I could hardly believe my eyes when I read that the University of Twente plans to abolish the cum laude distinction from its PhD regulations. If this decision is confirmed, it would mark yet another step down a dangerous path – one where excellence is diluted, and mediocrity quietly becomes the norm.
At its heart, the university should be a place that cultivates and rewards intellectual achievement. The cum laude distinction is not a mere ceremonial flourish; it is a signal of exceptional quality, a recognition of years of dedication, creativity, and scientific rigor. Removing it means erasing one of the few remaining ways to distinguish between outstanding doctoral work and research that merely meets the minimum threshold.
A spiral of mediocrity
This decision fits a broader and troubling pattern. Increasingly, success in education at our university is measured by how many students pass, not how well they perform. When the performance indicators are built around pass rates, the perverse incentive is clear: lower the bar. Those who care deeply about teaching and quality find themselves pressured to make their courses ‘easier’ to protect success statistics.
But a university is not – and should never become – a factory of diplomas. It is a place for those who are willing to learn, challenge themselves, and grow. Equal opportunity does not mean equal outcome. When everyone is treated as ‘the same’ regardless of merit, true excellence disappears – and with it, the very reason for being an academic institution.
A misguided equality argument
One of the arguments I have heard is that cum laude distinctions have been awarded less frequently to female candidates, and that removing the predicate would therefore improve fairness. But equality is not achieved by erasing distinctions; it is achieved by ensuring fair and transparent evaluation.
If some deserving candidates – female or otherwise – were unfairly denied the recognition they earned, then those individual cases should be reviewed and corrected. To abolish the cum laude distinction altogether is like stopping the trains because a few passengers have ridden without a ticket. It solves nothing – except, perhaps, the discomfort of confronting structural issues in evaluation.
Excellence is not elitism
Recognizing excellence does not create inequality; it celebrates achievement and inspires others. The best students – whether male, female, Dutch, or international – deserve to know that their extraordinary effort and talent are seen and valued. Removing the cum laude predicate sends precisely the opposite message: that excellence no longer matters.
Universities thrive on ambition, curiosity, and high standards. If we flatten everything to ‘pass or fail,’ we risk suffocating the very qualities that make research vibrant and transformative.
A Call to Reflect
The University of Twente has long prided itself on being ‘High Tech, Human Touch’. But a truly human approach to education and science cannot ignore merit, nor can it pretend that excellence is somehow unfair. Let us strive for fairness and excellence – not one at the expense of the other.
If we continue down this path, we may soon have a university where everyone ‘passes’, but nobody truly excels. That would be the real failure.
