About Education Governance at Wageningen University
Wageningen University organises its education through a structured, collaborative system. This article explains who is involved, how responsibilities are divided and how curriculum decisions are made.
After reading this article, you will understand how WUR's governance structure is organised, who is responsible for what, and how this affects your day-to-day role as an educator or coordinator.
Audience: WUR educators, programme directors, coordinators, support staff
Reading time: ~10 minutes
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Before you read: watch the 5-minute video below to get a visual overview of WUR's governance structure. This article builds on what you see there.
Link to the Administrative and Management Regulations of WU, in Dutch: Bestuurs- en Beheersreglement: Goed bestuur | WUR
1. WUR as a single faculty
Wageningen University & Research consists of two parts: Wageningen University and Wageningen Research. This article focuses on Wageningen University, which provides accredited bachelor's and master's programmes.
Wageningen University operates as a single faculty, the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. This is unique in the Netherlands. Instead of dividing the university into multiple faculties with separate rules and structures, everything at WUR operates under one shared academic and administrative framework.
This single-faculty structure means that all programmes share the same:
- Vision for Education
- Assessment policy
- Education and Examination Regulations (EER)
- Study Handbook
This creates consistency and enables close collaboration across disciplines.
2. The Matrix Structure
We work within a matrix structure (see figure 1), which helps balance the demand for education with its supply. This structure connects two key parts of the university. On one side: the Board of Education, Programme Committees, and Programme Directors. They represent the educational programmes and define what education is needed (the demand). On the other side: the Science Groups and their Chair Groups, where the general directors, teaching staff, and researchers are based (the supply).
Five Science Groups (supply)
Each Science Group contains several chair groups. Chair groups employ teachers who develop courses and teach students. They are responsible for the quality of the education they deliver and for ensuring their teaching staff are qualified.
Bachelor's & master's programmes (demand)
Programmes determine what education is needed and which chair groups they ask to teach their courses. The Board of Education governs all programmes and allocates budgets. Chair groups receive payment for the education they provide.
Why this model works: Flexibility without fragmentation
Because programmes are not tied to a single Science Group, they can draw on expertise from all five groups. This makes it straightforward to:
- offer multi- and interdisciplinary courses
- allows programmes to share courses with each other
- gives students access to a wide variety of options.
This does require good coordination, especially when changes in courses have financial consequences for a chair group.
In practice, this means that as a lecturer or course coordinator, you may work within a chair group but teach in programmes across multiple Science Groups. Decisions about course content and quality go through the programme side (demand), while your contract, workload, and professional development sit with your chair group (supply). This can sometimes create tension. For example, when programme needs change but chair group capacity does not. In those cases, coordination happens between the Programme Director and the relevant chair group, often with the Dean of Education involved.
3. Actors, roles, and responsibilities
Quality in WUR degree programmes is achieved collectively. Each actor has a distinct role, but they collaborate closely throughout the academic year. In figure 2, the model of the governance structure is shown. In the text below the figure, a short description of each actor, their responsibilities and interactions are given, also referring to the text in the Administrative and Management Regulations of WU.
The governance model distinguishes between 'what' (content and quality decisions, made by the Board of Education) and 'how' (implementation, managed by the Dean of Education and Programme Directors).
The Board of Education is responsible for the content, quality, and innovation of the degree programmes.
- The BoE advises the Executive Board on the establishment and discontinuance of degree programmes and chairs, the educational framework, general education issues and the Education and Examination Regulations (EER). The BoE operates within the framework set by the Executive Board (BRR 23.1,2).
- The Dean of Education acts as the technical chair of the BoE (BBR 22.3; 13.4) and prepares educational policies for the BoE and the Executive Board (BBR 13.3).
Programme Committees advise* on the stimulation and preservation of quality in a (group of) degree programmes (BBR 26)
- * the BoE regarding a specific degree programme, independent from the PD (BBR 28.1d). Members of the PC are appointed by the Board of Education (BBR 27.2). The BoE provides the PCs with information relevant for the PC’s tasks and responsibilities (BBR 23.1g).
- * the PD regarding a specific degree programme (BBR 28 1d), regarding the development of a vision for the programme (BBR 28.1d) and regarding proposed modifications of the programme (BBR 23.1b), The PD provides the PC with information relevant for the PC’s tasks and responsibilities (BBR 25.1f).
- PCs have the right of consent/to advise the Executive Board on (elements of) the EER (BBR 28.1a,c)
Programme Directors safeguard the quality of the programme and are responsible for the execution of BoE policy regarding the quality, content and innovation of the programme. They receive advice from the PC (4),
6. * propose modifications of the programme to the BoE (BBR 23.1a), develop a vision for the programme and submit this vision to the Board of Education for adoption (BBR 25.1.d) and execute decisions (“what”) by the BoE regarding content, quality, and innovation of the degree programmes (BBR 25.1e). The BoE provides the PDs with information relevant for the PD’s tasks and responsibilities (BBR 23.1g)
7. make arrangements with chair groups regarding quality and content of courses of the degree programme (BBR 25.1c). The chair holders are responsible for the provision of the educational content in that domain, taking into account the authorities of the Board of Education (BBR 19.4)
8. act under the hierarchical management of the Dean of Education (“how”; BBR 25.3)
The Dean of Education is the director of ESA and the technical chair of the Board of Education. The Dean is ultimately responsible for preparing and implementing educational policies for the BoE (see 2) and
9. the Executive Board (BBR 13.3). The Dean is appointed by the Executive Board (BBR 13.2).
The Examining Board is responsible for ensuring the quality of interim examinations and examinations (BBR 32.2.c).
10. The Examining Board advises the Executive Board on (modifications of) the EER (BBR 32.1). Members of the Examining Board are appointed by the Executive Board (BBR 31.1)
11. The Examining Board ensures the quality of (interim) examinations and the quality of the organisation and procedures with regard to these (BBR 32.2c)
Chair groups and Science groups provide capacity and guarantee quality of staff involved
12. The Science Group coordinates its educational offerings based on the education programmes that have been established by the BoE (BBR 17.2).
13. The Science Group provides recommendations to the Executive Board and the Board of Education regarding all matters related to education in the Science Group (BBR 17.4).
14. Half of the members of a PC are selected from staff members involved in the education provided in the degree programme(s) (BBR 27.1).
15. The Dean of Education stimulates the coordination of the educational supply and demand in consultation with the Science Groups, makes proposals to the relevant Management Boards regarding the staff which provide education and on the spending of funds for the material facilitation of the education provided (BBR 13.5).
And in short, this are the roles and responsibilities of the three main actors in our governance of education:
Figure 3 Simplified version of the proposed governance model, describing roles and responsibilities regarding quality of degree programmes of the Board of Education, the Programme Director and Programme Committee.
What does this mean for you in practice?
- If you teach a course: your chair group is responsible for your capacity and qualifications. The Programme Director makes arrangements with your chair group about what is taught.
- If you want to change a course: discuss this with your Programme Director. Significant changes go to the Board of Education for approval.
- If you receive negative course evaluations: your chair group and Programme Director both have a role in follow-up. The Programme Committee may also signal quality concerns.
- If you sit on a Programme Committee: you advise both the Programme Director and the Board of Education, independently.
4. Key takeaways
- WUR has one faculty with one shared set of frameworks. This creates coherence and enables interdisciplinary collaboration.
- The matrix model connects programme demand to Science Group supply, with chair groups delivering and programmes choosing.
- The Board of Education decides what: the Dean of Education and Programme Directors manage how.
- Programme Committees provide independent advice to both the BoE and the Programme Director, including consent rights on the EER.
- Educational quality is a collective achievement: each actor has a distinct role, but close collaboration is what makes it work.
- As an educator, your day-to-day work is shaped by both your chair group (your employer and teaching base) and the programme(s) you teach in. Understanding who decides what, and who manages how, helps you know where to go when questions or changes arise.
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