The Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at the TU/e does well in a recent study by Quality Assurance Netherlands Universities (QANU). They achieve the highest possible score in two of the three criteria. But there is a caveat: the future financing is shaky.
This conclusion comes from a study by a committee of professors that was published this week. The committee examined the quality of the three faculties of Chemical Engineering at the Dutch universities. The TU/e has the highest score possible in two out of the three criteriums: research quality and relevance of the research to society. “The unit has shown to be one of the few most influential research groups in the world in Chemical Engineering”, the researchers write.
Also, the research group impressed by the high number of national and international grants, the number of strong scientific publications and the number of start-ups and spin-offs. Moreover, they see a good connection with industry, both multinationals and SMEs.
Criticism
The committee is generally positive about the three faculties that have been studied. Yet there is also some criticism. The research shows the decline in funding which was noticed in Eindhoven as “a great danger for the future.” This decrease is due to both a decrease in governmental funding as to an internal change in the distribution of money. If the university does not know how to increase the number of applications, this creates a risk of further cuts in the faculty. The faculty is recommended to shorten and streamline the PhD program.
Infographic: Funding for the Faculty of Chemical Engineering has been declining for four years now.
Commenting on the research, the Supervisory Board of the TU/e expresses to be very satisfied with the results. In addition, the university promises to get started with improvements based on the criticism.
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