{"id":96886,"date":"2019-04-01T12:08:30","date_gmt":"2019-04-01T10:08:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=96886"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:23:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:23:16","slug":"keuzegids-rates-almost-half-of-all-eur-masters-programmes-as-substandard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/04\/01\/keuzegids-rates-almost-half-of-all-eur-masters-programmes-as-substandard\/","title":{"rendered":"Keuzegids rates almost half of all EUR master\u2019s programmes as substandard"},"content":{"rendered":"

Almost half of all the master\u2019s programmes offered in Rotterdam scored below the national average in the latest Keuzegids. Of the 45 regular master\u2019s programmes, twenty were assessed as deficient or mediocre in the 2019 issue of the guide.<\/p>\n

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Students in the auditorium<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRonald van den Heerik<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Six programmes even received zero stars in the guide. This means they were rates as poor by the guide\u2019s standards. Contrary to these poor assessments, there are six programmes offered in Rotterdam that were rated as Top Programmes. These programmes are among the best in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

The Keuzegids is an independent annual publication that compares and rates programmes. The programme assessments are based on student evaluations from the National Student Survey (NSE) and expert assessments conducted by the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). For the ratings published by the guide, the latter counts for twenty percent while the NSE counts for eighty percent.<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018Students\u2019 Criticism centres around inadequate supervision and problems with facilities\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

The highest-rated master\u2019s programmes are Arbeidsrecht (Labour Law) at the Erasmus School of Law (ESL) and the Philosophy and Economics research master, both awarded five stars and a score of eight-seven out of one hundred. The most poorly rated programmes are Health Care Management (Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management) with 38 points, and the Fiscaal Recht (Tax Law) master (ESL) with only 32 points and zero stars.<\/p>\n

EUR also scored relatively low compared to other universities, with only the University of Amsterdam faring worse. \u201cStudents\u2019 Criticism centres around inadequate supervision and problems with facilities\u201d, explained a Keuzegids staff member. Erasmus University had already received a poor score in<\/a> the Keuzegids for bachelor\u2019s programmes released last spring.<\/p>\n

Some reservations<\/h2>

An Erasmus University spokesperson stated the university was \u2018proud of the programmes with a high ranking in the Keuzegids\u2019. \u201cBut there\u2019s no doubt we\u2019re unhappy when a programme is given a relatively poor score.\u201d They take the survey seriously and \u2018continuously work on innovating and improving education\u2019. EUR is also \u2018working hard to create more and better study spaces\u2019.<\/p>\n

It should be noted that EUR also expressed some reservations regarding the guide\u2019s methodology. \u201cThe Keuzegids magnifies minor differences. If you score 0 to 1 star in the guide, that doesn\u2019t automatically mean the master\u2019s programme was evaluated as poor or mediocre by students. If means that the assessments are lower than the national average. An additional factor is that the NSE survey was conducted in 2018, when the Polak Building was closed.\u201d The spokesperson believes this led to the university\u2019s low score for study facilities.<\/p>\n

Keuzegids editor-in-chief Bas Belleman says that the scores are indeed relative. \u201cWe compare. A good example is the score for the \u2018programme\u2019. The average score is 3.86, (on a scale of 5, Ed.). All NSE scores under 3.18 receive three minuses. All scores above 4.27 are given two pluses.\u201d<\/p>\n

It still doesn\u2019t detract from the fact that EUR scores lower than average. \u201cA poorly rated programme would naturally say: we\u2019re good, it\u2019s just that the others are better. That\u2019s fine, but I\u2019m afraid that you\u2019ve failed to appreciate what the differences are in how students and experts have evaluated education.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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De redactie<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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