Ranking of part-time MBA of Holland and Belgium

The two-yearly ranking of part-time MBA programs in The Netherlands and Belgium according to Alumni is publised. The 2006 survey was carried out by Intermediair, a leading Dutch career journal, in co-operation with the SCO-Kohnstamm Institute (University of Amsterdam). The results are published in recent issue of Intermediair (Intermediair ranking MBA). Congratulations to the Tias Alumni who have made the top-3 ranking in The Netherlands possible! See the whole ranking list: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Immigration Minister Verdonk plans to block former illegals

AMSTERDAM – Minister of Integration Rita Verdonk told Dutch national daily Trouw on Friday that she is looking into ways to make it difficult for people who have been picked up for living illegally in the Netherlands to return, even legally, to the country. A person’s record as a previous illegal resident may in future also be considered when they apply to visit the country, the minister said through a spokesman. People wanting to visit the Netherlands for work, study or family reasons can still attempt to re-enter the country legally by applying for a temporary residence permit. A measure introduced earlier this year requires people wanting to settle permanently in the country to pass a course in Dutch language and culture. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Belgium: Belgian HR managers keen to recruit expat workers

Almost half of Belgian HR managers recruit workers from abroad or are planning to do so in the future, a new survey revealed on Tuesday. The survey — carried out by online recruiting specialist StepStone — revealed two-thirds of Belgian HR managers look for expat workers in France. More than half of them also look for workers in the Netherlands. British workers are also popular in Belgium: 40 percent of HR managers who look for new employees abroad also look for workers in the UK. StepStone said this trend shows that companies are looking at new ways to remain competitive on a national and international stage and to overcome a domestic shortage of specialists. Meanwhile, the survey showed Belgian workers are also successful abroad. If Dutch companies recruit internationally, half of them look for workers in Belgium. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Two leading Dutch business schools: Tias and Universiteit Nimbas join forces

Tias Business School – the school of management of Tilburg University and Eindhoven University of Technology – and Universiteit Nimbas have announced that they intend to join forces to advance executive education. Discussions are currently underway. The merger between the two schools will be a merger through acquisition of the shares of Nimbas by Tias. The merged organization will be led by Tias Dean Prof.dr.ir. Philippe Naert. Both schools have been quite successful in their own right, but Nimbas President Borchert-Ansinger and Tias Dean Naert are convinced that joining forces will accelerate growth towards a position in the first division of European business schools. Under the entrepreneurial leadership of Dr. Joséphine Borchert-Ansinger Nimbas, with locations in the Netherlands and Germany, has a solid reputation in the European MBA market: its MBA programmes are consistently well ranked by the Financial Times and the Economist. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

The Netherlands: modified integration law approved

It seems likely that the controversial integration law will come into effect on 1 January as originally planned. MPs in the Dutch parliament approved a modified version of the legislation on Friday. Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende's minority coalition government was ratified on the same day. Fatma Koser Kaya of the Democrat D66 party was the only MP to vote against the legislation that was drawn up by Immigration and Integration Minister Rita Verdonk. Opposition parties, Labour (PvdA), Socialist Party (SP), green-left GroenLinks, D66 and Christian group ChristenUnie would have preferred to delay the vote until after the summer to await advice from the Council of State. The Council has been asked whether forcing naturalised residents to take an integration course is discriminatory. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

High costs for pupils at Dutch international schools

The costs per pupil are higher at international schools than at regular schools in the Netherlands. Higher teacher salaries, smaller classes and extra pupil supervision are the reasons for this. International schools spend 113 million euro. There were 40 international schools for primary and secondary education in the Netherlands in 2004. Twenty are private schools and 20 are financed by the government. The operation of the international schools cost 113 million euro in 2004; the 20 private schools spent 71 million euro, the 20 government-funded schools spent 42 million euro. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Amsterdam aims to reclaim 'top city' business status

AMSTERDAM — Amsterdam City Council unveiled an ambitious campaign on Friday to reinvent the Dutch capital as one of the top five locations in Europe for international business and expats. The plan is based on 100 days of talks with business leaders, organisations and government agencies. These discussions established that creativity distinguishes Amsterdam from other cities, the City Council said. "Viewed from an outsider's vantage point, Amsterdam is clearly ready to reposition itself. This is why we’ve launched the Amsterdam Top City programme. In order to keep ahead of the global competition, Amsterdam needs to renew itself," the introduction to the plan states. Amsterdam will spend EUR 51 million over the next five years on the project. The five main action areas are developing the best way to use and attract talent; stimulating and facilitating businesses from start to growth; improving the atmosphere: hospitality, freedom and service; creating and using space; and enhancing Amsterdam's international reputation. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Holland: More education, more participation

In 2005 three quarters of the Dutch population aged 25-65 belonged to the labour force. In 1996 this was only two thirds. Highly educated people are most active in the job market. The increase in the share of highly educated people increased the gross labour participation rate. Virtually no growth in participation rate among the highly educated. The average participation rate is high among the highly educated. There has hardly been any increase. On average 85 percent of the people with a college or university level education had a job of 12 hours a week or more in 2005 or was actively looking for one. There has been virtually no change in this over the past decade. The gross labour participation rate among people with a secondary level education (mbo, havo, vwo) increased slightly. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Amsterdam Business School: tuition waiver scheme for MBA

In order to attract the brightest students we realise we will need to invest in the quality of our student body. We do that through our tuition waiver scheme. Selection for these waivers (25-50% of tuition fee) is entirely based on the applicant's qualifications and will be made throughout the year, so early application is sensible. The three main criteria are: a good first degree, work experience and GMAT score. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Students’ reasoning during computer-based modelling

A large part of the phenomena that occur in the world, such as climate changes, economic growth, the development of the world population and disturbances in an ecosystem, are of such a complex nature that they are highly simplified in secondary science education. Describing and predicting how these complex phenomena behave requires a level of mathematical skill that is beyond the reach of most secondary school students. Computer models overcome these problems, since the computer takes over the task of solving complex equations. Students can conduct experiments and they can simulate the computer models. Despite optimistic expectations however, the process of computer-based modelling poses a complex task for secondary students, and without proper support they are unlikely to succeed. In order to shed light on students’ needs and to eventually provide suggestions for support, a thorough understanding of the reasoning processes students employ during computer-based modeling is needed Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

RSM Erasmus University #1 in of Intermediair EMBA Ranking

For the second time in a row, RSM Erasmus University has come in first in the Intermediair MBA Rankings. The bi-annual survey by the SCO-Kohnstamm Institute assesses the quality of (E)MBA programmes based on the opinion of alumni and recruiters/employers on the value of the programme. RSM Erasmus University especially excelled in the eyes of recruiters. The RSM MBA programme is seen to have the most impact on future careers, with recruiters valuing the RSM MBA credential in particular over MBA’s from other schools. Also in the results, students gave high scores to RSM Erasmus University for the quality of the student groups, the value of the MBA diploma for careers and marketability, and for the influence of an MBA on salary increases and average salaries after graduation. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Amsterdam drops in cost of living survey

The Dutch capital has dropped from 24th to 41st place in the later Mercer Worldwide Cost of Living Survey. Amsterdam is now on a par with the Zambian capital Lusaka and is cheaper than Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. But before you go and open the champagne bottle, the bad news is that Amsterdam's fluctuation in rank was due to currency exchange rates and rising costs in other cities. "The euro has weakened against a number of currencies, for example the Canadian and US dollars, reducing the cost of living for expatriates in many European countries," Mercer spokeswoman Anna Krotova said. It means that expats moving from USD-based countries will benefit from the improved exchange rate when they move to Amsterdam. Mercer’s survey covers 144 cities across six continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news

Civic Integration / Inburgering Exam

The Civic Integration Examination consists of two parts: Knowledge of Dutch society and Dutch language skills. You will do the examination via a telephone, which is in direct connection to a speaking computer. You will hear the questions of the computer through headphones. You will have to respond via a microphone connected to the headphones. You will not be able to ask the computer any questions. If you have any questions, these must be asked before the examination starts. Once the examination has started, you will not be able to ask any more questions. Your answers will be assessed automatically by a speech computer. Read more: Eurogates. Forum of education news