The UG in 2025

2025 was a year full of inspiration, innovation, and impact for the University of Groningen. Our researchers, students, and staff made significant strides in pioneering research, securing prestigious grants, receiving national and international recognition, and engaging in meaningful collaborations with societal stakeholders. From groundbreaking academic insights to innovative projects that contribute to a better future — these are just a few of the highlights achieved by the University of Groningen this year.

January

UG students dive into the European music industry

ESNS is Europe’s largest showcase festival for music acts. In January, Groningen is packed with around 40,000 music lovers and 4,000 music professionals. Among them are several UG students conducting research. Read more

Launch of Innokite

During the MXT Conference, Innokite has been launched. It is a programme designed to empower knowledge-intensive startups in the Northern Netherlands. Innokite promotes innovation in Digital & DeepTech, MedTech & HealthTech, and Energy Transition & CleanTech. Read more

Two UG researchers join The Young Academy

Björn Hoops and Esther Metting join the Young Academy (De Jonge Akademie, DJA) of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, KNAW). Every year, the DJA selects ten talented academics. They will be involved in academic policy, internationalization, interdisciplinarity, and the relationship between science, society, and art. Read more

February

The free online course Dutch attracts 300,000 participants

The free Dutch Massive Open Online Course Dutch by the Language Centre of the UG has reached an impressive milestone: 300,000 participants worldwide have learned the basics of the Dutch language through this course. Read more

Vici grants for two researchers

Merel Keijzer and Charalampos Tsoumpas have each received a major Vici grant of €1.5 million. With this grant, the researchers can develop an innovative five-year line of research and establish their own research groups. Read more

March

Sports Centre Olympic Wall expanded with three top athletes

The Olympic Wall in the ACLO Sports Centre has been expanded with three top athletes who studied at the UG and took part in the Paris Olympic Games. The pictures of Yara ten Holte (handball), Ruth Vorsselman (canoeing), and Ilse Kolkman (rowing) have been added to the wall. Read more

Travelling installations go to places where everyone goes

From libraries to sports centres and festivals: last year, the Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health’s travelling installations reached people at 28 locations in the Netherlands. ‘It’s about creating a fun experience and encouraging people to think about public health, especially those who aren't usually exposed to science.’ Read more

Tim Huiskes wins the Best Practice in Teaching & Learning Award

Tim Huiskes of Campus Fryslân receives the Best Practice in Teaching & Learning Award for his transatlantic virtual exchange project in the Governance and EU Law course. Read more

April

‘AINed’ National Growth Fund grant to accelerate AI adoption by SMEs

Ming Cao of the Faculty of Science and Engineering has been awarded an ‘AINed’ Growth Fund grant of €2.4 million for research that will accelerate AI adoption by SMEs in the technical industry in the Netherlands. The five-year project focuses on the ethical, legal, social, and economic challenges of AI adoption in the tech industry. Read more

IMChip and MimeCure in the top 10 of the national Academic Startup Competition

Tamalika Banerjee’s startup IMChip and Erik Frijlink and Luke van der Koog’s startup MimeCure have made it into the top 10 of the national Academic Startup Competition. This places them among the most promising academic startups in the Netherlands. The members of the startups participate in a trade mission to Silicon Valley with ScaleNL in the spring of 2025. Read more

Impact must become part of our DNA

On 27 and 28 March, the UG hosts the ENLIGHT IMPACT Conference that brings together researchers, policymakers, and industry representatives to discuss how to create a meaningful impact and break down the walls between science and society. There are a total of 180 participants from 18 different countries, 55 different organizations, and 50 educational institutions. Read more

UG connects buildings to sustainable heat grid

The UG, the Municipality of Groningen, and WarmteStad, together with Hanze and UG students, celebrate an important step towards a gas-free Zernike Campus. Over the next two years, WarmteStad will expand its public heat network on the Campus, allowing the University to connect its buildings to sustainable heat. Read more

Nathalie Katsonis wins the Ammodo Science Award

For her pioneering research on molecular systems, Nathalie Katsonis has received the Ammodo Science Award for fundamental research 2025. Inspired by biological systems, Katsonis develops materials that can bend, react, and interact with their environment. These materials can be used in soft robotics, drug delivery, and smart coatings in green buildings. Read more

Bringing buildings to life: How VR technology enhances students’ learning process

To prevent students from feeling lost after graduation, Niels Grootjans and Júlia Dos Anjos Marques developed a way to combine essential practical skills with academia. Virtual reality (VR) can help students develop a wide range of skills. Read more

May

Six million euros for large-scale project on sustainable healthcare

Northern hospitals, local governments, knowledge institutions such as the UG, and healthcare companies will cooperate in a project on sustainable healthcare. The project, called Care2Change, has a total cost of €6 million. Its aim is to reduce the pollution caused by healthcare and to financially strengthen the Northern Netherlands region through regional and circular production of healthcare products. Read more

Francesco Picchioni and Igor Marchenko win the Ben Feringa Impact Award

In May, the UG presents the Ben Feringa Impact Award 2025. Researcher Francesco Picchioni wins the award for his project ‘Rubber Recycling’ and student Igor Marchenko for his project ‘Phone Masking Augmentation for Automatic Recognition of Whispered Speech’. Read more

June

Students roll up their sleeves for self-driving car

A brand-new team from the University of the North has geared up again for the 2025 edition of the RDW Self Driving Challenge. The team, called ‘Lord of the Roads’, brings together students from Noorderpoort, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, and the University of Groningen, who work together to build a self-driving car. Read more

Dead Sea Scrolls older than previously believed

Many Dead Sea Scrolls are older than previously believed. This was concluded by an international team of researchers led by Mladen Popović. In their research, they combine radiocarbon dating, palaeography, and artificial intelligence, leading to a more accurate date prediction model. Read more

Top Dutch Solar Racing presents Green Falcon

The students of Top Dutch Solar Racing unveil their brand-new solar car Green Falcon at Groningen's Grote Markt on  6 June. With their race car, they compete in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, the world solar racing championship that takes place in the Australian outback at the end of August. Read more

Successful opening of the Feringa Building

The UG's Faculty of Science and Engineering celebrates an important milestone: the grand opening of the Feringa Building, the University's newest and most advanced science facility. Read more

David Lentink is partner in international research project on animal navigation

David Lentink is a partner in the NaviSense project, which has been awarded €54.7 million by the German government to research animals' navigation mechanisms and how these can inspire technology. Lentink will work with colleagues at the University of Oldenburg to develop flying robots that can navigate autonomously. Read more

July

Khalaf Alkhalaf elected Alumnus of the Year

Khalaf Alkhalaf has been elected Alumnus of the Year 2025. He receives this award for the commitment to providing good care and guidance to refugees, and for the inspiring way in which he shares his experiences and knowledge with refugees, students, and professionals, including COA staff and police officers. Read more

€30 million investment for UG spin-off Portal Biotech

Portal Biotech, a pioneer in nanopore-based protein identification and sequencing technology, has raised €30 million in Series A funding. The funding will support the company's commercial rollout and team growth. Read more

Laura Peters appointed Knight in the Order of the Star of Italy

Laura Peters, assistant professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, has been appointed Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Stella d’Italia (Knight in the Order of the Star of Italy). The honour was conferred on 4 July on behalf of Italian President Sergio Mattarella. Read more

New Bachelor’s Programme in Frisian in Groningen as from 2026

The UG, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, and the Province of Fryslân have signed an agreement that will enable students to once again pursue a full Bachelor’s degree programme in Frisian in Groningen as from September 2026. Read more

September

Opening of the academic year

The opening of the academic year 2025-2026 takes place on 1 September 2025. The theme of the ceremony is ‘Impact Without Borders: Local Meets Global’. We look back on a ceremony with powerful speeches, special awards, and atmospheric music. Read more

Ajay Kottapalli nominated for the Huibregtsen Prize

Ajay Kottapalli has been nominated for the prestigious Huibregtsen Prize. The prize is awarded to a recent research project that combines scientific quality and innovation with with a special added value for society. With his nature-inspired sensors, Kottapalli is revolutionizing healthcare. Read more

Sport and physical activity lower healthcare costs

UG researchers have conducted research for the municipalities of Rotterdam and Amsterdam into the relationship between sport and exercise and healthcare costs The results clearly show that in neighbourhoods where more residents exercise weekly and meet physical activity guidelines, healthcare costs are lower. Read more

Lieutenant General Elanor Boekholt-O’Sullivan awarded Aletta Jacobs Prize

The UG has awarded the Aletta Jacobs Prize 2026 to Elanor Boekholt-O’Sullivan, the first female lieutenant general in the Dutch armed forces. The prize will be presented on 6 March 2026 by the Rector Magnificus of the UG. Read more

UG and Emmen take a step towards academic teaching in Emmen

On 29 September, the UG and the Municipality of Emmen sign a letter of intent to collaborate on bringing academic teaching to Emmen. This move marks a significant milestone in advancing the development of Greenwise Campus as a hub for knowledge, innovation, and talent development. Read more

October

Groningen gets an AI Factory

An AI Factory will be established in Groningen. It will be equipped with a centre of expertise and a supercomputer. The UG is closely involved in the further development and design. Read more

November

Moniek Tromp to lead new X-ray research centre with NWO grant of €15.8 million

A team led by Moniek Tromp of the Faculty of Science and Engineering has been awarded an NWO grant of € 15.8 million to establish a new national research centre. Read more

Arthur Hilberdink has won the Rick Brink Award

Arthur Hilberdink, head of the Faculty Support department, has won the Rick Brink Award. He receives the award during the working conference ‘Inpact: 10 years of inclusive and impactful work’ to mark the 10th anniversary of participation within the UG. Read more

AI Factory in Groningen advances digital sovereignty

An AI Factory will be established in the former Niemeyer building in Groningen. Ronald Stolk, senior advisor for IT collaborations and programme leader for the digitization of the Nij Begun economic agenda, and Bart Verheij, Professor AI and Argumentation at the UG and digitization figurehead at the Faculty of Science and Engineering, explain how the project came about. Read more

ERC Synergy Grant for groundbreaking research on the physics and psychology of crowds

How do crowds suddenly start to queue, overtake, or huddle together — and what makes them switch from one behaviour to another? An ERC Synergy Grant of €9,4 million, awarded to Tom Postmes and a team of social psychologists and physicists from the Netherlands and Germany, aims to answer that question. Read more

The UG once again has the best Bachelor’s degree programme in the Netherlands

According to the Dutch Higher Education Guide for Universities, Global Responsibility and Leadership is the best Bachelor’s degree programme in the Netherlands—for the fifth year in a row. The degree programme, which is taught at the UG’s Campus Fryslân, received the maximum score of 100 points. Read more

December

University of Groningen and ASML sign contract for strategic collaboration

On 5 December the University of Groningen and ASML sign an agreement for more intensive research collaboration. This step builds on existing contacts and opens the door to new projects in areas such as advanced materials, flow processes, and advanced control technology, which are important for the development of future technologies for the manufacture of computer chips. Read more

The UG celebrates 25 years of supporting students from low-income countries

The Eric Bleumink Fellowship (EBF) celebrates its 25th anniversary. Since its launch in 2000, the fellowship has offered master’s scholarships to talented students from countries with limited resources, enabling them to study at the University of Groningen (UG). Over the past quarter of a century, more than one hundred students from thirty countries have completed a master’s degree in Groningen with support from an EBF scholarship. Read more