Scholars’ general concerns after side jobs have not been clarified

• Siebe Sietsma

  Research intro

• Yuri Vogts

  News editor

Part-time jobs for all Dutch professors should soon be available to everyone. Minister Robert Dejgraf has asked universities to set up a public registry for this purpose.

The minister adheres to this measure searching for news hour. This shows that professors do not always post their part-time jobs according to the rules, and that compulsory registration for universities is sometimes chaotic or even completely absent.

“These are things about which we’ve come to clear agreements, but you have to conclude that institutions are dirty. It raises a lot of questions and undermines the public perception of what science stands for,” says Dajgraf.

The minister wants to know from universities this year when this central registry will be ready. In a letter to university councils, the minister also “urgently” asked to check whether they were aware of all the additional positions held by their professors. “As a business owner, you are responsible for registration and can impose penalties.”

The compulsory registration of subsidiary positions under the Act exceeds the limit for the Minister. So it remains an urgent call. “I feel like all noses are in the same direction, we just have to run faster.”

news hour I already made one myself Inventory Based on data from fourteen universities and seven teaching hospitals. From this we can infer that there will be approximately 6,800 professors on record, and possibly more than 20,000 part-time positions.

The record will put an end to a long-standing debate. Since 2008, scientific institutions have been promising transparency about side jobs. Now than looking for news hour If this still turns out not to be true, the minister wants it done quickly. The record should be available by the end of this year.

The minister also wants an independent commission to check whether sponsorship of professors by the business community and governments is properly arranged. That should also be clear to the outside world. than search for news hour pale However, the University of Leiden and a private professor de sWarranty by the tax authorities. Turns out a specially appointed professor from the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is Secretly Funded by the real estate lobby. This professor accepted questions from news hour the classroom.

It’s a problematic construct of science, says Dijkgraaf. “People see a scientist say something and then at a certain point hear it: Wait a minute, you have another job. You didn’t share that job with us. People start to doubt the message.” If it were up to the minister, professors who did not disclose all of their secondary positions would receive a penalty from their employer.

The minister also wants a healthy ratio between the professors whose salaries are paid by the university and the sponsored professors. For example, the Tax Law Department of the UvA mainly includes professors who, in addition to their academic work, are also employed by tax consulting firms.

In addition, the Minister asked for an evaluation of the Scientific Code of Conduct. An independent commission will have to verify whether the criteria for transparency and independence are met.

UNL, the umbrella organization for universities, confirms that Minister Dajgraf has once again submitted the application for registration to it. Universities undertake to work on it.

Reporter Siebe Sietsma, along with colleagues Yoeri Vugts and Lars Boogaard, researched add-ons for professors.