Institutional Strategy Plan UHasselt 2025-2029

An organisation is defined by its people. Without people – and their talent, dedication and passion – an organisation cannot make any progress and its ambitions will not come to fruition. This is why it is so important for us to offer our employees a stimulating work environment where they can fully develop their talents and grow. A meaningful place where they feel part of a community and can contribute to our civic mission with pride. A safe place, too, where they feel valued, heard and involved. Against the backdrop of our rapid growth, the global competition for talent, and constant change, we are therefore committed to an HR policy that prioritises talent development, wellbeing, inclusion and agility. Such a policy will be good for our University, its strategy and all its people. 

We will aim for a governance structure that allows our University to act decisively, stimulate innovation and facilitate partnerships with external stakeholders. Room for coordination. Transparency. Trust. Efficiency. These are the key words of the governance structure we wish to create. We want structures that facilitate collaboration, without imposing cumbersome reforms. We want more alignment in strategic policy on education, research and valorisation, without detracting from the individual character of different fields. Finally, we want an agile governance structure that is right for the present era of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.

A healthy and balanced financing system is essential to achieving our strategic ambitions. However, UHasselt faces several financial challenges. Structural underfunding from the government limits our effectiveness. The growth in research activities, lifelong learning initiatives and infrastructure needs makes new sources of funding necessary. We also need to strike a balance between structural and project-based funding, public and private resources, internal redistribution and external fundraising. In the next few years, we must therefore build a multi-layered funding system that safeguards the public basis – government funds – while simultaneously focusing on revenue through external, private sources.

The current fragmentation of IT systems, the lack of real-time insights (data), and the limited integration of tools act as a brake on the achievement of our ambitions. Over the next few years, we will therefore have to undergo a digital transformation. The ultimate goal is to become a University that can make informed decisions – based on the necessary data – and that uses technology as a lever for agile and impactful education, research, knowledge transfer, policy-making and collaboration. A digital transformation of this kind is not simply about smarter organisation, better decision-making or ensuring that we are on board in an AI-driven world. We believe it is equally important for digital tools to empower and support people. In our digital transformation, we will therefore take an approach in which technologies also contribute to wellbeing, transparency and meaningful human interaction.

We will create a future-proof learning, living and working environment. An environment where you can find brains, knowledge and expertise within cycling distance – with sustainable, high-quality public transport, space for relaxation, and affordable accommodation for students, staff and guests. This infrastructure will be – in line with the ambitions in this plan – open, modular, hybrid, data-driven and scalable. In short, it will reflect us as a University: people-oriented, sustainable and connected to each other and to the region. We will take a thoughtful approach to campus development – paying consistent attention to the impact of large-scale new construction and renovation projects, public infrastructure works and major relocations on our campuses.