Our team
At UM Academy, our vision of lifelong development is shaped by a team of experienced and knowledgeable directors. All team members have extensive experience and expertise in teaching, research and practice. Find out more about their backgrounds, their contributions to our academy, and their role in developing our offer and policies.
Bouwien Janssen
Director Lifelong Development Maastricht University
From a young age, I learned that hard work, learning, and achievement were important. My father, now 86, began working in the Limburg mining industry at the age of 17. As the eldest in the family, he had little choice despite the risks of mine gas and silica dust for the miners. When the mines closed in 1974, he had the opportunity to retrain as an engineer in the chemical and technical sector. This marked the beginning of a successful career at DSM, where he held various leadership positions.
Inspired by his story, I am now the director of the UM Academy for Lifelong Development (LLL). My ambition is to build a network organisation that connects researchers from UM with external labour market partners, government, and educational institutions to collaboratively develop educational offerings. These offerings should be easily findable and accessible for professionals and align well with the needs of the (inter)national labour market.
With over 25 years of experience in the financial sector, including 15 years as a director/executive of local Rabobanks, I have gained knowledge in financial services, mergers, transition management, and the significant impact of culture on an organisation’s success. Since 2018, I have transitioned to the academic world, where, in addition to my role at the UM Academy for LLL, I am also the director of the Development & Alumni Office and of the independent charity Foundation University Fund Limburg |SWOL|. Additionally, I serve as a commissioner at Stichting Woonpunt in Maastricht.
Throughout my career, I have learned that I thrive in situations that demand a decisive approach. As a leader, I strive for a healthy balance between being people-oriented and achieving results, under the motto ‘firm on content, gentle on relationships.’ Continuous learning and personal development are central to my philosophy, where I, like my father, aim to set a good example.
Mark Levels
Co-founder & Scientific Director Lifelong Development Maastricht University
I am the Dean of Lifelong Development at Maastricht University and a co-founder and Scientific Director of the Academy for Lifelong Learning at Maastricht University. Additionally, I work as a Professor of Sociology and Programme Director at the Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA) of UM.
As a sociologist, I investigate various societal issues, such as improving education, the integration of vulnerable youth and immigrant children, and the health of young people. Much of my recent work focuses on the labour market and the future of work. I led the European TECHNEQUALITY consortium, which researched the impact of automation on work and demonstrated that inventions such as artificial intelligence can profoundly change the labour market. In response to these findings, I, along with others, designed the National LLL Catalyst: a national programme aimed at ensuring that universities, universities of applied sciences, and vocational education are prepared to retrain large groups of people if necessary. I am very proud that this programme is now being implemented and is seen internationally as a model.
I also strongly believe in the importance of lifelong learning from personal experience. I began my career as a professional soldier and then worked briefly in the private sector. At the age of 25, I returned to school. I studied sociology at Radboud University Nijmegen (MSc 2006, cum laude; PhD 2011) and then came to Maastricht. I have worked as a visiting researcher at institutions including the European University Institute in Florence, Oxford, and Harvard. As a researcher, you need to keep up with many aspects, and I have always been fortunate to continue my education.
As Dean, I advocate for education that serves society and helps individuals and employers prepare for the demands of tomorrow’s labour market. I see my role as one of service: I want to support and connect the many expert colleagues within our university. And I want to ensure that people who wish or need to retrain or upskill first think of Maastricht. Because we do amazing things!
Boris Blumberg
Executive Director UMIO
Dr. Boris Blumberg is the Executive Director of UMIO; the professional development branch of Maastricht University’s School of Business and Economics (SBE).
Boris holds a PhD in organisation sociology from Utrecht University and an MSc in business from Mannheim University in Germany. He has been a visiting scholar at the Booth Business School of the University of Chicago and the Haas Business School at the University of California at Berkeley.
His research focuses on social networks and entrepreneurship. Moreover, he is interested in methodological questions. His research has been published in Organization Studies, Small Business Economics and Journal of Entrepreneurship & Regional Development and he serves on the editorial boards of Organization Research Methods and Journal of Small Business.
Meinhard Gans
Director Maastricht School of Management (MSM)
Meinhard Gans is a long-time member of the Management Board of MSM, initially in capacity of Director of International Project Operations and Consultancies, currently in capacity of Director.
Mr. Gans is an economist and chartered accountant by background, however he has mainly been involved in MSM’s project operations. He has a track record of project work in around 50 countries, in numerous assignments, working for the higher Education Sector, Government and the Business Community.
Throughout his long tenure at MSM, he has been involved in the development and start-up of many of MSM’s landmark programmes, including the MBA, the Global MBA series, the Executive Education Programmes and MSM’s International Project Operations.
Pim Teunissen
Director School of Health Professions Education (SHE)
Pim Teunissen was trained as a Medical Docter (M.D.) and earned his PhD in medical education at VU University Amsterdam. He is working clinically as a Gynaecologist and maternal fetal medicine specialist at the Maastricht University Medical Center (MUMC+). In 2017 he was appointed Professor of Work-based learning in Healthcare at the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences. In 2020 he was appointed as the
Scientific Director of SHE. His area of expertise is on workplace learning, the interaction between curriculum design and educational practice, transitions and learner well-being.
Ilja Schreinemakers
Director UM Language Centre
Ilja heads Maastricht University’s Language Centre, the centre of expertise for language training, academic language competences and (inter)cultural communication.
He has an educational background in Chinese language and communication, combined with years of experience in the for-profit sector in an international context. As a result, Ilja is very familiar with differences (and similarities) in and between local contexts, and is able to translate them to both non-profit and for-profit environments.
Under Ilja’s leadership, the client perspective is central to the UM Language Centre’s approach. Part of the added value of the UM Language Centre lies in the high level of professionalism and dedication of the teachers, combined with the knowledge and expertise of the university context. Thus, the UM Language Centre not only tries to impart language and cultural skills, but also the skills to apply these directly in specific areas of knowledge, where often abstraction levels, time pressure and efficiency are key concepts.
In this way, the UM Language Centre contributes to the development of an educational landscape in which society and university find each other easily, so that we can make optimal use of each other’s qualities. All this with the aim of bridging communication challenges in a constructive, creative and fun way.
Mindel van de Laar
Director Capacity Development Office UNU-MERIT
Dr. Mindel van de Laar is director of the capacity development office at UNU-MERIT and Maastricht University. She manages the offering of executive certificate programmes and tailor made projects that aim to train working professionals in the field of public policy and development.
Mindels research focuses on innovations in higher education and capacity building, with specific focus on doctoral education, online and hybrid education and diversity in education. With her team, the capacity development office stresses the importance of translating educational programmes to serve the capacities and needs of professionals and make the learning applicable in the field, which requires a more broad and enhanced understanding of the term “making impact”. From 2010-2021 she was the programme director of the dual career PhD programme in Governance and Policy Analysis at UNU-MERIT.
From 2006-2010 she was the PhD programme director of both the full time and dual career PhD programmes for the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance at Maastricht University. Mindel holds a PhD in Economics (2004) and a MSc in International Economic Studies (1997) from Maastricht University.