YUFE (Young Universities for the Future of Europe) is a joint venture between ten universities and two non-academic organisations. At Maastricht, the Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE) is a ‘guest faculty’. “As a university, we have committed ourselves to YUFE, so it is up to one of the faculties to take up the challenge and develop a programme,” says FSE director Bakir Bulić. And no, his faculty isn’t jumping at the chance. They’re very busy developing other study programmes. “Ultimately, it does suit us, we’re willing to experiment, take risks.”
A pilot for YUFE was launched back in 2020, in which students could take classes from different European institutions. The end goal was, and still is, to create a three-year European Bachelor’s degree in Urban Sustainability Studies.
Hurdle
The YUFE alliance expects to start with 120 to 150 students in September 2025, assuming the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO) approves. The application was submitted by the University of Antwerp through a so-called European Approach. The result is expected in the next two months, say Veronique Eurlings and Ebru Işgüzarer-Önder of the Maastricht YUFE organisation.
However – and here’s where it gets complicated – as the universities who want to issue diplomas (and not just be mobility partners where students can attend classes) have the approval of the NVAO they can start the degree programme in their respective countries. Except the Netherlands. There is an extra hurdle that must be cleared here. The Higher Education Act states that all new degree programmes are first subject to a macro effectiveness test. The commission responsible, the CDHO, must first explore whether the degree programme is warranted. Is there a demand for it on the labour market? Are there no other programmes that already cover this? Then, the choice must be made for high or low funding. “It is a small-scale, interdisciplinary study programme, a bit University College-y,” says FSE director Bulić. “So for us, it’s important that the degree is given high funding. However, we have no idea which way it will go, especially in these politically turbulent times.”
Exception
Is the English-language study programme even still permitted in the Netherlands? In February 2024, all the Dutch universities collectively chose to stop offering new English-language Bachelor’s programmes, in a bid to get ahead of any possible consequences of the Internationalisation in Balance Act. According to Işgüzarer-Önder, the current political situation has no bearing yet on the YUFE degree. “There is an exception for programmes from European University alliances.”
Point
Assuming the worst-case scenario: what if the Dutch CDHO doesn’t see the point of this European Bachelor’s programme, or if the funding is not as high as they hoped? Bulić: “Then we’ll have to keep looking.” According to Eurlings and Işgüzarer-Önder, UM can always decide to contribute to the YUFE programme in a different way. Not as an institution which issues diplomas, but as a mobility partner. Another option is submitting a new application to the CDHO and hoping that they approve it next year. And should the choice for funding be low, then FSE will have to decide if it is financially feasible to participate.
Heerlen
Although the outcome is unclear, FSE has already started thinking about a suitable location; Heerlen is an option. It fits with UM’s ambition to grow in other locations than the province capital. Not to mention that the university has other programmes it wants to start in Heerlen. There are ideas for a new Bachelor’s programme in sustainability and transformation, and a possible collaboration between FSE and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASoS). Bulić: “We are currently exploring options.”