Maastricht University professor accused of sexually harassing students

Maastricht University suspended a professor from the Health, Medicine, and Life Science faculty due to accusations that he sexually harassed students. An independent investigation is currently ongoing against the man, after which the university will decide whether or not to dismiss him, Maastricht University’s magazine, Observant, reported.

According to internal communications, the university received the first reports of transgressive behavior by the professor in the autumn of 2022. The dean of the relevant faculty commissioned an investigation and suspended the man, barring him from teaching and entering the faculty buildings.

Five Ph.D. candidates and students came forward to report sexually inappropriate behavior by the professor, university spokesperson Koen Augustijn told Observant. The university has started a dismissal procedure due to “the nature, seriousness, and extent of the professor’s undesirable behavior.”

The university did not disclose the man’s identity or what he was accused of. Dean Annemie Schols of the involved faculty would say nothing more than “unwanted sexual behavior towards people who at that time were in a situation of dependence on the professor.”