News item | 14-03-2025 | 15:45
There must be more cooperation between educational institutions and national coordination on the training offer. On the proposal of Minister Bruins of Education, Culture and Science, the Council of Ministers agreed to send his policy letter to the House of Representatives. One of the biggest challenges for MBO, HBO and WO are the falling student numbers. That’s because fewer and fewer children have been born in recent years. In his policy letter, Bruins addresses how we can retain the foundation of further education with the falling student numbers and at the same time train upcoming generations for the future. Together with educational institutions, the minister will manage more on the training offer and is working on a more stable funding for MBO, HBO and WO. He also wants further education, research and science to contribute more to society.
Minister Bruins: “Further education has to do with considerable challenges, including the falling student numbers and the cuts by this cabinet. In addition, the Netherlands is struggling with large shortages on the labor market. How do we ensure that every student in every region is also trained in the future in such a way that he can make a valuable contribution to the economy and society? This requires more cooperation and direction on the training offer. So that we prevent crucial education from disappearing and we continue to train students for the tasks of today and in the future. ”
Training for social tasks
Priority for Bruins is to ensure more national coordination on the training offer in MBO, HBO and WO. Due to the falling student numbers, not every training can continue to exist everywhere. Strategic choices, more cooperation and national coordination are needed to insure crucial education for Dutch society and to train students for social tasks. Students naturally keep the opportunity to choose a study that matches their talents and interests. The goals are the same for MBO, HBO and WO, the approach differs in keeping with the sector.
HBO and WO: joint responsibility in the law
In HBO and WO, institutions are already focusing more on cooperation, but current law and funding make further cooperation difficult. This is because the focus in the law is on the importance of the individual institution. Bruins wants to record for colleges and universities, after an exploration, through the law that it is collaborating on the training offer and that the joint, national interest is being considered. The legal basis must ensure that educational institutions jointly steer on the training offer, from local to national level. For this, the minister wants to develop frameworks together with the field, with which institutions can jointly ensure that crucial education is preserved and can respond to what the economy and society demands. Bruins works together with the field, and wants to keep an eye on, among other things, the importance of the region, shortage sectors and unique training courses.
MBO: Investing in training that are important for the region
For MBO, Bruins believes it is important that students can continue to follow good education within a reasonable travel distance. Also in the regions where the offer is under pressure due to the falling student numbers. Work is being done on an MBO pact between employers and educational institutions to arrive at a training offer that responds to the labor market of the future. The minister also wants offering and investing in training that are important for the region and social tasks, such as for healthcare, safety and technology, more stimulated.
More stable funding for MBO, HO and WO
In addition to more direction and national cooperation on the educational offer, Bruins wants to make the funding for further education more stable. The decrease in the number of students has major consequences for further education, since the funding is now highly dependent on the number of registered students. Minister Bruins wants to go to a more stable form of funding in which the falling student numbers have less impact. This also ensures that the incentives to compete on student numbers decreases and collaboration becomes easier. For MBO, he will work out a number of possible funding variants for MBO in the coming period. At the end of this year, the minister expects to be able to make a choice. The new, more stable way of funding will be able to go into 2029 because it first requires a change in the law. Also for HBO and WO, together with the sector, it is worked out what the funding can look like in the future, so that the preferred option can be presented in 2026. In the meantime, Bruins is already increasing the fixed foot for HBO by adding practice -oriented research to this. This gives researchers more certainty about their income and practice -oriented research in higher professional education is firmer. In addition, he wants fewer administrative burdens for educational institutions due to less accountability pressure. This also means that the minister is less involved in decisions that are at the level of the institution’s board.
Research and science for the benefit of the Netherlands
Bruins wants Dutch science more and more connected to society to resolve challenges. He attaches great importance to academic freedom. Bruins also wants the possibility to get a research title at HBO, the Professional Doctorate, legally recording. Commissioned by the House of Representatives, a few tens of millions a year are less cut on resources for reducing scientists. He does not set any conditions for this, low regulatory pressure is an important starting point.
Europe remains important to maintain the top position of Dutch science. The Netherlands is a net recipient of European science financing, the government is therefore committed to an ambitious and effective successor to the current Horizon Europe, with which Europe supports scientific research financially.
Walking together is also important in Europe for the strategic safety of valuable knowledge. Bruins is also fully committed to this in his own country, for example with the screening law that is in the making, for scientists who want to work with information that is valuable for national security.