Recently, PhDoc and Young Researchers received a letter from a group of Chinese grant researchers complaining about their positions at the university. The letter was not published but according to the two parties, the Chinese are complaining about a lack of transparency regarding their exact position, rights and obligations. “There seem to be large discrepancies in how these doctoral candidates are treated, not just between faculties but between institutes within the same faculty”, the parties write. “Some have a proper place to work, others are forced to use student facilities. And some faculties pay for language courses while others don’t. In addition, some PhD students are not even mentioned on the university websites.”
The Executive Board was shocked to hear the complaints. “We did not know about these problems”, says Rector Magnificus Paul van der Heijden. “We will look into these complaints and see what we can do about them.”
The Leids Promovendi Overleg (LEO) has already discussed the issues with the Board and a survey will be held, probably in September, among PhD students to assess the complaints. VB