2.2 Education position

Master’s Program Selection Guide 2021 (published in April 2021)

The Master’s Program Selection Guide compares and assesses all Master’s programs offered at universities in the Netherlands. As was the case in the 2020 edition, the 2021 does not include a ranking of Master’s programs, as no new data from the National Student Survey (NSS) were available at the time of publication. This also means that no new quality seals were awarded, and no top-level programs were designated. Because the NSS was conducted again in 2021, it is expected that the rankings of Master’s programs will return in the 2022 edition of this Selection Guide.

National Student Survey 2021

The NSS was administered again in 2021, after being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. Because a completely new methodology (questionnaire) was used in 2021, there is a break in the trend, and results cannot be compared easily to those of previous years. When interpreting the results, it is also important to bear in mind that the 2021 NSS was administered during a period in which severe restrictive measures were in place due to the pandemic. This unfortunately had an undeniable influence on student satisfaction, both in Tilburg and on a national scale. The overall student satisfaction rate for Tilburg University declined from 4.08 in 2019 to 3.88 in 2021, a development that we regret and are taking seriously. This places Tilburg University in line with the national average (3.89), which was also considerably lower than in previous editions. Tilburg University students were more positive than average about the aspect of testing and assessment, while connection to professional practice/professional careers was clearly the most important point of attention.

Elsevier Beste Studies 2021 (published in October 2021)

The annual Elsevier Beste Studies (best study programs) rankings were calculated again in 2021, based on current NSS data. In the two previous editions (due to the absence of new NSS data), the rankings were based on NSS trend analyses. Due to changes in the NSS questionnaire, Elsevier was forced to base the total scores for the purpose of the rankings on a different selection of NSS items than was previously the case.

Two of Tilburg University’s Bachelor’s programs were assessed as the best in their disciplines in the Elsevier Beste Studies 2021 rankings: the Bachelor’s program in Economics and the Bachelor’s program in Tax Law. In addition, six of Tilburg University’s Master’s programs achieved Number 1 rankings: Public Administration, Tax Law, Fiscal Economics, International and European Law, law, and Strategic Management.

Tilburg University received a silver medal for its Bachelor’s program in Fiscal Economics. This means that the program scored significantly better than the sector average on six or seven of the 11 NSS items that were used to calculate the rankings. Bronze medals were awarded to the Bachelor’s program in Philosophy and the Master’s programs in International Business Taxation, Business Law, and Individual Differences and Assessment (Research Master’s program). These programs scored significantly better than the sector average on four or five of the 11 NSS items selected.

Keuzegids Universiteiten 2022 (published in November 2021)

In the annual Keuzegids Universiteiten (University Selection Guide), all academic Bachelor’s programs in the Netherlands are assessed and compared. As was the case with the Elsevier Beste Studies rankings, new NSS results were used to calculate the scores for the Keuzegids Universiteiten 2022, but the methodology differs from previous years, due to changes in the NSS questionnaire.

In this version of the selection guide, Tilburg University was assessed somewhat less highly than it was in the 2021 edition. In the overall rankings, Tilburg University occupies seventh place with 63 points (as compared to 63.5 points in the 2021 edition). Due to the changes in methodology, these scores cannot be easily compared to each other (as they are based on a different selection of NSS items).

In contrast to previous editions of the university selection guide, Tilburg University currently has no Bachelor’s programs that qualify for designation as “top-level programs.” Three of Tilburg University’s Bachelor’s programs were nevertheless rated as best in their disciplines: Fiscal Economics (shared), Global Law, and Public Administration.