Netherland's Studielink project
Studielink is the common registration and enrolment application for all non-private institutions of higher education in the Netherlands. Studielink arranges the exchange of information between the current or prospective students and the higher educational institution.
@Photo from Pixabay.
Applicants do not have to provide personal and educational data which is already stored in the governmental databases.
Summary
Studielink is the common registration and enrolment application for all non-private institutions of higher education in the Netherlands. Service arranges the exchange of information between the current or prospective student and the higher educational institution. Applicants can use Studielink to submit a digital enrolment application to an educational institution. Students can enter and check information which they can then access and use whenever they need it. This also applies for all bodies involved in the enrolment process, including universities of applied sciences, universities and DUO (Dients Uitovering Onderwijs - Education Executive Agency/Ministry of Education).
Studielink is linked directly to authentic sources, such as the municipal personal records database (GBA), which includes personal data, and the IB-Groep’s General Register for Student Numbers (including exam data). The result is a significant reduction in the paper-based bureaucracy for students and institutions. It also enables an increase in the quality of information sharing: since the information need only be entered and checked once, there is less chance of error than if several bodies enter and check the same information individually.
| URL | http://www.studielink.nl |
|---|---|
| Focus | Citizens | Government |
| Start date | 1 Jan 2013 |
| Domain | Education |
| Scope | National/Federal |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Nature and status of project | Rolled Out |
| Is the OOP case/enabler mandatory? | Mandatory |
ENABLING ASSETS OR COMPONENTS
Political commitment
Higher Education Act, http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/natlex4.detail?p_lang=&p_isn=69514&p_country=NLD&p_count=2273&p_classification=09&p_classcount=29
In accordance with the 'Higher Education Act', educational institutions are required to verify the student's identity.
Legal interoperability
Chapter 4. Registration, selection and registration § 1. General provisions
notification Article 4.1. Electronic Registration (Request for Enrollment), http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0035059/2016-10-01#Hoofdstuk4
The process was given a legal basis in 2009. Before that year students had to type in the diploma data at the Studielink website and then give permission to Studielink to have the data checked by DUO. That old process was particularly prone to error.
Many students forgot to give the permission or made mistakes in typing their diploma data. So at the request of the HEI’s the Ministry of Education added Studielink to the Law on higher education.
Data protection and privacy
Personal Data Protection Act, https://www.privacy.nl/uploads/guide_for_controller_ministry_justice.pdf
It has been laid down in a contract between Studielink Foundation, the institutions for Higher Education and DUO that Studielink is the processor of the personal data within the meaning of the Personal Data Protection Act
Socio-cultural influence factors
The staff members of the universities requested the implementation themselves, so they were eager to accept it.
Data handling / data exchange
Type of data sharing
Actual data
Data handler
| Stakeholder name | Stakeholder type | Stakeholder role | Kind of data |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applicants | Citizen | Data subject | Identification |
| HEIs (Universities) | Government | Data consumer | Final application, Transcript of records |
| DUO (Ministry of Education) | Government | Database owner | Educational Data, Diplomas |
| Ministry of Interior | Government | Database owner | Relevant personal data |
studielink.png (950×436) (scoop4c.eu)
External impacts
Much less printed paper
Lessons learned
Studielink has been created for and by higher education itself (initially only for those institutions of higher education that are financed by the Dutch government. Studielink provides institutions of higher education, educational umbrella organisations Mi VSNU (Association of Dutch Universities) and the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Science and DUO – with a platform for cooperation and innovation in higher education in terms of Student & Education information and administration.
Source: https://scoop4c.eu/cases/netherlands-studielink-project
Disclaimer: Please note that this article is a result of the SCOOP4C Pilot Project, not an application of a CEF Building Block.