Association of Universities in the Netherlands Lange Houtstraat 2 | PO box 13739 | 2501 ES THE HAGUE | T: +31 (70) 3021400
VSNU
Attracting and retaining talented PhD students and postdocs is one of the main challenges universities face. Therefore the Dutch research universities strive to improve the career prospects of PhD students and postdocs both inside and outside of university. This includes providing better career services to young academics and improving information on career options within academia. Moreover, it is necessary to raise awareness outside of academia for the added value of a doctorate.
A knowledge society has a high demand for highly qualified individuals. This is true not only for bachelor’s and master’s degrees, but also for doctorates. The number of doctorates in the Netherlands lags behind that of comparable countries. Uncertain career prospects dampen many a student’s enthusiasm for doing a PhD. About thirty percent of PhD students have a chance of pursuing a career within academia, about seventy percent have to look for employment elsewhere.
Still, a positive trend is observable: the number of doctorates in the Netherlands rose from 2360 in the year 2000 to 3132 in the year 2006.