Since October, I have started as a PhD candidate at ELS, focusing on the assessment of student learning in transdisciplinary environments, under the supervision of Judith Gulikers, Yvette Baggen and Perry den Brok. My name is Anke Swanenberg, and for the past two years, I have been working as an educational advisor in the Society-Based Education department of the Teaching and Learning Centre at Wageningen University. I will continue this role part-time alongside my PhD research.

The topic of my PhD aligns well with my current position as an advisor in transdisciplinary education. At WUR, many courses already integrate this approach and it is also part of the new vision on education, but questions around assessment remain prevalent. Research in this area is also scarce, so my PhD aims to address this gap by developing practical methods to assess learning outcomes that not only align with the objectives of transdisciplinary education but also effectively support and measure student learning.

I am particularly passionate about transdisciplinary education, as I believe it is crucial to bridge the gap between academia and society. With a master’s degree in assessment specialization (Master Toetsdeskundige), I am excited to have this opportunity to pursue a PhD in this specific area, as it combines two key aspects of education that I deeply value: effective assessment and innovative learning approaches.

For my PhD-project I remain being a WUR-employer, with funding from 4TU_CEE.