Frequently asked questions
The UG wishes to create a healthy and safe work and study climate, which means that respectful interactions and mutual acceptance and trust are important values. Good conduct means staff members and students are expected to take each other into account, to listen to each other and to respect differences in ethnicity or nationality, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation and disability.
We take a zero tolerance approach to all forms of behaviour by staff and students that intend to violate the dignity of others. Zero tolerance means that we will never tolerate, condone or ignore bullying, harassment or hate crimes of any kind. All staff and students at the UG have a collective responsibility to encourage a culture of dignity and respect; to treat others fairly, with courtesy and consideration; and to challenge inappropriate behaviour when it is safe to do so.
More information about how to report incidents or ask for support can be found on My University and the Student Portal.
Staff members or students who experience undesirable behaviour can contact the Confidential Advisor.
We take a zero tolerance approach to all forms of behaviour by staff and students that intend to violate the dignity of others. Zero tolerance means that we will never tolerate, condone or ignore bullying, harassment or hate crimes of any kind.
Our broad definition of ‘diversity’ not only covers characteristics that are usually visible (such as skin colour and physical appearance) but also less visible and invisible characteristics (such as cultural background and nationality, abilities and health conditions, sex assigned at birth, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, opinions, religious beliefs, neurodiversity, style of working, prior degrees, age and experience, care duties, and language). Particular attention is paid to intersectionality as all these characteristics may be interrelated in complex ways.
We define ‘inclusion’ as a safe study and work environment in which each staff member or student feels at home and is able to develop thanks to equal treatment, and in which a wide range of perspectives is offered and taken into account.
Unacceptable behaviour includes intimidation, sexual harassment, aggression, or discrimination on the workfloor, as well as breaches of academic integrity or financial fraud. It involves deviant behaviour that raises questions or causes unrest, damage, or anxiety to you or another person. The Code of Conduct for Academic Integrity gives an overview of the relevant terms and rules.
You can report unacceptable behaviour to your study advisor (students), your manager or your HR advisor (staff members), or one of the UG confidential advisors.
- Information about the Office of the Confidential Advisor
- Contact information of the confidential advisors on academic integrity
- More information about the ombudsperson
Confidentiality
If you report an incident to one of the confidential advisors or ombudsperson, your report will be treated in confidence. Confidential advisors and the ombudsperson observe strict confidentiality.
Emergency situations
When urgent help is needed in the event of an emergency or immediate danger, call the UG internal emergency number: 805 0 (050 363 8050).
Which steps can you take?
You can identify and discuss unacceptable behaviour as an ‘active bystander’. How you do this will depend both on the situation and on what suits your personality.
- You can ask someone to stop, or indicate why you are not happy with their behaviour.
- You can de-escalate the situation by changing the topic of the discussion.
- You can consult your manager, HR advisor, study advisor, or programme director, or someone outside the University who is in a position to address the problem.
- You can check how the person/people involved is/are feeling after the situation and take action later.
The UG is committed to creating an environment for work and study where staff and students are treated with dignity and respect. No form of bullying or harassment whatsoever is tolerated. We want to ensure that our community, across all of our locations, is free from prejudice, discrimination, harassment and bullying.
We take a zero tolerance approach to all forms of behaviour by staff and students that intend to violate the dignity of others. Zero tolerance means that we will never tolerate, condone or ignore bullying, harassment or hate crimes of any kind. Anyone found to have behaved unacceptably may be the subject of disciplinary action. We have guidelines, policies and procedures to support all students and staff who are affected by harassment, bullying, or hate crime. Please consult our Zero Tolerance Statement for more information.
The UG has a reporting point for academics under threat. This reporting point has been set up to help threatened UG staff members in such cases. The team will register your report, advise you on safety, and think along from various perspectives (General and Legal Affairs, HR, Communications Office, Confidential Advisor). More information can be found here.
International students and professionals who are interested in the Netherlands can register for a free Introduction to Dutch MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), which can be followed all over the world via Futurelearn.
International students (full-time), PhD students and postdocs at the UG can take Dutch courses at the Language Centre, which are paid for by the Board of the University.
The Language Centre also offers other Dutch language courses.
In addition, staff members can also follow a wide range of language and writing skills courses (Dutch, English, various foreign languages, communication training) in consultation with their manager.
Via HR information is available on:
Most of the webpages for each UG building have a section on accessibility for disabled visitors (example: Harmonie building). The webpage on studying with special needs provides information to current and prospective students. The UG is currently working on improving its information provision about accessibility. In the meantime, if you have input or a question, you can contact the Accessibility hotline.
If you have a question, comment, or idea about diversity and inclusion within your or a specific faculty, you can contact your faculty D&I representative. If your faculty does not yet have a D&I representative, or if your point refers to D&I centrally or transcends any single faculty, you can contact the core D&I team.
Here is an overview of the most frequently asked questions. If your question is not listed, don’t hesitate to send an email to the D&I team via diversity rug.nl.
| Last modified: | 17 April 2023 3.05 p.m. |