Founded in 1636, Utrecht University (UU) is an esteemed international research university, offering a wide range of research within all major research disciplines. It is a member of the League of European Research Universities and, with ~30,000 students and ~6,700 employees, the largest institution of education and research in the Netherlands. UU is ranked 55th worldwide in the U.S. News & World Report Best Global Universities 2020 Ranking, placing it second in the Netherlands and 14th in Europe.
In PolarRES, UU is represented by the Institute for Marine and Atmospheric research Utrecht (IMAU); the institute was established in 1991 and is internationally recognized for its basic research on the oceans, atmosphere and cryosphere. It is based in UU’s Faculty of Science, Department of Physics, with a significant contribution from the Faculty of Geosciences. At IMAU, about 15 staff members run the undergraduate and graduate teaching programmes and carry out research projects. Through the years, IMAU staff has been successful in acquiring external research funds, currently employing ~50 PhD students and postdoctoral researchers. In the last research quality assessment (2016), IMAU received the score ‘excellent’ (world-leading) for quality and impact.