Rules and regulations

Obtaining a PhD degree from a Dutch university is governed by national laws and local regulations. Some of this material is available in Dutch only, which is really an anachronism as many theses nowadays, certainly in the natural sciences, are prepared by researchers with a different mother tongue.

 

The law regulating Dutch higher education is the Wet op het Hoger Onderwijs en Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (Higher Education and Research Act); it is available in Dutch only. The relevant parts are articles 7.18 and 7.19.

 

The most important local regulation is the Promotiereglement (PhD regulations) of which an English translation is available. This contains an English translation of the relevant parts of the law mentioned above as an appendix. Only the Dutch version of the PhD regulations is legally binding.