By Elea Jürß
“[AUC stands for the] creation of a community, students being socially engaged together to create something larger than individual experiences”
Casper Olaf Smulders, AUC graduate and lecturer
Political instability, budget cuts, and artificial intelligence – Challenges facing higher education are piling up, and University Colleges (UCs) are pushed into a position where they need to justify their existence. Declining student enrolment in the Netherlands is leading many institutions to implement changes targeted at attracting more students. Where the interdisciplinary approach of the Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) used to have a reputation for nurturing independent thinkers, UCs have begun facing public scepticism.
As calls for educational programmes to keep up with the challenges of their time become louder, a handful of UCs across the Netherlands have already begun to overhaul their programmes. With the Future Scenarios Assignment, AUC might be joining that list. Reflecting on the values of LAS and AUC and which elements of them are worth preserving has gained relevance exponentially to both students and staff.
At the end of the 20th century, the popularity of LAS led to the founding of a network of University Colleges in the Netherlands, one of which is AUC. Defining characteristics of their LAS programmes included personal agency in creating the curriculum, reformed teaching methods, and encouraging extracurricular activities that reflect communal values. Together, they were meant to shape engaged members of society capable of reflecting on and ensuring democracy.
“[LAS] is critical across disciplines. [It teaches you] to think outside whatever box you are learning about at that moment”. says Casper Olaf Smulders, AUC graduate and lecturer in the cognition track. It is that critical mindset that ultimately allows graduates to meet the challenges of their time, regardless of what those challenges are. A critical observer does not simply look for issues to pass judgment on. They find value in the smallest details to engage with and expand them. “What AUC does very well is foster people who diligently work on things that interest them, pursuing their passion”, says Smulders, looking back at his own time at AUC and the development he observes in students.
“[Liberal Arts and Sciences] prepare a global citizen. [Students] work within a community of people from different backgrounds, Dutch or non-Dutch, discussing and dealing with issues and challenges that our societies are facing”, says current AUC Dean Bruce Mutsvairo.
It is hard to make sweeping, tangible generalisations about versatile ideas such as LAS. Yet students and graduates are connected and shaped by their UC experience, regardless of their individual paths. Smulders also recognises alumni’s ability to transfer skills and knowledge from areas of focus into the larger scope of a globalised system is only gaining importance.
By forcing themselves to be relevant in the present, institutions can be limiting themselves in the long run by infringing on values that are meant to make them timeless. “Academia doesn’t want to be part of that. It wants to be a constant in a rapidly changing world. It wants to teach skills that are relevant outside of individual changes,” says Smulders.
Overhauling educational programmes in favour of aligning with the demands brought by political and social uncertainty may be a hasty step. However, looking back at what defines Liberal Arts and Sciences can be a valuable first step.
The Herring 