Dutch universities get nearly all their extra personnel from abroad, particularly from Germany and China, and one-third of academic staff have a non-Dutch passport.

The information comes from as yet unpublished figures from the Dutch university association VSNU reported in the Volkskrant. The figures cover the years 2007 to the end of 2013.

In that period, virtually all the growth in university jobs, around 3,000 positions, went to PhD students, researchers and professors from abroad. The number of Dutch personnel remained stable at 20,000.

Temporary

In technical subjects and economics, around half the staff comes from abroad, while law, psychology and sociology still have more Dutch.

‘It is mainly temporary positions that attract foreigners,’ the VSNU told the Volkskrant. ‘Dutch students profit from their presence and research of top international quality has an impact on society and encourages innovation.’

According to the VSNU, nearly half of PhD students come from abroad and between 15% and 20% of professors have a non-Dutch passport.