Fontys Hogeschool (university of applied sciences) may be reorganising. The training institute is faced with declining student numbers, which does not rule out the possibility that it will be necessary to cut staff numbers in the future.
Since 2022, the number of registrations at the university has been declining, something that Fontys believes is a bigger problem. “Like other higher professional institutions in Noord Brabant and Limburg, Fontys is experiencing a decline in the number of students. There are simply fewer 16 and 17 year olds taking their final HAVO (general secondary education) or VWO (secondary scientific education). That is a demographic development”, a spokesperson for the university says.
To do something about these declining figures, the educational institution is investing in education for people who are already working, HBO (higher professional education) programs and associate degrees for students who already have an MBO (secondary vocational education) diploma.
Adjust
But it may not be enough for Fontys to maintain its student numbers. “In such a case you have to make adjustments. There is currently no concrete, detailed plan. But it is true that we do take into account the possibility of adjustments to certain parts or certain functions in the coming year”.
“This is done in a way as we have seen in the past year when traditional media libraries were replaced by an online offering of knowledge and information”, Fontys says.
Healthy
The university is not currently in trouble, the spokesperson emphasises. “Fontys is a healthy organisation and we would like to keep it that way. We want to continue to fulfill our social mission as a knowledge institute for the region. You have to keep adapting to your environment and that is exactly what we are doing”, they say.
Source: Studio040
Translated by: Bob
