When you apply for admission, you’ll be asked to submit several documents. Read more about the required application documents for your application

When you apply for admission for the study International Criminal Law, you’ll be asked to submit several documents.

When you apply for the European and International Business Law programme you’ll be asked to submit several documents.

When you apply for admission, you’ll be asked to submit several documents. Read more about the required documents

When you apply for admission, you'll be asked to submit several documents.

Nick Cohen interviews Andrew Gawthorpe about the current geopolitical situation, particularly focusing on America's disastrous war with Iran and its broader implications.

Just Peace Festival

Leiden University College welcomes researchers at all levels who wish to spend some time at our institution for a research project.

On this page you will find an overview of awards and prizes granted to our staff and students in 2026, as well as special appointments at Leiden University and other institutions.

Prof. Dr. Joris F. Borghouts (1939-2018) was Full Professor of Egyptology at Leiden University and a specialist in ancient Egyptian grammar and magic.

Philosophy master's student Timon Krause is 24, but it feels as if he’s already fully lived at least two lives. His show MINDGAMES is currently booked in 57 theatres, including Leiden’s Schouwburg on 18 January. ‘Philosophy is what my show’s all about.’

It is with great regret and sadness that we heard that Prof. Dr. Bernhard Katzy has passed away. We knew that he was seriously ill, but still the message of his passing came as a great shock.

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our colleague, mentor, and friend prof. David Fontijn this Monday, May 1st, 2023. As he shared with us in October 2022, his health had been deteriorating the last couple of years. While his mind was still sharp as ever, his body struggled to keep…

On Thursday 12 June 2013 , Radosław Sikorski, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, gave the first Europa lecture entitled: 'Poland, the Netherlands and the European Union - Common Challenges'.

The FOM Executive Board has appointed Professor Wim van Saarloos (1955) Director of FOM Foundation, effective 1 November 2009.

It's 6:30 PM, and the Faculty of Social Sciences is quiet. Classes are over, students and staff have gone home. But at the Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology, music is playing. Live music. A small group of students has gathered in Wim van Zanten's office, sitting on thin cushions…

On March 28, 2023, our esteemed colleague Prof. Harry Wijshoff passed away. He died after a struggle of several months against a serious illness.

We regret to share the news that our colleague, friend, and former professor of Assyriology at Leiden University, passed away on 15 May 2021.

In 1960, Albert Winsemius started to help the city state of Singapore achieve its rapid rise out of economic misery. He helped the Singaporean government understand how the Netherlands had managed to rebuild so quickly after the Second World War, with the help of the American Marshall Plan. PhD defence…

Wim van Saarloos will become Vice-President of KNAW with effect from 1 September 2016. He will also take up the post of Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Faculty of Science at Leiden University with effect from 1 January 2017. He will then relinquish his position on the Board of Governors.

Christiaan van Gorkum passed away on 30 October 2015.

Predicting the collective behaviour of systems, like a large group of people electing one of the parties, is no easy task. But there’s a theory that scientists have been using for decades to do just that: the theory of Gibbs measures. Last week, mathematician Mirmukhsin Makhmudov earned his PhD for…

On the 19th of May 2020, our dear colleague and friend Professor Dr. Huib Ovaa has passed away from prostate cancer. Last summer Huib became ill, and in first instance it appeared that he had attracted a relatively harmless infectious disease. Unfortunately, it became soon apparent that he suffered…

On November 1st, 2024, professor Johan Kuiper will retire and be appointed as emeritus professor at Leiden University. Since November 2008, Johan Kuiper was professor of Therapeutic Immunomodulation in the division of, at that time, Biopharmaceutics (which later on became the division of BioTherapeutics)…

Studying Sumerian grammar in your free time: Bram Jagersma did it. He described centuries-old Sumerian using a modern method he devised himself. For this PhD research he was awarded the De La Court Award for Independent Research by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Science (KNAW).

At Leiden University College, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer urged Europe to show unity and strength in a world defined by fear, power politics, and uncertainty.

Professor Frits Kalshoven passed away on 6 September 2017 at the age of 93. Kalshoven was internationally renowned as an expert in the field of international humanitarian law (IHL). From 1970 onwards he was a professor at our law school, where he had also been a student himself and where he was awarded…

Vincent van Heuven passed away unexpectedly on Friday 6 February 2026 at the age of 76 at his home in Kûbaard (Friesland), the Netherlands.

Lecture, Hybrid workshop

Lecture

On January 16, 2022, our respected and beloved colleague Prof. dr. Bas Edixhoven passed away after a short period of serious illness.

Astronomer Henk Hoekstra has been appointed Professor Observational Cosmology at the Leiden Observatory with effect from 1 August.

On Tuesday evening 22 August, our very dear colleague Jo Hermans passed away. Jo had been ill for some time, but continued to enjoy life in good spirits until the very end. He meant a great deal to Leiden University and will be remembered with fond memories by many.

Audrey Heijns explored the mindset of alumnus Henri Borel. From 1894 to 1916 he was an interpreter of Chinese and later a government officer for Chinese affairs in the Dutch East Indies. Borel's way of 'translating' Chinese was both unique and inimitable. PhD defence on 28 June.

It is with great sadness that we have learned that Jan Vranken passed away on Tuesday 17 June. In 2005, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Leiden University in recognition of his work.

Tot onze grote droefheid is op vrijdag 13 september 2024 Victor Halberstadt overleden. Hij was sinds 1974 als hoogleraar Openbare Financiën verbonden aan de Afdeling Economie van de Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid van de Universiteit Leiden; de laatste jaren als emeritus hoogleraar. Daarnaast bekleedde…

On the 5th of April 2019 our dear colleague and friend Professor Dr Mathieu Noteborn has passed away. In January of this year he was diagnosed with bowel cancer. He underwent surgery followed by chemotherapy, and despite the invasive nature of this therapy things were looking up. True to his optimistic…

It’s only been six years since bestselling author Jeroen Windmeijer (56) decided to become a full-time writer. Since then, he’s put Leiden and the university on the map with his gripping thrillers. From his desk on the Rapenburg canal, he now travels the world with his steadily growing body of work.

Working as a diplomat for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: for many students it would be their dream. Alumnus Tom Groot Haar is busy making it a reality. 'My career seems like a preconceived plan, but it wasn't.'

Mohamed Tleis was born in Lebanon and studied there up to and including university. It was not an easy path because Tleis has to cope with a number of limitations: he has problems with both hearing and vision.

Leiden archaeology is booming. Our archaeologists take part in major international projects covering not only the Netherlands but large areas of the globe. Caspar Reuvens (1793-1835) was also keen on this division: he had one foot in the Netherlands and the other in the Mediterranean world.

Who is the real creator when a musician uses AI? This was the burning question for Adam Lukawski, himself a composer. During a fascinating premiere at Amare, The Hague’s cultural hub, he demonstrated what cocreation sounds like.

When alumnus Jonathan Katzman started his master's programme in Russian and Eurasian Studies, he didn't foresee how useful those skills would be in the near future. Now, he manages a refugee centre for Ukrainians who have fled their war-torn country.

It is with great sadness that Leiden University has learned of the death of Professor Cees Fasseur (11 December 1938–13 March 2016)

Wim van Saarloos will become vice president of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), and return to the Leiden Institute of Physics as professor of theoretical physics. Currently, Van Saarloos is Transition Director at the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).

Nico Verloop, Professor Emeritus of Educational Studies at Leiden University, passed away on 5 June 2025. Nico was the founder and first professor-director (from 1995-2010) of ICLON (Leiden University Graduate School of Teaching) at Leiden University.

The Executive Board has appointed Professor Harold Linnartz as Professor of Laboratory Physics with effect from 1 June 2011. Linnartz has worked since 2005 as senior lecturer at the Leiden Observatory.

In his biography about Professor Rudolph Cleveringa, Kees Schuyt adds to the image we already have of this famous Leiden professor. The overriding focus is generally on Cleveringa’s protest speech against the Nazis, while his later Resistance work carried much greater risks. And we also shouldn't forget…