LIEF
LIEF is the student party dedicated exclusively to the Faculty of Science (FNWI) since 2008. While other parties focus on central university politics, we fight for the interests of STEM students at Science Park. We stand for decentralization: decisions about your education belong at the faculty level, not with a central board. We believe the FNWI knows best what its students need, and we ensure that voice resonates clearly within the Faculty Student Council (FSR).
Our vision centers on a faculty where personal growth is key. LIEF believes students should have the space to explore fields outside their own through minors and honours programs, without being hindered by faculty policy. Furthermore, we strive for an inclusive campus where everyone feels welcome, regardless of background or disability. For us, physical accessibility and social safety are not afterthoughts, but fundamental requirements for studying without barriers and being yourself.
Finally, LIEF stands for an uncompromising focus on educational quality through transparency and fairness. We strictly monitor the compliance of regulations, such as grading deadlines and exam rights, so you know exactly what to expect. By committing to a predictable curriculum, we ensure your focus can remain entirely on learning. Choose a party that speaks your language and focuses solely on your faculty. Vote LIEF for a strong voice at Science Park!
Click on any motion below to see the parties explination
Calling the police is an appropriate response when protests disrupt education or access to services.
Neutral
LIEF believes that police can only be used to control protests and demonstrations if a clear line is crossed during these protests. What this line is is complicated for LIEF to determine, and should actually be looked at on a situation-by-situation basis. Generally, for LIEF, this line is violence, intimidation or vandalism. Only then are we in favour of police involvement at protests and demonstrations. Furthermore, the dean/CvB should take into account the rich history of disproportionate violence used by police against (UvA's) students.
Student & Workers Councils should have the final say in all policy decisions
Agree
LIEF strives for effective student representation within the UvA bureaucracy. We view the right to the final vote on policy decisions as the ultimate form of participation for the student and works councils. In an ideal world, students would have this final say, but we recognize that the short term of office hinders council members from developing deep expertise. With the current level of training and support, it remains a challenge to transfer this level of responsibility directly to students.
The UvA should expand research collaboration and funding partnerships with private sector companies.
Neutral
LIEF does not want the university to become dependent on the private sector. However, we believe that research collaborations and funding partnerships with companies can have a positive impact on the quality of education.
The university should actively prioritise diversity targets in hiring, even when this means deviating from purely merit-based selection.
Agree
LIEF believes that diversity directly improves the quality of education. Therefore, a well-considered balance must be maintained during the candidate selection process.
The Binding Study Advice (BSA) should be abolished.
Fully agree
LIEF sees no merit in retaining the BSA system. Not only has it already been demonstrated that this places an unnecessary additional workload on students, but it has also recently become apparent that it does not lead to improved academic success or potential financial benefits for the university. Furthermore, this system fails to take sufficient account of students who, due to personal circumstances, are unable to meet the standards set by the BSA.
Students wishing to follow honours programmes should be admitted based on academic performance, not motivation alone.
Fully disagree
LIEF believes that everyone should have the opportunity to develop themselves beyond the standard curriculum, whether by specialising further or broadening their horizons. The honours programme can form part of this. Whether you ultimately receive the ‘honours’ designation depends on your performance throughout this programme. We therefore see no reason to create barriers for students from the outset. Give everyone the chance to prove themselves.
The majority of the food options sold on campus should be plant based.
Agree
LIEF aims to promote sustainability, and encouraging a plant-based diet is part of this. We believe that a target of at least half of sales being plant-based food is a realistic goal, whilst also allowing room for other preferences.
Occupations should be considered as a legitimate means of protest at the university.
Agree
The 1969 occupations of several universities provided students with representation within universities. It is in the history of student councils to see occupations as legitimate means of protest. Therefore, LIEF agrees with the statement. However, LIEF does believe that the autonomy of student councils is important and therefore thinks that student councils should decide for themselves which demonstration they do or do not support.
Admission to programmes with limited capacity should be based on random lotteries rather than selection procedures.
Agree
Research shows that selection procedures are inherently unequal. Participants from higher socioeconomic backgrounds tend to perform better in these processes because they have access to better resources for preparation. However, we recognize that a pure lottery system can sometimes prevent highly qualified students from pursuing the degree that best suits them. Therefore, we advocate for a middle ground: 25% of students are admitted through a selection procedure, while the remaining 75% of places are allocated via a lottery. This solution ensures that exceptional talents are still admitted while maintaining equal opportunities for the rest of the intake.
The UvA should completely exclude research collaboration and funding from the security and resilience sector.
Disagree
Research collaborations with the security and resilience sector can be highly valuable for students aspiring to a career in this field. As an interdisciplinary party, we want to provide students with the freedom to develop themselves across as many disciplines as possible. Furthermore, we find this motion to be too restrictive. Because the security and resilience sector is so broad, a total exclusion would have significant consequences for research areas that are of great social importance even outside the context of defense
The UvA should strongly oppose any government attempt to reduce the number of international students.
Neutral
The university is, by its very nature, a place that benefits from international collaboration. Teaching international students is part of this. These students enrich our community.
Study programs should be audited by an independent board on the diversity of the academic and ideological perspectives in their curriculum.
Neutral
LIEF currently finds it unclear how this will be organised in practice and what the potential consequences might be.
The executive board of the university should be elected through an open election by the students and worker's body.
Agree
LIEF advocates for a more direct, tangible democracy at the University. Electing the Executive Board (CvB) would create stronger ties between the administration and the students. LIEF is committed to making this a reality. However, LIEF believes this would currently be difficult to achieve because students do not yet show enough interest in tangible university democracy. By this, we mean that voter turnout for these elections would likely be low if they were implemented right now.
The UvA should prioritise offering permanent contracts to Junior Lecturers (D4s), even if this leaves less financial room for senior lecturer salary increases.
Agree
LIEF believes that offering permanent contracts to Junior Lecturers will improve the quality of education. If these lecturers are not offered permanent positions, they only teach at the university for a few years before being replaced. Consequently, the UvA loses educators who have gained valuable experience, which negatively impacts educational standards. Furthermore, providing stability to junior lecturers is the only way to secure the senior faculty of the future. By offering young talent a stable foundation, we give them the opportunity to truly develop into the experienced professionals who will sustain our education in the long term.
Every bachelor programme should be offered in both Dutch and English.
Disagree
LIEF believes it is important for degree programmes to be able to decide for themselves in which language they offer their courses. After all, they are best placed to assess the extent to which they have an international audience and whether the subject area requires it. We believe it would be unwise for every degree programme to be offered in two languages, as this is certainly impractical for smaller programmes.
The university should significantly expand student services like student advisors and psychologists, even if this requires reducing spending on education and teaching.
Agree
Psychologists and academic advisors at the UvA are experiencing a high workload. Expanding student services will ensure that students can access the right person or resources more quickly, enabling them to better manage study-related challenges. LIEF is convinced that reducing study pressure and addressing mental health issues directly improves academic performance. This investment in student well-being translates directly into higher educational quality. Therefore, the benefits of these services outweigh the additional costs. A healthy student population is an essential prerequisite for high-quality education.
The university should ensure a larger part of the curriculum (of all study programs) is focused on career preparation, even if this takes away from time spent on academic subjects.
Agree
Ultimately, many students end up in jobs in the business world after completing their studies. It is therefore important that academic programmes also focus on preparing students for the professional world. Ultimately, this must be struck in the right balance with the academic nature of the programme.
The university should prioritise expanding study spaces over investing in additional contemplation rooms.
Disagree
LIEF naturally believes it is important to invest in sufficient study spaces. We do not believe that the existence of contemplation rooms would significantly undermine this. The university can provide space for both.
The university lacks sufficient readily accessible gender-neutral toilets and should convert more existing toilets to be gender-neutral.
Agree
LIEF welcomes the progress that has already been made in this area. However, not all buildings have enough gender-neutral toilets available yet. In existing buildings, these toilets are often treated as an afterthought.