The Graduate School Office is responsible for you if your first supervisor is part of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs. The Coordinator of the Graduate School Office carries out the admission and registration procedures, and supports you from the beginning of your PhD traject until completion.

If you have any questions, please contact the Coordinator of the Graduate School Office. 

The Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs has appointed two PhD Deans for PhD candidates. They are the first point of contact for both PhD candidates and their (co-)supervisors regarding questions or concerns about supervision, progress, or wellbeing during the PhD trajectory.

The PhD Deans offer personal and procedural support. They conduct annual one-on-one meetings with PhD candidates to discuss progress and supervision, offer guidance with training and supervision plans (TSPs), attend Go/No-Go assessments, and assist in ensuring timely completion of key milestones. While they do not act as confidential counsellors, they can advise candidates and refer them to the university’s confidential counsellor or ombudsperson when appropriate.

Currently, Dr. Natascha van der Zwan, from the Institute of Public Administration, is the PhD Dean for PhD candidates at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA). Dr. Seda Gürkan, from the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA), is the PhD Dean for PhD candidates at the Institute of Public Administration and Leiden University College (LUC). This cross-institute allocation ensures that the PhD Deans always operate from an independent position and are not involved in cases within their own institute.

Doing a PhD can be deeply rewarding, but also mentally and emotionally demanding. At FGGA, we want to ensure that all PhD candidates have access to the right support when facing challenges related to stress, motivation, isolation, or personal wellbeing.

There are several resources available to support your mental health.

Mental Fitness Platform

The university’s Mental Fitness website offers tips, self-help tools, and information about where to find help for a range of issues – from academic stress to personal problems. You can also find contact details of the University doctor there.

Siggie for PhD candidates

FGGA PhD candidates also have access to Siggie, an external online coaching platform that offers short-term, solution-focused support. Siggie is especially helpful if you feel stuck, overwhelmed, or want to work on personal development or mental resilience.

Unlike the university’s PhD psychologist, Siggie does not require a referral, and no diagnosis is made – the focus is on practical coaching (up to 5 sessions) with a certified psychologist, accessible online and confidential. For more serious or long-term psychological challenges, you can contact the university’s dedicated PhD psychologist, who offers individual support tailored to the needs of PhD candidates.

Read more about Siggie and how to sign up. 

A substantial part of PhD candidates have an increased risk for mental health problems, stress complaints or burnout. Leiden University has appointed a psychologist especially for PhD candidates: Agnes van Rossum. The PhD psychologist offers psychological support for all PhD’s at Leiden University, no matter what kind of contract. So for employed PhD’s (a paid PhD position), contract PhD’s (subsidised by a grant) or external PhD’s (supported by own funds). The support of the PhD psychologist is free for all PhD’s and is strictly confidential.

What kind of problems?

The help is meant for PhD candidates who struggle with psychological issues caused by the promotion process or that have a direct effect on it. You can think of: 

• physical stress, (work) pressure, exhaustion, disbalance in work and private life, burnout 
• demotivation, concentration problems, procrastination 
• anxiety, fear of failure, future uncertainties, perfectionism, assertiveness, imposter syndrome 
• mood issues, low self-esteem, negative self-image 
• mismatch in needs and supervision, problematic work environment 
• social isolation, loneliness, adjustment problems, culture shock, corona crisis. 

The aim is to increase the well-being of PhD candidates so that they can design and complete their PhD trajectory in a healthy way. On the one hand by offering individual help to solve problems and to prevent worse, on the other also taking a preventive approach with information and education.  

Who is the PhD psychologist?

Agnes van Rossum has worked for many years as a scientist in the position of technician, PhD candidate (doctorated in 2006) and post-doc. In 2010 she decided to quit science and started studying clinical and health psychology at Utrecht University and started her own practice. In the role of PhD psychologist, she brings her two worlds together. She is well aware of the unique position of the PhD candidate. This allows her to provide adequate help that meets the specific needs of the PhD candidate. 

Agnes: “I would like to make the threshold to be as low as possible, so that PhD candidates come as early to ask for help when needed.”

Contact

• E-mail: phdpsychologist@sea.leidenuniv.nl 
• Phone: +31 6-38 55 70 46  Secretariat: +31 71-527 2727 
• Working days: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday. 

Dissatisfaction with the work environment and the occurrence of conflicts with supervisors and management in general happen in all kinds of organisations irrespective of whatever safety measures have been taken to ensure optimal functioning on the work floor. Many of such conflicts are often the result of miscommunication, misunderstanding, prejudice, etc. and can adequately be resolved if raised in time.

If you experience problems related to your PhD project that you cannot solve yourself, you can contact the confidential counsellor (vertrouwenspersoon) for PhD candidates, Mr. Marije Bedaux. 

When to appeal?

The counsellor is the right person to consult on, or to report to, all kinds of sensitive work-related issues, which staff members cannot openly discuss with their direct supervisor or institute’s board. Or in case the actions already taken for resolving the problems have failed to achieve the desired results.

Which kind of complaints can the counsellor deal with?

The complaints and points of dissatisfaction should primarily be work-related. For example, conflicts with a supervisor about work load or future perspective, suspicions of discrimination, plagiarism, sexual harassment, feelings of intimidation, hostility, neglect and disrespect. In addition, issues which apply to PhD candidates such as excessive pressure on publishing or lecturing, dissatisfaction with the quality of the supervision, meeting’s frequency with (daily) supervisor, feedback’s quality and delay and work conditions in general.

What does confidentiality mean?

It is important to emphasise that due to the sensitive character of the consultations the counsellor is obliged to act with the utmost prudence. Confidentiality means that the identity of the staff members and their specific complaints will not be revealed to anyone and that no action will be undertaken without their direct request and full consent as well.

Contact

You can make an appointment by sending an e-mail to Mr. Marije Bedaux. 

Marjan van Dasselaar is the Staff Ombuds Officer at Leiden University. The Staff Ombuds Officer gives independent advice to the University on how the staff’s work environment can be made safer.

The Ombuds Officer does this by investigating themes and recurring patterns, which often form the background of specific problems encountered by staff members, such as unacceptable behaviour, discrimination, conflicts and integrity issues. The Ombuds Officer is therefore a crucial aspect of social safety in our organisation.

The responsibilities of the Ombuds Officer, as well as the differences compared to the university’s confidential counsellor, are described on the university’s website.

More information will follow soon. 

PhD candidates and postdocs can visit the University's PhD Career Platform (login required). On that website you can explore your future employment possibilities.

More information will follow soon. 

The Service Centre International Staff (SCIS) supports international PhD candidates, employees, and guest researchers in Leiden. SCIS offers advice and services on topics such as immigration and residence permits, housing, dual career support, social events, insurance, and taxes. 

You can also consult the SCIS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for up-to-date information about practical matters related to your stay in the Netherlands.

Leiden University Libraries (UBL) offer extensive collections, databases, and research support to PhD candidates and staff. The library provides access to both digital and physical resources, as well as training, workshops, and personal support to help you make the most of its services.

For PhD candidates, the UBL can be especially helpful in areas such as conducting systematic literature searches, managing references, publishing your research, and making your dissertation available open access. We recommend PhD candidates to explore the section Information for researchers on the UBL website for tailored support and resources.

Leiden University appreciates it if you as a researcher take the time every now and then to explain your work to a wider audience. And journalists from newspapers, the TV and news sites are regularly on the lookout for experts who can shed light on current developments. To help you with this, Leiden University offers a Media Guide for Researchers. 

PhD candidates are also welcome to contact the Faculty’s Communications and Marketing team directly if they have ideas for sharing their research more widely or have already been featured in external media. The team can offer advice and support in shaping your message for a broader audience.