Dutch government proposes cap on foreign students and mandates two thirds of bachelor degrees to be
So, as Britain decided to leave the EU, Dutch universities started popping up with more courses in English and a flood of foreigners followed suit. However, with a whopping 15 percent of the country's students coming from outside the European Economic Area, the Dutch government is looking to put a cap on the number of foreign students in certain subjects and forcing universities to offer at least two-thirds of their standard bachelor degrees in Dutch. And if not, they are expected to give a legitimate reason for the exemption. They might even make it so that international students have to learn a bit of Dutch, so they can have a better chance of staying in the country and contribute to the workforce. Dutch Education Minister, Robbert Dijkgraaf, said that one can give a few lessons in English if one wants, but the main language of education should be Dutch. \u201cExceptions are possible, but will need special permission \u2026 [For example] if you want to attract the best violinists in the world, it might help to offer this education in English,\u201d he said. However, this may be a bit of a buzzkill for one of the world's most internationally connected places boasting impressive digital skills and significant proficiency in English. Last year in response to a housing crisis, some Dutch universities written to international students warning them not to come unless they had already secured accommodation. Dijkgraaf also asked institutions to stop actively recruiting abroad. Meanwhile, the mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, has suggested international residents should do more to learn Dutch. Dijkgraaf said, \u201cThe current law says \u2018Dutch by default,\u2019 there\u2019s a huge hole in the net, and everyone swims through it. So we have to formulate the exceptions precisely. It might look like you allow more exceptions, but I think it\u2019s the other way around.\u201d His bill will be published shortly and coming into force in September 2024, following a summer consultation. But it has already received mixed reactions. David Schindler, an associate professor of economics at Tilburg University, said the proposals were \u2018truly insane,\u2019 citing research that shows international students give more financially than their cost - up to \u20ac17,000 ($20,500) for a European student and between \u20ac69,000-\u20ac94,000 ($83,700-$114,024) for non-European students because one-quarter stay on after completing their degrees. He said, \u201cUniversities should teach what is most helpful to their students, but mandating this top-down is going to kill a substantial part of Dutch academia. What concerns me most is the drop in research quality I foresee, while research and innovation are some of the biggest drivers of economic growth.\u201d Jeanet van der Laan, an MP for the liberal D66 party, agreed that high-level Dutch language skills setting is necessary but voiced concerns about the bill. She said, \u201cConservative parties are proposing to force all international students to follow part of the curriculum in Dutch. This high threshold would make ambitious, international talents think twice before registering in our country, so we will miss out on talent we want.\u201d However, the Universities of the Netherlands Association believes that both local and international students need to learn Dutch. \u201cThere are still possibilities for English-language education,\u201d says Ruben Puylaert, its spokesperson, \u201cbut we do believe this national control \u2026 interferes with the autonomy of universities.\u201d Saoradh Favier, a researcher at the Nuffic organization, believes that more Dutch students can study abroad if the planned measures can assist universities in bringing student numbers more in line with capacity, so that the positives of internationalisation are maintained. Aziza Filal, the chair of Amsterdam\u2019s ASVA student union, said, \u201cIf more bachelor\u2019s degrees are in Dutch, they won\u2019t be accessible to internationals any more, which is a shame. On the other hand, if you stop \u2018Englishing\u2019 degrees, the stream will be far smaller. You see, internationals can\u2019t get houses and often go back to their home country after sleeping for months in hostels, having lost a lot of money.\u201d But fewer students can also mean a less stressful university experience for those eager students. Research suggests that international students are most prone to study stress and, according to Dijkgraaf, \u201cOnce aspiring students have moved to the Netherlands, we need to look after you properly.\u201d Finally, Schindler added, \u201cA few people had posted that this will be a great opportunity for British or Swedish universities!\u201d And that's about it, see ya.