The survey on diversity and inclusion at Dutch universities and universities of applied sciences has been stopped with immediate effect. The reliability of the new data can no longer be guaranteed, after media outlet GeenStijl asked its readers to fill in the survey.

The journalistic research into perceived diversity and inclusion at 19 colleges and universities across the country was terminated prematurely after a publication on GeenStijl. The website published an article last Thursday, ‘Non-Binary Pollfuck! Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences would like to measure your inclusivity’ in which readers were invited to complete the diversity survey.

The article contained a link to the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences questionnaire. Links to the studies of the eighteen other participating institutions were also quickly shared in the comments under the article.

Quality and reliability

Research agency Newcom, which is carrying out the research on behalf of the Council of Editors-in-chief of Higher Education Media, has decided to stop collecting the data. That is because, even after five days, the call by GeenStijl to fill in the survey is still being answered. The research bureau can no longer guarantee the quality and reliability of the research, according to their spokesperson.

The Council of Editors-in-chief of Higher Education Media supports this decision, says its chairman Ries Agterberg: ‘It is a shame that a publication by GeenStijl is torpedoing a careful and neutral investigation. The purpose of the survey was precisely to investigate the experiences and opinions of students and staff on this theme. To what extent do they support the diversity policy of universities and colleges? That’s a legitimate question. It was not intended to impose any particular philosophy. By stopping the survey prematurely, we were deprived of the opportunity to bring these experiences to light.’

Agterberg: ‘We would like to thank all students and employees who took their time to fill in our survey.’

Large-scale research

The survey is part of a large-scale research project of almost all independent media from universities and universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands. The Council of Editors-in-chief of Higher Education Media received a subsidy for the survey from the Stimulation Fund for Journalism. Based on the study’s qualitative results, Vox and other Higher Education Media will publish articles on diversity policies at higher education institutions in December.