Astronomers from Leiden University have discovered that the star wind from a newborn star in the Orion Nebula prevents more stars from forming in the immediate vicinity. They made the discovery with data from the SOFIA observatory. This was announced by co-author Xander Tielens during a press conference…

On 11 November Professor of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Monique van Leerdam will deliver her inaugural lecture entitled, ‘Aiming for Prevention’. Van Leerdam, who specialises in hereditary tumours, was appointed professor in July 2020. In her inaugural lecture she will discuss the importance of…

Aesthetic attraction plays a big role in orangutans’ mate choice, behavioural biologist and PhD candidate Tom Roth has observed. But to discover just how big that role is, more research is needed into the emotions of the great apes.

Over hundreds of thousands of years, our region witnessed the comings and goings of various types of hominin. This depended on the temperature as ice ages alternated with warmer periods. In ‘De eerste mensen in de Lage Landen’ (‘The First Humans in the Low Countries’) Leiden archaeologists Yannick Raczynski-Henk…

The AI Collaboration Centre aims to forged alliances with the (local) government, companies and other educational institutes.

Most students of Psychology want to work in mental healthcare (GGZ). This makes the master’s specialisation in Clinical Psychology a logical choice. It was an option for alumna Ruth van Vugt for a long time, but she decided to explore further and has since successfully completed the Health and Medical…

Alicia Schrikker doesn't usually get involved in urban history. As a senior lecturer, her research field is generally the colonial history of Asia and partly South Africa. So, the fact that she is going to carry out an urban history research project together with colleagues, is something that even she…

Leiden University wants its research and teaching to have a positive impact on society. In an effort to achieve this, many of our researchers collaborate with academic and community partners, non-governmental organisations and the business sector.

Up to 50% of individuals with Parkinson's disease develop cognitive impairment over time; this study explores the use of 'practice effects' on neuropsychological tests as an early predictor of cognitive decline.

Four talented students will have the opportunity to progress smoothly from their master’s study programme into a research career. Master’s students in Applied Statistics can compete for one quarter of the € 800,000 grant recently awarded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).…

The research conducted at the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research is clustered within the divisions of BioTherapeutics, Cell Systems and Drug Safety, Medicinal Chemistry and Systems Pharmacology and Pharmacy, and the Metabolomics and Analytics Centre.

Here you can find the recordings of previous Florence Nightingale Colloquia.

Six Leiden University members of staff recently received the Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility grant for exchange projects with non-European partner universities. The total award of around 357,000 euros is used for approximately 50 international mobilities.

The LUC academic staff are involved in many projects because next to their teaching, they are also doing academic research within their fields of expertise. What follows is a short update of some of the special achievements of our staff.

NASA’s telescope SOFIA has provided a new glimpse of the chemistry in the inner region surrounding massive young stars where future planets could begin to form. Leiden PhD candidate Andrew Barr writes about it in the Astrophysical Journal. The scientists found massive quantities of water and organic…

Are all murderers calculating psychopaths with an obscene predilection for bloody chainsaws? Yes, if Hollywood is to be believed, but in the real world they are generally everyday people with problematic backgrounds. Professor of Violence and Interventions Marieke Liem therefore calls for the demythologisation…

The Sustainability in Education group is a diverse network of scientists, researchers, educators, and other interested employees at Leiden University who share an interest in fostering and celebrating sustainability in education.

The Dutch Black Holes Consortium receives 4.9 million euros from NWO for unravelling the mysteries of black holes and other mysteries of the universe. The Astronomy and Society group at Leiden Observatory is affiliated to use the leading research to introduce people of all ages and background, and children…

Studying Africa’s history, cultures and languages in this programme will give you insight into other aspects of Africa as well, including economics, politics and international relations. In the second year, you will be able to specialise in one or more of our themes, tailoring the programme to your…

Four university medical centres, including the LUMC, are joining forces to increase pandemic preparedness in the Netherlands.

They are often little more than a square metre of plants, yet pavement gardens are a source of life. PhD candidate Joeri Morpurgo conducted research in the centre of Amsterdam and The Hague and discovered how important small green spaces are, especially for cities.

Roman philosopher and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero is still used as an intellectual example by politicians and speech writers today. But, he did not go unchallenged in his own day, as a statesman in particular. Classicist Leanne Jansen conducted research into how classical historians judged Cicero’s…

Video projections in contemporary art are convincing not because they depict reality, but because they show new possibilities within that reality. Artist Sophie Ernst demonstrates this in a thesis and an exhibition. She defends her PhD on 8 December.

We make a distinction between the following types of previous education.

In the specialisation Clinical Psychology, part of the Master in Psychology, you gain extensive knowledge on the asessment and treatment of mental disorders.

Teens with depression appear to be more sensitive to criticism from their parents than their healthy peers are.

LUC graduates have an internationally-recognised Bachelors honours degree (BA/BSc) that qualifies them to apply for competitive programmes at top research universities. Over 90% of our alumni continue their studies into a master programme. It is their interdisciplinary background that makes them eligible…

How can we use data to better understand climate change? Can smart algorithms help drive medical breakthroughs? And how do you design technology that contributes to a more sustainable world? If you are curious about how the world works and how to solve complex problems using science, data, and technology,…

How can we use data to better understand climate change? Can smart algorithms help drive medical breakthroughs? And how do you design technology that contributes to a more sustainable world? If you are curious about how the world works and how to solve complex problems using science, data, and technology,…

In light of the changes made to face to face teaching by Leiden University, LUC student association Fortuna rose to the challenge by coining a virtual Well-Being week and facilitating it online.

Leiden University and LUMC benefit from unique knowledge gained from research and teaching about healthy lifestyles. We want to bring this knowledge together into one place, and we want to share it even more effectively than we do now.

In Germany, the United States and even in Vietnam: all over the world, the Leiden discovery of the birth of two planets was shared. Astronomer Sebastiaan Haffert and his team were able to record multiple planets in the making for the first time and published their findings in Nature Astronomy. A unique…

PhD defence

PhD defence

PhD defence

Neuroimaging research has greatly advanced our insights on how the brain is organized. Now is the time for the next step: Imagine what would be possible when we cannot only map brain-functioning, but use neuroimaging to voluntarily regulate brain-activity!

It is with great sadness that Leiden Law School has learned of the sudden death of Professor Aart Hendriks on 9 February 2025.

Healthy University Leiden aims to promote a working environment where staff and students can do their jobs responsibly, healthily and in positive surroundings, and where they can achieve their potential.

A large multidisciplinary team of experts on ageing has secured over €8.5m for a major study of which factors and solutions promote healthy ageing and increase vitality. The LUMC and the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR) are two of the centres involved in this national research projec…

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

Life returned to something resembling normal after Covid but other crises soon took its place. These great challenges are also being felt at the University and our researchers are working on solutions. The nitrogen crisis, problems with young people’s services and an increasingly urgent climate crisis:…

A number of European countries have started evacuating their citizens and there is a threat of military intervention by neighbouring countries: the situation in Niger is deteriorating rapidly. A military coup has thrown the country into turmoil, partly aided by social media.

An international team led by Leiden astronomers has, after years of searching and defying the boundaries of a telescope, for the first time directly captured polarised light from an exoplanet. From this light they can deduct that a disk of dust and gas orbits the exoplanet. In this disk moons are possibly…

The law and Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications need to be better aligned to ensure our personal data and privacy are protected. PhD candidate Andreas Häuselmann can see opportunities with AI, but dangers if this does not happen.

Work out more, eat healthier, have more time to yourself: we make resolutions every year, but they often don't make it past the end of January. To help you succeed this year, we have compiled a list with New Year's resolutions you can put into practice at the University!

To be eligible for the Clinical and Health Psychology Research Master's specialisation at Leiden University, you must meet the following requirements.

They never cross our minds until, that is, they become damaged and then they’re a huge problem: our sewers. Their maintenance could be much faster and more accurate, PhD candidate Dirk Meijer has discovered. Algorithms are also proving to be a godsend deep underground.

In the discs of dust and gasses around young stars, mysterious structures occur. Together with professor Ewine van Dishoeck, PhD student Paolo Cazzoletti investigate how we can explain these forms, such as rings, spirals and holes. On 12 December, he will defend his thesis.

More people seeking asylum, overcrowded asylum accommodation and asylum procedures that take years because of a lack of capacity. The current government wants to declare an asylum crisis but what is that exactly and can they just do that?