The Dutch universities regret that the government has not decided to allow more physical education at universities and are calling on the government to enable more physical education at universities as soon as possible. VSNU President Pieter Duisenberg: “Meeting up is essential for promoting the well-being of both students and lecturers and the quality of education. In March, we would like to return to a situation in which physical education is possible at a distance of 1.5 metres.” Until 16 December 2020, universities were allowed to facilitate physical education in compliance with the 1.5-metre regulation.

More space for outdoor sports
The universities welcome the fact that more opportunities for outdoor sports are being provided once again. “There are numerous sports facilities on campuses. The fact that we can now make greater use of these facilities is a positive development. Students are longing to be able to work out together again.” The objective of universities is to facilitate as many sports activities as possible in line with the new applicable rules. In addition, there are already a large number of initiatives by students and universities that aim to increase well-being. For more details, see www.hartvoorstudenten.nl. 

Pilots and phased plan for the new academic year
In order to provide more physical education in the course of 2021, universities are exploring the possibilities of deploying rapid coronavirus tests and other ways of facilitating more physical education. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science has given the go-ahead for pilot projects across the country, including in Groningen, Delft, Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Rotterdam. After Groningen, where rapid tests have been carried out since January, the other pilots will start from the first half of March. These pilots are intended to provide insights with a view to enabling teaching to take place in the new academic year in September without a 1.5-metre restriction. A phased plan for this is currently being developed together with the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the MBO and HBO sectors.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Gijs Dupont
Spokesperson
+31 (0)6 13 26 08 23
Dupont@vsnu.nl