Maastricht University

Last December Maastricht University (estb. 1976) inaugurated its fully owned Maastricht Education and Research Centre in Bangalore, becoming the first Dutch varsity to plant its flag on Indian soil

On December 6 last year, the Netherlands-based Maastricht University (UM, estb.1976) inaugurated its India office in Bangalore, becoming the first Dutch university to plant its flag on Indian terra firma. The Maastricht Education and Research Centre (MERC) Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the parent university established with the objective of “fostering academic collaboration with Indian institutes and conducting joint research of social relevance in India”.

Off to a quick start, MERC has already signed MoUs (memoranda of under-standing) for collaborative research initiatives with 13 front-rank Indian higher education institutions including Anna University, Chennai; IIM-Bangalore; Manipal University; Institute of Social and Economic Change, Bangalore and Nalsar University, Hyderabad.

“In UM we strongly believe that education without research lacks innovation and pure research without teaching loses inspiration. With India having evolved as a preferred destin-ation for R&D outsourcing, it’s natural for UM to stretch its reach beyond Europe. Setting up a research subsidiary in Bangalore is the first major step in the direction of partnering with Indian education,” says Dr. Jo Ritzen, president of Maastricht University.

Ritzen believes that UM needs to establish a presence in India because more than half the university’s bachelors and most of its Masters and Ph D programmes are taught in English. The university’s six faculties offer a wide range of under-grad, postgrad and doctoral programmes.

According to V.G. Kumar, executive director of MERC, this English language advan-tage and the university’s international character — 40 percent of its 14,500 students are from abroad — combine to make Maastricht an attractive higher education option for Indian students. Moreover despite being Netherlands’ youngest university, UM is highly ranked internationally for excellence in research and teaching, particularly in the sciences, medicine and management education. In the QS World University Rankings 2010, it was ranked 111 among the world’s top 500 universities while its Masters programme in international business is ranked among the top 25 business study programmes worldwide by the Financial Times, and its medical programmes among the top 20 in Europe. Maastricht U is also highly reputed for pioneering the problem-based learning pedagogy in Europe.

Maastricht. Located on the southern tip of the Netherlands, Maastricht (pop.125,000) is a small but modern town set against a backdrop of hills, trekking trails and open country. Once a Roman fortress, the town boasts 1,660 monuments including Roman ruins, historic churches and market squares. Yet it’s also famous for offering one of the best shopping experiences in the country. Maastricht used to be an industry and trade city. Ceramics, paper and glass have dominated the economy for decades and still do. But more recently, corporates in the financial and business services, trade/hotel and cater-ing, and education/healthcare sectors have established offices in the city.

Maastricht is also well-known for hosting the European Council meeting where the Maastricht Treaty (1992) was signed, marking the establishment of the European Union and common market. While Dutch is the official language, English, German and French are widely spoken.

Campus facilities. Maastricht University is spread across two campuses in the eponymous city: city centre and Randwyck. The city centre campus comprises several historic buildings and hosts the humanities and social sciences faculties. UM’s ‘urban campus’ in the historic inner city also houses teaching and research facilities, the university’s executive and administrative centre, the visitors’ centre and the main branch of the university library. Most of the university’s inner city properties have been conferred heritage status. As many of these buildings were facing abandonment at the time of their acquisition, the development of the urban university campus has contributed significantly to the preservation and liveliness of Maastricht’s historic city centre. The contemporary Randwyck campus in the south-eastern sector of the city houses the faculties of medicine, health, psychology and life sciences, and the university hospital. Libraries on both campuses offer students access to print and electronic resources.

Maastricht University’s UM Sport offers a wide sports programme to students who by paying a small annual contribution can participate in numerous activities ranging from yoga to basketball and rowing to dancing. These activities are held on several locations in Maastricht including the Sports Centre Randwyck, a contem-porary sports complex comprising a modern gym, an indoor cycling room, a dojo and two major sports halls. Cultural and social events and activities are conducted by several university students associations. Other on-campus facilities include restaurants, an ICT service centre, language centre and careers service centre.

Admission. To study at any Dutch university, foreign students must apply via Stuidelink (www.stuidelink.nl) — the application portal for all higher education institutions in the Nether-lands. In the application, a student has to select her preferred university and study programme. Once this application is submitted via Studielink, the student will receive an e-mail from Maastricht University revealing login details for the My UM portal, where the application process can be completed. The admission application deadline is     August 1.

While the minimum criterion for admission into UM’s undergraduate programmes is successful completion of Plus Two and a bachelor’s degree for Masters, some study programmes may require additional qualifications. For further information contact Maastricht University, Student Services Centre, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, Netherlands. Tel: +31 43 388 5388; Fax: +31 43 326 1875; e-mail: study@ maastrichtuniversity.nl; website: www.maastrichtuniversity.nl.

Accommodation. UM doesn’t offer on-campus housing. However there’s plenty of reasonably priced accommodation readily available in Maastricht, billed as one of the safest cities in the Netherlands. Details of available student housing is listed on Maastrichthousing.com, a joint initiative of two student housing organisations: Guesthouse UM and Kamerburo. While Guesthouse UM specialises in short-stay accommodation offering furnished rooms and studios especially suited for students and/or postgrad students, Kamerburo offers mainly unfurnished rooms and studios/apartments with shared facilities (kitchen and/or bathrooms) for longer periods of time.

Degree programmes. More than half of UM’s bachelor’s programmes are taught in English, while the other half is taught wholly or partly in Dutch. Most Masters and Ph D programmes are in English (see box).

Summiya Yasmeen