June 9 Return Trip

June 9 Return Trip

Departure day from Europe.  We took an early train from Leiden to the Amsterdam airport.  We had a long lay-over in Chicago before landing in Birmingham.  It was exciting for us to finally see our kids since they were able, with my parents, to meet us at the airport.

On the plane back I did have a chance to reflect on my experience.  Getting to tour four colleges and one high school over the past week has been a wonderful educational experience for me.  The trip made me even more aware of how little I know about other countries and how they educate their students.  Also, it made me appreciate international exchange students even more.  With the language barrier and financial considerations to come to the US takes a special student.

I would also strongly encourage any undergraduate to study abroad.  The excuses of missing friends, American food, and football games are small compared to experiences that will be gained.

We left Europe with some cheese and a few duty-approved bulbs.  However, we also left with memories to last a life-time.

Flight track shows that we are almost to Chicago for our long lay-over.  Once I arrive back in the States I will depart Monday morning for a three-week work trip.  Laundry, packing, and loving on my kids will be the next two days for me.

June 8 University of Leiden

June 8  University of Leiden

We took a morning bus from Ghent to Leiden which took a couple of hours.  We arrived at the hotel and were able to put our bags in our room before we walked to University of Leiden.  We are excited about the visit but also tiring from our travels and time away from family.


The university was a short walk from our hotel and we were scheduled to be there to tour before lunch.  We crossed one canal and walked a couple of blocks to arrive outside a building courtyard with one building labeled University Club.  We met a sociology professor there who would be our guide for the day.  He was very intelligent and knew a lot.  He was a little odd but certainly likable.


From our studies on Leiden it seems to be more similar to a US institution than others that we have visited.  There are 17,000 students and 4,000 faculty or staff.  My college, Mississippi State, has 21,000 students and 4,600 faculty and staff.

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and led us into the building opposite the University Club.  He gave a brief history of the building.  It was constructed in 1532 for governmental purposes as the university was not founded until 1575.  

In 1574 the Spanish were invading the Netherlands and Leiden resisted.  After a siege the Spanish eventually retreated.  Prince William of Orange to reward the town offered either a college or a 10-year period of time without taxes.  The town council wisely chose to found a college.

The building we were in was the 'heart' of the University from 1584 until 1930's.

We were told the annual budget of University of Leiden was 475 million Euros (583 million US).  For comparison purposes the annual salary, wages and benefits at the University of Alabama is $466 Million.

One of the interesting things that we saw was the Sweat Chamber.  This room was located adjacent to the doctoral defense room and students would wait in there to be called for their defense.  After successful completion of their defense they would sign the wall.  The wall was covered in signature with some of them being quite old.  Nelson Mandela was awarded an honorary doctorate and got to sign the wall.  His signature and the signature of another honorary doctorate (someone from the Orange family) were both covered in a protective plate.

University of Leiden was ruled by Senate until 1940 and we saw the senate room.  It looked similar to a church you would find in the US.

We toured each of the rooms that house meeting space for faculty on doctoral defense days.

The picture below shows the doctoral defense room.  The three chairs in the middle are where the candidate, his dissertation chair, and other supporting faculty would sit.

For lunch we ate in the Faculty Club with a number of staff members from Leiden.  At the table I was sitting was a staff member from housing.  You may remember from previous posts that housing office only offer services to international students.  I do wonder about their reasoning for not serving Dutch students and wish that I had inquired into that.

After lunch we walked in the 'student union'.  There was a career counseling center there that is even more interesting to me as I reflect on my experience.  The student recreation room was also in this facility and by American standards would only be acceptable in a hotel.  The 'book store' here was only slightly better than what we saw at University of Ghent.  This bookstore included three choices of shirts and two choices of coffee mugs.

We ended the day with a nice meal together.  As a group we went around talked about things we had learned and what had made the strongest impressions on us.  To some degree our comments were influenced by the area we were currently working.  It was interesting to me how students select colleges and how little money was spent on recruiting.  One of my fellow cohort members talked about how the university focus on the courses within the major could have significant impacts on what is considered 'educated'.  With the high schools bearing the weight of core curriculum there is pressure on students to mature quickly.


We have had a great time and have had fun getting to spend even more time with wife and cohort members.  I know this experience will shape the next year of course work and likely my career.

June 7 University of Ghent

June 7 University of Ghent

Today we are visiting the University of Ghent.  It was founded in 1878.  Belgium has two main languages...Flemish (a form of Dutch) in the north and French in the south.  In Ghent (which is located in the north) the main language is Flemish though many citizens speak French as well.  English is also widely spoken.  At U Ghent, Dutch became the official language of instruction in 1930.

There are 4 universities in Ghent enrolling more than 66,000 students, being served/taught by 10,000 staff, and offering more than 340 bachelors degrees.  U Ghent has the majority of those numbers with 34,000 students and over 7,000 staff.
At U Ghent they have 9,000 new students each year and award 9,000 'qualifications' as well.  There are 18 degrees of study and 44 bachelors courses, 88 masters, and 34 advanced masters doctoral studies (across 5 doctoral schools).  They are one of the few veterinary medicine schools in Belgium.

While at U Ghent we were shown to an extremely nice lecture room with four projectors around the room.  Each seat had a microphone (that we did not use).  Four staff members from U Ghent spoke to us about their policies, students, governance, finances, and nuances.

Some of the highlights of their lectures:

-University governed by a 'Rector' and 'Vice Rector' that serve four year terms.  The candidates for these positions come from the faculty and are elected by the faculty.

-There is a Board of Governors with 38 members that meet monthly.  Students do make up two seats of the board.  They rule on big policy issues and tenure.

-Executive Committee also has some presence but don't meet often.  This includes Rector, Vice Rector, a non-voting government official, and two other committee members.

-'Tuesday Meeting Group' -same as Executive Committee (except no government official) and directors of both education and research.

-Student services at U Ghent funded by government and intended of Belgium students and international students are not served.  Cafeteria and sports/recreational center can be used by international students.

-Slogan of U Ghent:  A creative community for a changing world.

Next speaker was Chief Administrator of Logistics.  He was in charge of finances, buildings, and infrastructure.

-All students have an 'account' with 140 credits.  Students 'spend' 60 credits per year on courses.  They are refunded for each credit they pass.  If they 'run out' of credits they may not return or may have to pay significant extra fees.

-We also talked about curriculum that students take for their degree.  The impression we were given is that courses are primarily related to their major and there is no 'core curriculum'.

At left, two of the cohort attempt to figure out one of the many slides with charts and formulas.  I think that we need a flow chart!




The next speaker was from the Department of Educational Affairs.

-Anticipate 20% growth in students for fall 2013.

-How?  Because Flemish Belgium is 'integrating' universities with university colleges (see previous posts for explanation of differences).

-Why?  Match dichotomy of two institutes (time taken to graduate).
             Increase quality in programs.
             More rational distribution of resources.  There are 6 Universities and 21 University Colleges in Flemish portion of Belgium.  The six Universities will absorb the 21 UC...based primarily on geographic location but institute type also strongly considered (Catholic UC absorbed by a Catholic University).
             Fair appreciation of diplomas.   The everyday perception is that UC < C but Flemish Belgium wants to change that.
            Not a physical integration.  Just removing some duplication of resources.

After these discussions we toured campus and even got to visit the top floor of a building that is being renovated.  One of our speakers had talked about how challenging it is for colleges to do fundraising among alumni.  With such a high tax rate and the structure of college selection there seems to be little college spirit.  I am sure the absence of intercollegiate athletics also contributes to the lack of school spirit.  Funds were being raised for the stairs in this building.  Alumni were asked to donate 250 Euro for 1 stair.  Though I am unsure how many stairs were in the building it was around 20 stories high.  Two of my cohort walked to the top while the rest of us took the elevator.  The picture below is from the top floor.  It offered great view of the city of Ghent.

After our wonderful day on campus we visited the campus bookstore which was much smaller in scale and selection than you would find on any US campus.  While there we decided, as a cohort, to each donate money to sponsor a stair.  So if you visit University of Ghent you will find our name on one of the stairs.  We thought it was a nice way to show our appreciation for the tour.

One of the most interesting items to me was the consolidation of the colleges.  I don't fully understand the differences in University and University College and how a students selects one and I think this merger will help with some of the confusion.  I agree that duplication of services is a valuable concept for the government to examine since education is relatively free.  As the state of Mississippi considers college mergers (and Georgia just completed some) there are challenges in the US that do not exist abroad.  In the US there is much more school loyalty and alumni pride.  The presence of sports teams also add to the confusion as US schools consider mergers.

The other concept that I enjoyed was the 'account' with a limited number of credits that are replaced with successful completion of classes.  This certainly keeps students on track.  With a finite amount of financial aid the US does have a form of this but with free education I am sure the government wants to ensure the students are taking courses seriously and this appears to be a sound concept.


The unofficial mascot of U Ghent was 'Stunt Brain'.  It was the first time that we had seen a mascot so coming from the land of Bulldogs, Commodores, and Crimson Elephants we were all excited.  The picture we were shown had a 'real' mascot in costume with the Rector.  I was not able to find that picture but did find a comic drawing of him.  Little was shared about him during the presentation but my research has found that he was used in a capital campaign for one year.

After the tour we enjoyed a nice lunch in the cafeteria with four staff members.  It was enlightening to speak with them about their experiences and share what is happening with higher education in the US.