Veronique Schutjens - Senior Fellow

What aspects of teaching at the UU do you want to innovate?

Busy schedules mean that students often don't get the chance to assimilate the experience of studying abroad in full, while others never have any international exposure at all. So we're losing out at two levels. I want to teach Bachelor's exchange students to reflect on the significance of their international experiences, both for them personally and in terms of their employability skills, as well as to embed those learning experiences and effects in our programmes so other students also benefit.

How does UU score in terms of valuing research and teaching excellence equally?
Not great, I'm afraid. The appointment and promotion policy is still too much predicated on research credentials. As long as good researchers continue to get more opportunities for advancement than good teachers, we have a long way to go. However, the creation of a "teaching backbone" with Teaching Fellows who can demonstrate the value of effective and excellent teachers and teaching is definitely a good first step.

Veronique's profilepage

We can make a difference in the life course of young adults

Veronique Schutjens develops in her project Xchange a methodology to teach bachelor exchange students to reflect on their international experiences and to make better use of this experience for their employability skills. Read the entire interview with her.