“Science & Global Citizenship” is set to define AUC’s future. The Executive Boards (EB) of the Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA) and the Vrije Universiteit (VU) have chosen Scenario 2 from the Deans’ Future Scenarios Report, as stated in a memo from the Dean on 26 October 2026. AUC will now emphasise the recruitment of Dutch students, integrate science across all disciplines, investigate non-residential options and revise the curriculum, removing majors in favour of reworked specialisations.
At the end of 2025, the EBs of AUC’s parent universities, responsible for the universities daily operations, tasked the then-new Dean Bruce Mutsvairo with presenting different scenarios outlining AUC’s move forward. The Future Scenarios Taskforce then produced four scenarios presented in the final report written by Mutsvairo. Scenario 1 described the baseline, a scenario in which AUC continues as is. Scenarios 2 and 3 proposed change, with Scenario 3 abolishing the Bachelor of Arts, turning AUC into a science-only programme. Scenario 4 suggested closure.
Scenario 2, titled “Science & Global Citizenship”, retains AUC as a Liberal Arts and Sciences college by preserving both Bachelor of Science (BSc) and Bachelor of Arts (BA) as options. It mandates scientific literacy for students across all majors, mainly implemented through a science focus in the Academic Core courses, while keeping approaches from the Humanities and Social Sciences.
The implementation of Scenario 2 is expected to cost 200-270 thousand euros. The Deans’ report names potential losses in application numbers, as well as a difficult transition period due to the cancellation of courses, as potential risks during the implementation period.
It is expected that tracks in the Humanities and Social Sciences will be cut, merged and streamlined throughout the implementation of Scenario 2. As a result, AUC is set to move away from majors altogether and into specialisations. BA students would follow interdisciplinary specialisations such as “Media and Culture”, whereas BSc students can choose between classic disciplines (e.g. Biology) or interdisciplinary ones (e.g. Science and Technology Studies). Method courses will only be distinguished between BA and BSc. Entry requirements will be reduced to a single overarching set. As an example, the report names a GPA of 7.
All current students and applicants will, by law, graduate under the former system according to their cohorts’ Academic Standards & Procedures. Those enrolled after the implementation of Scenario 2 will not be choosing their specialisation until after their second year. Their specialisation will be noted on their diploma. “In effect, all students enter a ‘Science college’ and specialise at a later stage,” the Dean’s final report states (3.3.3)
Moreover, the executive boards of UvA and VU have tasked AUC to meet a balance of 50 percent Dutch and 50 percent international students. Another guideline urges the AUC management to investigate non-residential options.
In spite of the decision, many near-future developments remain unclear without the implementation plan. While a research centre for AUC staff, preselected Community Project/Internship partners, and AI policies are also mentioned in the report, they stay undetermined.
The Dean has abstained from commenting on the implementation, details or consequences of Scenario 2. He claimed that any statement regarding the future would be speculation until he meets with the AUC Board in November. There, the AUC Board and management are set to align efforts on the implementation plan and business case to be submitted to the EBs by the end of January.
While the Dean has not confirmed what participatory bodies will be included in the making of the implementation plan, Co-Chair of the Student Council Flora Velzel is hopeful that the bottom-up approach from the Future Scenarios Taskforce will extend into the implementation.
“It’s inevitable that the student council will be involved in the implementation [of Scenario 2],” she says. Responding to questions of pros and cons of the decision, Velzel comments: “[The core of the future scenarios is] that the structure of AUC is going to be wide open. There would be plenty of opportunities to at least try and implement things from our policy plan.”
Even though the future is unpredictable, Velzel emphasises that there is reason for celebration. “The main thing we need to realise is if [the decision] is Scenario 2, we have dismissed the probability of [the closure scenario], which is huge.”
