Parliament shoots down test requirement for offering higher education in English

The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Dutch parliament, has voted against the Language Test for Other Language Courses (TAO) in higher education. The test was part of the government’s plans to reduce English-language education at universities and universities of applied sciences. Now that educational institutions have taken measures themselves, the coalition parties VVD and NSC, among others, voted against the plan.

The TAO is a test that all bachelor’s programs must meet if a university or a university of applied science wants to teach it entirely in English or another language. The programs must then argue why this is necessary.

In a response, Minister Eppo Bruins of Education, Culture and Science (NSC) expressed his appreciation for the educational institutions’ plans. “The self-management plans of the universities also mean that the test on existing courses is less necessary to retain the Dutch language in our education, and thus also increases the chances of international students staying.”

Higher education is pleased with the broad support for the motion to scrap the language test for existing programs. Universities and universities of applied sciences have advocated for this for some time. They believe that the test involves unnecessary bureaucracy and hinders the recruitment of international talent. “Our society needs that talent now more than ever, but we also need to address the bottlenecks,” said the umbrella organization Universities of the Netherlands (UNL).

The Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (VH) emphasized that Dutch has “been the norm for a long time” in higher professional education. An additional test for this would be unnecessary, but it would cost the institutions a lot of time. According to the organization, 92 percent of all higher professional education programs are offered in Dutch.