Professors assigning their own books: Is that allowed?

To follow courses at university, students must purchase and read textbooks. Sometimes, these books are authored by the professors themselves, who then profit from the sales. This practice doesn’t sit well with some students: ‘It feels a bit off.’

‘I have a topic for you,’ a determined student told Univers during the TOP-week market at the start of the academic year. ‘Professors assign their own books and charge way too much. That can’t be right.’

Students often raise concerns about professors prescribing their own books for courses. These books can cost tens of euros each, and with hundreds of students enrolled in a course, professors can earn a tidy sum from the sales—or so students suspect.

Oscar, a student of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation, shares his view: ‘If the book aligns with the course material, I’m fine with it. But it does feel a bit weird.’

Sophie, a philosophy student, is particularly frustrated when books aren’t available through the university’s (online) library: ‘Then you have no choice but to buy the book, and they’re not always cheap.’

Conflict of Interest

Students question whether professors should be allowed to profit from their own assigned books. Professors, however, aren’t surprised by this reaction. ‘There’s definitely a tension there,’ acknowledges Janneke van der Loo, an assistant professor of Dutch and author of Vaardig met vakinhoud, which she prescribes for her courses.

According to economic ethicist Johan Graafland, professors may assign their own books, but only under certain ethical conditions. ‘The book must fill a gap in the available literature and add value, such as presenting the material more clearly than existing alternatives,’ he explains.

Books or loose articles

Some professors argue that their books make studying more structured and manageable. Stavros Zouridis, professor of law and author of De resonante rechtsstaat, says: ‘My book allows me to teach in a more organized way. Students appreciate it because it’s clearer than a pile of articles. They often struggle to connect the dots between different papers.’

Erik-Jan Broers, a legal history professor and author of multiple textbooks, agrees: ‘Articles vary in layout, style, and sometimes even language. That can be confusing.

Why not use other books?

If articles are inconvenient, why not use textbooks by other authors? According to Broers, that’s not always an option: ‘There simply aren’t other books. This course is unique to Tilburg University.’

Van der Loo adds: ‘If a good alternative existed, I’d gladly save myself the weekends spent writing my own book.’

In some cases, alternative books do exist but are outdated, too expensive, or approach the subject from a biased perspective. ‘In philosophy of science, for example, some older textbooks were still heavily influenced by Catholicism. Both students and professors criticized that,’ says Hans Dooremalen, a philosophy professor who has written multiple books for his courses at Tilburg University.

Vicious cycle

The lack of alternatives creates a cycle. Broers notes that discouraging professors from using their own books could result in fewer professors writing books altogether. This would further reduce the options available for course materials. ‘That doesn’t solve anything,’ he concludes.

Van der Loo points out that books authored by Tilburg professors are even used at other universities and colleges: ‘It would be strange if I didn’t use my own book when others do.’

It is not about the money

Are professors motivated by profit? Not likely, say the professors. Graafland emphasizes that the primary goal should always be to improve education, not personal financial gain. ‘This minimizes potential conflicts of interest.’

Zouridis jokes: ‘If I wanted to make extra money, I’d have been better off delivering newspapers. Writing books isn’t lucrative.’

Van der Loo agrees: ‘For the amount of work involved, the earnings are negligible.’ Broers doesn’t keep any profits at all: ‘Everything I earn goes to charity.’

Dooremalen breaks down the earnings: ‘Royalties are about 10 percent of the net profit. After taxes, I’d say I make 500 to 600 euros per year, shared with two co-authors. That’s one or two dinners—hardly worth the evenings, weekends, and holidays spent writing.’

Transparency and quality

Graafland stresses the importance of transparency: professors should be open about their earnings, at least with colleagues. Equally important is ensuring the quality of assigned books. ‘Professors must offer objectively high-quality materials that benefit students,’ he says.

He suggests that publishers could facilitate anonymous peer reviews by subject-matter experts to evaluate the added value of such books.

According to university spokesperson Janneke Iven, Tilburg University does monitor the quality of course materials, including self-authored books. ‘Any earnings from assigned books count as secondary employment, which must be reported,’ she explains.

A lack of clear policies

Despite these safeguards, Tilburg University lacks a specific policy on professors prescribing their own books. This ambiguity may be part of the problem, says Dooremalen: ‘There will always be people who think you’re doing it for the money.’

And what about other universities? Unfortunately, they don’t seem to have clear policies either. At the University of Groningen (RUG), for example, rules on self-authored books vary by faculty, according to a university spokesperson.

For now, the debate remains unresolved. While professors argue that their books enhance education, students continue to question whether it’s fair—and whether it could be done differently.

_Advertentie.