MANAGING THE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY GRADUATE SCHOOLS IN EUROPE: HOW CAN THEY ENHANCE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH? CASE STUDY: NETHERLANDS

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1 MANAGING THE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY GRADUATE SCHOOLS IN EUROPE: HOW CAN THEY ENHANCE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH? London, November 2005 CASE STUDY: NETHERLANDS THE DUTCH RESEARCH MASTER: INTEGRATING THIRD CYCLE COURSE WORK INTO THE SECOND CYCLE Jet de Ranitz, M.A. Managing Director Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Tilburg University, The Netherlands

2 Managing the University Community Integrating third cycle course work into the second cycle The case of CentER (CentER Graduate School for Economics and Business, Tilburg University, The Netherlands) Tilburg University facts and figures Located in the south of the Netherlands in the province of Northern Brabant. Established in 1927 as the Catholic School for Higher Education in Trade, it has developed into a specialized research university in the arts and humanities. University studies at bachelor, master and PhD level: 26 Bachelor programmes, of which 3 in English language 50 Master programmes, of which 28 in English language 7 Research Master programmes, all in English language 8 PhD programmes, all available in English language Honours programme for ambitious students More than 100 agreements for exchange (incoming and outgoing) Executive education through TIAS Business School 4 executive programmes Six faculties: Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Faculty of Law Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences Faculty of Arts Faculty of Philosophy Faculty of Theology 34 departments 27 research centres and institutes 6 service departments 11,500 students, of which 6,300 enrolled in Faculty of Economics and Business Administration 750 international students from over 60 countries, 460 of which are degree seeking students 1,700 personnel members, of which 170 full professors 1,500 Master s degrees per year 60 PhD degrees per year Outstanding international track record for research and teaching excellence in Economics, Business and Law Campus, designed with a compact architectural concept in mind, is set in gently undulating, park-like grounds on a forest edge Mentor system to support the academic career of female faculty Participates in European Commission s framework programmes, Socrates, Asia Link; also in Dutch programmes of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO), Netherlands organization for international cooperation in higher education (Nuffic), specific subsidies and tenders of Dutch government (e.g. BSIK). Sponsorship and co-operation agreements with Dutch and international business and industry. Annual budget 130 million euro LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 2 of 8.

3 Cyber Café and ICT Learning Centre for students (digital facilities) at different locations on campus Tilburg University Library with access to over 800,000 volumes, 11,000 academic journals in digital format, 125 databases, as well as host of Brabant Heritage Collection (incl. Brabant Film Archive and Brabant Photography) Mission statement Offering a challenging and inspiring environment to students, staff and alumni, Tilburg University is an authentic university, which considers academic freedom to be of paramount importance and continuously strives for innovation. Through its excellent academic programmes and research in the behavioural and social sciences, Tilburg University aims to contribute to the quality of society, both nationally and internationally. This is achieved by educating individuals for responsible positions in society, and by contributing to socially sustainable solutions. Tilburg University finds its inspiration in a rich tradition that offers room for reflection and which encourages awareness for philosophy of life in relation to science. Strategic choices Although the mission statement is still valid, a number of developments influence the university s environment, and thus its strategic choices: a) Nationally, as well as internationally, growing differentiation with regard to the quality and breadth of education and research has led to greater competition between institutions, both within the Netherlands and internationally. Tilburg University must therefore position itself clearly in both education and research. b) An increasingly knowledge-intensive society calls for highly educated employees, many of whom will work in an international context. Tilburg University views internationalisation as an integral part of its policy. Particularly with regard to the educational programmes, internationalisation has yet to be made fully operational. Further internationalisation is thus a high priority for the coming period. c) Growing differentiation calls for specialisation and concentration in research. Funding agencies, including the government, promote stronger focus in research, and are increasingly led by quality considerations. Many of Tilburg University s research programmes already occupy top positions nationally, and some have reached the European top. To reach such a level across-the-board, Tilburg University pursues a comprehensive level of quality for all of its research programmes. d) The growing demand for tailor-made approaches to societal questions implies greater differentiation in the supply of education. The university should call forth excellence from all of its students. Recognising that most of its educational programmes are currently geared toward the average student, Tilburg University will offer extra challenges to particularly talented students. e) Internationalisation and mobility intensify competition. Operating in a competitive environment often demands strategic cooperation with others. In order to promote quality in this competitive environment Tilburg University must participate more in (inter)national networks and alliances, both with other universities and with partners from the profit and non-profit sectors. f) It is sometimes claimed that the output of Dutch knowledge institutes adds insufficient value to societal development. Tilburg University, however, is well equipped to address societal issues from economic as well as administrative, social, cultural and institutional angles. The present challenge for Tilburg University is to anchor these contributions more securely and visibly in the fabric of society than is now the case. LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 3 of 8.

4 g) Governmental financial support of higher education increasingly lags behind the ambitions of both the government and the educational institutions themselves. Seeking supplementary funding from third parties has become increasingly necessary. Thus, the line between publicly and privately funded initiatives blurs. In striving to achieve a good balance between various funding sources, the university must safeguard the academic integrity of its education and research. h) The Dutch higher educational system is in transition. Tilburg University supports the Dutch dual system, which distinguishes between academic education and higher vocational education. Tilburg University does not consider merging with one of the institutes for higher vocational education. There may be changes and adjustments required in the interface between the academic and higher vocational education systems. Tilburg University is committed to responding to such requirements appropriately. See also strategic plan Board Structure Board of Governors Doctorate Board Executive Board University Council University Labour Representation Board Secretary of the Executive Board Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Faculty of Law Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences Faculty of Arts University Office Office of Economic and Administrative Affairs Facility Services Library and information services Tias Business School Institutes Faculty of Philosophy Tilburg Faculty of Theology IT-Services Office of Student Affairs Univers university paper Budget 2004 Budget 2004 other income 12% external funding 21% government funding 55% tuition fees 12% LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 4 of 8.

5 Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (FEB) The FEB offers a wide range of educational programmes (BSc, MSc, MPhil and PhD) and conducts research in all major fields of economics and business administration. The Faculty is consistently ranked in the Dutch and European top in terms of quality of education and research. Seeking excellence in research and in our BSc, MSc and PhD programmes remains the prime objective of the Faculty. The leitmotif for all of the educational programmes is Working (with) knowledge. The Faculty of Economics and Business Administration has an international orientation, as is demonstrated by the increasing number of non-dutch faculty and students. Staff and students together form a multicultural and ambitious community. However, the majority of undergraduate students (in 2000: 4,500) are from the Netherlands. The guiding principle behind the policy and all activities of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration is quality. Quality covers input (e.g. recruitment, HRM policy, facilities), processes (e.g. systematic course evaluations) and output (e.g. scientific publications, job opportunities for students). The pursuit of quality is perceived to be indispensable in reaching the goal of becoming the best education and research institute in the Netherlands and among the top five at the European level. Quality control In the Netherlands all universities subject their research programmes to a thorough quality control system. Every three years an extensive self-evaluation report is made; every six years this report is submitted to an external peer review committee. For the evaluations all Dutch universities and research institutes work with the so-called Standard Evaluation Protocol (SEP). For education a similar procedure exists (with the same time intervals) preparing for accreditation by the Dutch-Flemish Accreditation Organization (NVAO). Upon a positive accreditation the Dutch Ministry of Education, Science and Culture will formally recognize the programmes and diplomas. FEB has done very well in these evaluations in recent years. Accreditation In April 2001 Tilburg University achieved accreditation of its business programmes by the American organisation AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business). The Research School, CentER, has been accredited by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences since Key figures for the FEB Budget 25 million Personnel 450 (faculty 360, staff 90) Students 6,300 Market share 22 % (1st year students) Ph.D students 119 Publications 800 (highest output in the Netherlands for Economics and Econometrics) Seminars 240 Conferences/Workshops 38 Visitors 45 LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 5 of 8.

6 Education International students can choose from various programmes taught in English: 3 three-year Bachelor's Programmes (International Business, International Economics & Finance and Business Studies), 15 Master's Programmes and 2 PhD Programmes (in Economics and Business). The post-graduate programme is intended to lead to qualification as a Registered Accountant and Registered Controller. Students are being trained to become managers, advisors, international businessmen, financial experts, IT-specialists or researchers. They acquire the broad academic knowledge base that is required in today's job market. Research Academic research is carried out in all fields of economics and management. The main research activities are organized within CentER. Over the last ten years CentER has become a broad and modern, internationally oriented research institute. Contract research is carried out through CentER Applied Research, an institute specialising in contract research. Areas of expertise include labor markets, social security, econometrics, information technology, finance, consumption and savings, industrial organization, and marketing. A second partner is CentERdata, a survey research institute which runs a completely computerised panel of about 2,000 households. This collaboration offers unique possibilities for data collection in direct connection with fundamental or applied research. Tilburg Center of Finance is an initiative of the Finance Research Group of CentER. Besides CentER, there are other research groups and institutes associated with the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration: The Fiscal Institute Tilburg (FIT) is a research institute that combines research on Dutch and International tax by the Faculties of Law and Economics. IVO is the Development Research Institute of Tilburg University. TILEC supports and stimulates joint research activities for researchers from the Faculties of Law and Economics. Netspar is a national network for studies on pensions, ageing and retirement, of which FEB is the coordinator. Netspar has recently been recognized as a Societal Top Institute and has secured extensive government and private funding for its activities. About 135 CentER members work on a wide area of research topics. Their activities are organized into nine research programmes (see organization). Collaboration between researchers in different programmes is encouraged. Research within each programme is coordinated by a research coordinator. CentER: FEB s Research and Graduate School Established in 1988, CentER has evolved into a broad-based research institute spanning every field of economics and business administration. In addition, CentER offers outstanding graduate programmes in economics and management. CentER began as a small research centre focusing on game theory, macroeconomics and applied econometrics. The institute reinvented itself in 1992 as a graduate school and broadened its scope to include additional research fields. The initial graduate degree programme, the Graduate Programme in Economics (GPE), was launched that year, LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 6 of 8.

7 followed by the Graduate Programme in Management (GPM) the following year. In 2001 this program was remodelled as the Graduate Programme in Business (GPB). CentER Graduate School is responsible for research-oriented education only, i.e. the Research Master and PhD programmes. Other Master programmes do not fall under its scope and are organized through general FEB channels. Within the CentER graduate programmes nine tracks (research areas) can be distinguished, in alphabetical order: accounting, econometrics, finance, information systems and management, macroeconomics, marketing, microeconomics, operations research, organization. Organization CentER has a Scientific Council, an Advisory Board, a Board of Directors, Research Coordinators for each area and several committees for the Graduate Programmes. The organization chart illustrates how these are entities are related. Membership Researchers can become members of CentER based on output: each year the publications of each individual researcher are recorded, as well as citations to their work. Researchers that reach the threshold for membership are invited to become senior member for a threeyear period. Junior members (researchers under 35 and having defended their thesis less than 6 years ago) are offered junior membership during a grace period in which they can build their academic career (i.e. their output is not yet counted). Faculty that have a less than 0.2 f.t.e. position are eligible for associate membership. Visitors and Seminars: building networks CentER attracts scholars from all over the world. These visiting scholars conduct research, publish papers in CentER s Discussion Paper series, offer short courses on a variety of academic topics, and participate in informal exchanges with students and professors. On average, seven seminars are held each week, providing frequent opportunities for visiting researchers, Ph.D. students and CentER faculty members to discuss current research and ongoing projects. CentER hosts an average of 45 visiting researchers annually for periods ranging from a week to several months. LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 7 of 8.

8 Graduate School The CentER Graduate Programme is a full-fledged PhD programme of five years in total. The first two years are dominated by course work and coincide with the Master of Philosophy programme. Students with excellent results continue with the doctoral dissertation for three years, leading up to a Ph.D. defense at the end. CentER's Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degree programmes accept 30 to 40 new students annually. This newly accredited programme is designed as an essential starting point for future Ph.D. candidates or those interested in a research-oriented career. Highly motivated students with at least three years of relevant study (e.g. Economics, Econometrics, Business Administration) or a BA/BS/BSc in a relevant field are encouraged to apply for admission. The MPhil programme is an intensive two-year course of study, which includes coursework and two master dissertations - one in each year. Students possessing a MSc degree can opt for a shortened programme of approx. 1 to 1½ years, depending on previous experience. All students become member of one of the research groups as of the 2 nd year. Being a member of the research group, means that they can attend research seminars, conferences and other activities of the group. This ensures regular interaction with junior and senior fellows of CentER. They also interact with students from other schools through the international networks in which CentER participates. CentER accepts 15 to 20 new PhD candidates each year. These students are employed by Tilburg University and receive a regular salary. All PhD candidates become members of one of our research groups. After graduation, our students go on to assume research positions at universities all over the world or find employment in the public or private sector. LONDON_Case Study_JdeRanitz_NETHERLANDS Page 8 of 8.