The term Studium Generale comes from the Middle Ages. It means ‘General Study’ but was also used for the community of teachers and academics, or the university. That is the same time when people thought that at some point everything would be known. If you would only record new knowledge in an encyclopedia, mankind would have recorded all knowledge at some point. The reality was different.

Knowledge would grow exponentially and there is currently no scientist who thinks that we will really know everything at some point in the future. In addition, it is becoming increasingly important that we use the available knowledge properly. That we critically monitor developments in science. That we understand connections between all forms of knowledge and all human systems. After all, we know that many developments are not in the service of humanity and the planet, but can have serious consequences for our survival and/or our health.

Studium Generale became a household name, especially in the Netherlands. In the years after 1946, all universities in the Netherlands set up their own Studium Generale to broaden the general knowledge of students, staff and other interested parties through freely accessible programs in the fields of culture, technology, society and science. The war years had a major influence on this: equipping people with a lot of broadening knowledge compared to the often highly subject-oriented courses. Only broadly educated people with knowledge not only of their own field but also of other fields can contribute to a responsible society, was the idea. There are now also Studium Generalia at a number of universities of applied sciences and sometimes even at secondary schools.