‘Teaching is central to my career’ — how the Recognition & Rewards programme creates space for educational talent to thrive

To Evelien Croonen, assistant professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business, the national Recognition & Rewards programme reflects an important shift. Not only does research count towards career advancement, but the quality of teaching is now also given the recognition it deserves. 

Teaching as a driving force

‘Although I really enjoy doing research, especially qualitative research, my true passion lies in teaching and interacting with students,’ says Evelien. She has been working as an assistant professor (UD) since 2005 and is hoping to make the transition to associate professor (UHD) via the Education Track. Thanks to the Recognition and Rewards programme, her teaching expertise is now also taken into account in the evaluation of her performance. ‘What I find interesting and important is not only teaching, but also being involved in shaping the curriculum strategically: what do we want to teach our students, why, and how? In doing so, I always pay attention to the link between theory and practice.’

From lecture hall to practice

‘I believe it is important that, during their studies, students learn how to apply the knowledge they acquire in lectures in practice, which is why I want them to come into contact with professionals. This vision led me to integrate various types of student-practitioner interactions into the curriculum. For example, I organize Business Safaris, where students meet people in their workplace, and Living Teaching Cases, where students work on realistic, practice-based cases and present their solutions to the entrepreneurs involved.

Research and teaching can amplify each other

Evelien also remains actively involved in research and believes that teaching and research can amplify each other. ‘I do a lot of research in collaboration with businesses and use those examples in my lectures. This also allows students to experience what it means to conduct research in a business context, which is useful for them when they have to write a thesis and conduct systematic research. It’s also great to see students find a job thanks to a contact they made during their studies, or to see them graduate with a good final grade after struggling with their thesis. That’s what matters most to me in this work...’

Room for teaching aspirations

Whereas teaching was sometimes seen as a secondary issue in the past, Evelien has noticed that something is really changing. ‘At our Faculty, I feel supported as a teaching-oriented academic. For example, I recently obtained my Senior Teaching Qualification (STQ) and was able to attend various workshops on case teaching.’ According to her, the changes are a direct result of the Recognition & Rewards programme, which offers room for diverse career paths and recognizes the value of high-quality teaching. ‘It has helped me to develop further in what I love doing most: teaching!’

Read more

• Evelien Croonen’s blog: 'A little less conversation, a little more action! The value of student-practitioner interactions in teaching'

• The Recognition and Rewards programme