All positions are classified according to the University Job Classification System (Universitair Functieordeningssysteem, UFO). This implies that every position is linked to a job profile and level. The job levels are in turn linked to salary scales. Your employment contract specifies which job profile…

If you find a new job or if your contract is coming to an end, there are a number of matters to consider.

Rachel de Jong works as an Assistant Professor in Clinical Neurodevelopmental Sciences at Leiden University

The research of Marieke Tollenaar involves the study of (neuro)biological processes that play a role in mental health, including stress hormones, epigenetics, and the immune system. She specifically focuses on the long-term consequences of early life stress and childhood maltreatment.

Anne Versluis is a PhD candidate within the Health, Medical and Neuropsychology unit at Leiden University. In her research, she’s interested in how psychological healthcare for vulnerable groups can be improved.

Jasper Maas works as a lecturer at the Institute of Education and Child Studies, Leiden University.

Laura Nawijn is an assistant professor at the unit of Clinical Psychology, where she teaches various courses related to psychopathology and experimental psychology. Her research focusses on psychosocial and neurobiological correlates of depression and PTSD, with a particular interest in stress and trauma,…

Olaf Simonse is a researcher and advisor at the Knowledge Centre for Psychology and Economic Behaviour (KCPEG).

Recent studies have shown that Dutch secondary school pupils experience a great deal of stress from school work, and between 2001 and 2007 the number of adolescents experiencing school stress even doubled. The study carried out by Simone Vogelaar focuses on stress factors and the effectiveness of the…

Bernet Elzinga and her group conduct research into the influence of trauma and stress on affective, social and cognitive functions in the context of stress-related disorders, including depression and anxiety. Intergenerational research has her special interest, especially the communication between parents…

People who are often stressed can feel calmer by making certain adjustments to their breathing. Possibly this also positively affects concentration and attention. Psychologist Roderik Gerritsen studied the effects of breathing differently for the first time, and explains them. Gerritsen receives his…

Rüya Akdağ is a PhD candidate within the CoPAN Lab of the Cognitive Psychology unit. Her project Mind the Body investigates whether cognitive and affective disturbances influence social anxiety and whether regulating both disturbances via accessible digital interventions can help adolescents learn to…

The nine suspects from Hilversum accused of beating Carlo Heuvelman so badly on the night of 14 July last year that he later died will hear their sentences on Friday. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) had demanded that one of the suspects be sentenced to 10 years in prison, and two others eight ye…

Our research is aimed at understanding the factors involved in creating cell wall-deficient cells. We investigate the bacterial stress responses to identify the mechanism and genomic alterations behind switching between the walled to wall-less state. With this project, we contribute towards novel treatment…

Stress and overwork are massive problems today, but relatively little is known about stress factors in the past. With a look at the deep history of stress, Sarah Schrader hopes to get a better understanding of the human stress experience. Her project application received an NWO XS grant.

Bart Verkuil is associate professor at the Clinical Psychology Unit. He is active in various courses in the bachelor and master curricula and supervises master thesis students. His research focusses on physiological aspects of psychopathology (anxiety and depression). Bart also works part-time as a…

This course, Project ME, is about personal leadership. You'll learn to understand yourself better and to manage yourself through the struggles and challenges during your PhD time. We’ll focus on time- and stress management, creating more happiness and wellbeing at work and having a healthy work-life…

Acute stress seems to have a surprisingly positive effect on our health. Researcher Erin Faught received an NWO veni grant to find out why that is and how we can use that knowledge to our advantage. For her lab research, she uses a remarkable small animal to learn more about our own stress levels.

Consumer grade smartwatches may not be as accurate as promised when measuring tiredness or stress. That is the conclusion of researchers Björn Siepe and Eiko Fried based on a comparison between smartwatch measurements and self-reports by users.

Rianne de Kleine is an Assistant Professor in the Clinical Psychology department and a psychologist in training at LUBEC. As a scientist-practitioner, she combines scientific research, teaching, and clinical care.

Maartje Schoorl is a clinical psychologist who has obtained her PhD at Leiden University in 2013, supported with an Opleiding Onderzoeker GGZ (OOG) grant. Since then, she combined a clinical position with research and teaching at the University of Leiden and in the post-master education. Since 2016,…

Aukje Nauta's professorship at Leiden University has been extended for another five years. She will further research how connectedness in the workplace helps people to be their full self and perform better. Her conviction: for a healthy work culture, we need to be willing to feel a bit more ashamed…

Prof.dr. D. Scheepers dr. R. Pliskin

The number of life sentences in the Netherlands is rising sharply. This is a clear response to the serious drugs violence and brutal attacks on our rule of law. However, criminal justice experts do not believe that this will deter future offenders from carrying out liquidations.

After sixteen years in various roles, Arianne Pen knew straight away: 'This is my chance.' As the new head of department at SOSZ, she uses her extensive network and experience to improve educational processes – and to give the support staff the recognition they deserve.

Thomas Willems is a PhD candidate at the Department of Clinical Psychology and his research focuses on the mechanisms and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Specifically, the aim of his PhD-project is to reduce the gap between experimental research that is done in the laboratory, and…

Henk van Steenbergen is an associate professor at the Cognitive Psychology unit at Leiden University. He heads the Affect, Motivation & Action (AMA) Lab, where he and his colleagues study the interplay between affect, motivation, stress and cognitive control.

A degree in the Humanities provides a strong start in the labour market, according to research conducted among alumni who graduated between 2020 and 2024.

Unemployed people often need not only a financial safety net but also a stimulus to look for work. PhD candidate Heike Vethaak researched the effects of incentives used by benefit agencies, such as compelling people to widen their job search.

Three alumni of our Master’s degree programme in Ancient History talk to us about how they found a job after graduation during the coronavirus pandemic. During the interview, Gabriël hung a huge board covered in post-it reminders behind his laptop, Molly was glad that the members of the selection committee…

More and more staff at our university are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools such as MS CoPilot and ChatGPT to automate routine administrative or supporting tasks. Want to optimise your everyday tasks? Come to the ‘Reduce your workload with AI’ workshop and discover the possibilities of AI. You…

Soil that is too wet, or too dry. Or with a lot or few nutrients. Due to climate change, the differences are becoming bigger, and plants must increasingly be able to adapt to survive. How do you make plants more stress-resistant? For this purpose, researchers from Leiden, along with other universities,…

Four FSW researchers received good news at the end of 2025: they will receive an NWO-XS grant this year.

You speak Japanese, know everything about medieval art or understand exactly what Hegel meant. And then you graduate. Many Humanities students find it hard to enter the labour market. A relevant part-time job can help. Therefore, the faculty has been working together with the employment agency Randstad…

Fitness is more than physical health alone. An equally important aspect is mental fitness. Mental fitness refers to fitness of the mind. Situations may arise at work that may lead to you feeling less strong. What you can do about them?

P. Michiel Westenberg is Full Professor in the unit Developmental and Educational Psychology at Leiden University.