitions into action. The end result will be presented in the university council of December.
Elaboration memo: Bringing the values alive - For advice
This elaboration memo concerns a description of the project approach for the core values of the 2027 strategy entitled 'Living up to values'. Because the core values form a basis for the new strategy, it is obvious to start a broad project to give joint meaning to the core values. This implementation memorandum describes the project approach. The elaboration of the values is part of work field A: values, identity and well-being and has been designated in the administrative work agenda as a strategic priority for 2022. It has been decided to first finalize the working out note and the implementation plan concerning the values, before drafting the working out note concerning the identity, so that this can include what the core values mean for the Catholic identity of our university. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Elaboration memo: Use (Y)our talents! - For advice
This piece was mostly interesting for the staff of Tilburg University. In Strategy 2022–2027, Recognition & Rewards and Connected Leading were brought together under the heading Use (y)our Talents: a vision of talent development and personal leadership aimed at all employees. In this elaboration memo, the University uses this vision to implement Recognition & Rewards and Connected Leading. With Recognition & Rewards the University aims for a culture and system change. Because personal leadership, leadership development, and team development are essential to realize this culture and system change, the University will build on the Connected Leading program that has proven successful in recent years. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Initial exploration Student staff-ratio (SSR) - For advice
The Strategy 2027 sets a firm ambition to improve the student-staff ratio. The University Council received an initial exploration for the solution of this problem. In December, the University Council will receive a further exploration on how it is going to deal with the student staff ratio at our university. Tilburg University has the highest student staff ratio of the Netherlands. In the initial exploration, the Executive Board proposes the programmatic approach for the implementation phase of the student-staff ratio project and asks faculties to come up with an investment proposal to improve the student-staff ratio in the coming years. For Tilburg, the ratio according to the UNL definition looks as follows, where it can be seen that especially in 2019 and 2020 the ratio has increased significantly.
The follow-up approach will be elaborated in an implementation note and put on the agenda for the university council of December 16, 2022 The University Council gave an unanimous positive advice.
Expanding target groups flex study experiment - For advice
This memo informs the University Council about the planned expansion of target groups of the Flex Study policy. The board proposes to add two target groups to the Flex Study experiment: pregnant students, students with a pregnant partner, and students with children. This new policy will take effect from September 2022. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Elaboration memo: Redesign education regulations (OER) - For advice
The redesign of the education regulations is a plan of the Executive Board within the Strategy towards 2027. With the redesign of the education regulations, the University aims to untangle and unburden; create more room for flexibilization and digitalization of education, reduce the workload, and reduce the perceived regulatory burden. The project also contributes to increasing cooperation between disciplines and Schools by setting up a common model. The main core values that are central to this project are, therefore, Connected and Courageous.
The Executive Board, advised in part by Academic Services and Legal Affairs and in consultation with the Vice-Deans Education and the Chairs of the Examination Boards, believes that a development step of the regulations is urgently needed for the following reasons:
great need for flexibilization of education;
scope for hybrid education and other forms of educational innovation;
promoting scope to experiment in education (incl. research master; iLabs);
a clear framework for academic staff who provide education within various Schools;
reducing the (perceived) administrative burden for academic staff and Examination Boards
optimizing the activities of Examination Boards, Student Desk, International Office, deans of students, and education coordinators
professionalizing internal decision-making processes (administrative and participation bodies) and guaranteeing the chance of meeting the NVAO’s institutional audit;
alignment with administrative ICT processes in the practical implementation and more specific attention to the link with the Osiris Zaak project;
increasing the joint knowledge level of the legal position of students and the scope for innovation (community building);
limiting (unnecessary) differences in the legal status of students.
Participants from all Schools and involved services have been recruited to help design the new model regulations (in a design group). In addition, coordination sessions are organized with Vice-Deans, Deans, and Chairs of Examination Boards. The University will continue this approach during the implementation and in-service phase. During the project, regular coordination is also sought with representatives of the University Council, School participation councils, and program committees. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Elaboration memo: Platform Digital Sciences for Society - For advice
This memo elaborates the Platform Digital Sciences for Society as part of the Tilburg University Strategy. Digital sciences, social sciences and humanities are linked and therefore it is necessary to integrate technological digital sciences in research and education. Regarding education, a few of the goals of Tilburg University are to possibly develop a new inter-school minor or bachelor’s program. Also, a new basic course in Digital Sciences is being developed. Next to this, the university is going to invest in research to innovate with digital sciences. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Elaboration memo: Academic Collaborative Centers - For advice
This elaboration memo addresses the ambition to further strengthen social significance at Tilburg University by establishing a framework for university-wide Academic Collaborative Centers. The design and embedding of university-wide Academic Collaborative Centers at the university is an instrument for this. In such arrangements, researchers, and students work together with strategic partners in co-creation on solutions to major social issues. They are currently exploring this in the areas of social energy transition, inclusive labor market, and digital health. Digitalization - human centered and accessible to all - also plays a crucial role in all hubs. Also, lifelong learning is part of the program. The university is using this framework to achieve multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research and education for students and researchers. The University Council gave a unanimous positive advice.
Numerus Fixus BSc Psychology 2023/2024
In this memo the University asked our opinion about the re-establishment of the Numerus Fixus in the study of Psychology. They want to raise the numerus fixus from 700 students to 800 students. Front advised negative on the proposal, in Front opinion the raise of students in the numerus fixus will not contribute to the quality of education in the Bachelor and will lead to even more problems in the Master concerning the internships.
Updated schedule for evaluation of renewed Board Grants and Stimulation Fund System - For information
The evaluation of the Board Grants and Stimulation Fund system was scheduled to take place in 2022. This timeline has turned out to be impractical. The renewed system has only been in place for a short period of time, and many student associations have not been able to function as usual, due to Covid. This memo informs the University Council about the new timeline of the evaluation of the Board Grants and Stimulation Fund system.
Summary adjusted timeline:
July 2022, information on postponement of evaluation to University Council. Composition of evaluation committee
September 2022, start of evaluation committee
June 2023, evaluation in University Council. Adjustment text Profile Fund
September 2023, start scan interviews for 2nd cycle of the allocation of grants for 2023– 2026
June 2024, awarding of grants 2023/24 and establishment of the allocation of grants for 24/25 and 25/26.
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