Tech universities threaten to stop taking students if govt doesn't give more money

The four technical universities in the Netherlands are demanding more money from the government. If more funds aren't made available soon, they'll have to stop taking new students, the universities said to AD.nl. Minister Jet Bussemaker of Education in principle has no problem with this, she said to NOS.

Over the past 10 years the number of students at the Technical Universities in Delft, Eindhoven, Enschede and Wageningen grew from 32 thousand to 53 thousand. Resulting in overcrowded lecture halls and a shortage of lecturers, according to Victor van der Chijs, president of the federation of technical universities.

"The influx is o great that we may have to curb it", Van der Chijs said to AD. "That means we're going to have to be stricter on quality and for example only take on the best foreign students. Unless we get more money."

Minister Bussemaker of Education, Culture and Science has no problem with this, she said to NOS. "Quality is a top priority", she said. "So to ensure it, it is sometimes necessary to set a fixed quota."