16 July 2024

In December 2023, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) published new conditions for the use of starter grants. In this message, we provide information on what that means for how these grants are used within the Faculty of Humanities.

What are the starter grants?

The starter grants instrument was introduced by the Ministry of OCW in 2022. In 2023 and 2024, the Faculty of Humanities received €3 million in starter grants. These grants are intended for new university lecturers, who each receive a grant of €256,000 (price level 2024) with the aim of reducing the workload and increasing research time. The recipient of a starter grant is free to choose how the grant is spent. The only exception is exemption from teaching, which can be capped by the institute. 

As a large number of new university lecturers have started at the Faculty of Humanities in recent years, not everyone can receive a starter grant at the same time. For this reason, the grants are awarded annually in phases and distributed among the institutes. The amount of the annual tranche available determines the number of grants. The institute then determines who is eligible to apply for a grant. The assumptions used in this process may differ between institutes.

In 2023, a large number of starter grants were allocated that took effect in 2023 and 2024. In 2024, a limited number of grants are still available within the budget received by the Faculty of Humanities for 2024. University lecturers who are eligible for a starter grant will be informed by their institute whether they can apply for a grant.

Future prospects and considerations

In consultation with the institutes, the Faculty Board decided to give every new university lecturer with a permanent appointment of at least 0.7 FTE a starter grant of €256,000 (price level 2024) from 1 January 2022.

At any given time, more new university lecturers may have been hired than starter grants are available. National developments regarding the austerity measures in higher education also have to be taken into consideration. As a result, the Faculty Board retains the right to adjust or withdraw the grant amount at any time.

The Faculty Board has taken this decision based on the information available. The basic principle is to take maximum advantage of the starter grants as a faculty and to distribute the funding as fairly as possible. If the policies of the Ministry change,  it may be necessary to revise the way starter grants are deployed. 

If you have any questions about the starter grants, please contact the Institute Manager of your institute.