The University Medical Centre Groningen has four career tracks, or ‘impact profiles’, in academic leadership: the ‘classic’ research profile, a special track for clinicians, one for society and valorization, and the fourth one is for education. This system was pushed by Marian Joëls and provides new ways for diversifying academic career tracks. ‘Careers can be diverse and the optimal result is when you really make use of people’s talents.’

Marian Joëls is Professor Neurobiology of Environmental Factors. Until recently, she was Dean of Medical Sciences at the University of Groningen and member of the Board of Management of the UMCG.

In this short series, Marie-José van Tol and Sanli Faez, members of The Young Academy discuss some outstanding solutions for common issues experienced at Dutch universities with various guests. In these interviews faculty members from four universities present how a serious and common problem has been solved in their department or institute in a creative way.