What should international students and staff know about the Nathan Cofnas row at UGent?
Follow official UGent channels, use the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy and central student services for course questions, and contact the university ombudsperson, Trustpunt or Unia if you believe you are personally affected by discrimination or harassment.
In 30 seconds
- De Standaard and Het Nieuwsblad report opposition inside UGent’s own philosophy department to Nathan Cofnas’s appointment.
- Cofnas previously drew controversy in Cambridge over writings linking race, meritocracy and intelligence.
- For affected students, first points of contact are UGent course leadership, faculty student administration, the ombudsperson and Trustpunt.
- External discrimination advice in Belgium can be sought from Unia; gender-related cases go to the Institute for the Equality of Women and Men.
Dutch-language reporting by De Standaard and Het Nieuwsblad says members of Ghent University’s own Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences have objected to the appointment of Nathan Cofnas, a philosopher known internationally for controversial writing on race, intelligence and heredity. Flemish headlines frame the story as eigen vakgroep kant zich tegen aanstelling rassenwetenschapper Nathan Cofnas and quote opponents describing the process as doorgestoken kaart, meaning a stitch-up or foregone conclusion. Cofnas has been associated with the term race realism; because that label is politically and scientifically contested, Belgium Pulse treats it as an attributed description rather than a neutral credential. For expats and EU-institution staff, the useful question is practical: what happens when a Belgian university appointment becomes controversial, and where can students or staff get reliable information in English or Dutch?
Background
Belgian universities have long balanced academic freedom, institutional autonomy and anti-discrimination duties. UGent, like other public Flemish universities, operates within rules on recognised higher education, internal faculty governance and public-sector expectations. Belgium also has federal anti-racism and anti-discrimination frameworks, while equality bodies such as Unia can advise people who believe they have experienced discrimination. The Cofnas dispute fits a wider European pattern: universities are under pressure both to defend controversial scholarly inquiry and to show that recruitment, teaching and campus life do not normalise racism or exclusion.
What to do
Checklist for students and staff: 1. For course or supervision concerns, check UGent’s official programme pages, Ufora and faculty student administration. 2. For a procedural study problem, contact the relevant ombudsperson or ombudsdienst. 3. For wellbeing or workplace concerns, use UGent Trustpunt or HR channels. 4. For possible discrimination, document dates, messages and witnesses, then contact UGent support services and, where appropriate, Unia. 5. If Dutch is a barrier, ask explicitly for English-language guidance; UGent’s international offices and programme coordinators are used to handling cross-language questions.
Impact
Regional — The centre of gravity is Ghent, specifically UGent’s Faculty of Arts and Philosophy around the Blandijn area. The broader Flemish impact is reputational: international recruitment is important to universities in Flanders, and high-profile disputes can shape how prospective students read a department’s culture before applying.
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- 2 Oct 2025, 02:00
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- 27 Jun 2026
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- 27 Jun 2026
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This story was assembled from verified evidence, with its sources and reasoning recorded as it was written.