Minister: universities do not discourage weaker students

There are hardly any study programs that select students by scaring them off in the choosing process, says minister Bussemaker of Education, Culture and Science. Politicians of the Groenlinks party have asked her questions about this, after concerns from Keuzegids Universiteiten, the ‘choice guide’ for Dutch academic studies.Last month, Keuzegids warned for fake selection: universities were supposedly trying to put students on the wrong track, so that weaker students did not enroll in certain programs. By making it look like the student had to meet all kinds of demands, universities would get only the best students to apply for a study.

Groenlinks asked parliamentary questions, but according to Bussemaker, there is little reason for concern: ‘I have not received a single signal from students that got refused after a study choice check’. The message from the Keuzegids was based on two incidents. One of those incidents has already been solved. ‘The other has been send to the education inspector with the request to investigate it,’ says Bussemaker.

Matching

According to Bussemaker, study programs can use study choice checks to achieve a better match. ‘Students can interpret a negative advice as a discouragement. But it can also make them more motivated to take their education seriously right from the start. If institutions do not abide the law, they will get called out on it’.

Keuzegids writes on Twitter that its concerns have been eliminated.

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