Ready to represent your faculty? Sign up for this year’s Battle of the Faculties and compete for the title: Faculty of the Year!

Sign-up Here

What is it?

The Battle of the Faculties is an annual Maastricht University-wide initiative that brings together students and staff from all six faculties through a series of friendly competitions. The programme consists of four core components: sport, knowledge, music, and art. Across these events, faculties earn points that contribute to one overall title: Faculty of the Year.

The initiative is organised by Kaleido, MUSST, UnliMited Students, and the UM study associations, with the aim of strengthening interaction and cooperation across faculties and fostering a stronger sense of university-wide community.

Battle of the Faculties is designed to be accessible and inclusive, encouraging participation from both international and Dutch students. By offering diverse types of activities—physical, cognitive, creative, and performative—the programme supports student wellbeing, informal social interaction, and a sense of belonging within the university community.

Where?

Tapijnkazerne (Tapijn), Maastricht 

 

When?

For the 2025–2026 academic year, the event is planned to take place during UM’s 50th anniversary fair on 22 May 2026.

Important dates:

Registration opens - Monday 30th March 2026

Deadline for signing up - Friday 24th April 2026

Teams formed per faculty - Friday 1st May 2026

Battle of the Faculties - Friday 22th May 2026

Once teams have been formed for all faculties, acceptance emails will be sent to each team with all required information (incl. schedule, location, dates & contact details).

Schedule

The four battle components are scheduled as follows:

  • Battle of the Fittest (Sport) – 14:00–16:00

  • Battle of the Minds (Knowledge) – 16:00–18:00

  • Battle of the Arts (Creative Competition & Exhibition) – Running throughout the day

  • Battle of the Bands (Music) – 18:00–21:00

Programme

12:30–13:30 – Lunch with teams
13:30–14:00 – Briefing & Q&A
14:00–18:00 – Arts exhibition (continuous throughout the day)
14:00–16:00 – Sports competition
16:00–18:00 – Knowledge competition
14:00–18:00 – Arts competition (runs during the exhibition window)
18:00–20:30 – Music competition
20:30–21:00 – Winners ceremony 

Programme Description

Lunch with Teams

Kick off the day by meeting your fellow participants. Each team will receive a goodie bag (water, fruit, protein bar, T-shirt, and event schedule), and lunch will be provided on-site. This is your moment to check in, meet other teams, and get ready for the day ahead.

Briefing & Q&A

Before the competitions begin, we’ll have a short 30-minute briefing. Here, we’ll walk you through the schedule, scoring system, and key rules. You’ll also find out where you need to be, when, and who to contact if you need help.

At least one representative per team must attend.

Battle of the Arts

Not into sports or performing? This one’s for you.

Battle of the Arts runs throughout the day and gives you a chance to represent your faculty through creativity.

What’s included?

  1. Art Exposition
    A curated exhibition of student artworks from all faculties. Submissions are coordinated through your study association and open to everyone. No prior artistic experience needed.

  2. Live Art Competition
    Each faculty gets one large canvas. Teams will create their artwork live during the event, using provided materials and anything they bring themselves.
    Each team has its own marked area. Only your team is allowed inside.

Voting is split between the audience and a jury.

Good to know:

  • Max artwork size (for exhibition): ~100 x 100 cm

  • No hazardous materials or installations

  • You’re responsible for bringing and transporting your work

  • Around 20 artworks will be selected for the exhibition

Battle of the Fittest

Battle of the Fittest promotes friendly competition between faculty members. Points earned contribute to the overall faculty score.

What’s happening?

  1. Football Shoot
    Teams compete in a penalty shootout-style challenge. Each player takes turns attempting to score 

  2. Obstacle Course
    Teams take on a series of physical challenges. Each member completes part of the course. Fastest team wins.

Battle of the Minds

Battle of the Minds is the cognitive and problem-solving component. Test your knowledge, logic, strategy, and creativity through rotating stations, with each challenge targeting a different area of the brain!

Games & Challenges

  • Frontal Lobe – Knowledge Auction – Decision-making and strategy; teams bid on questions, correct answer gains points, wrong answer loses points

  • Parietal Lobe – Map Analysis – Spatial reasoning; teams analyze maps to solve logical or route challenges

  • Other Stations – Temporal, Occipital, Insular, Limbic Lobes – Targets memory, pattern recognition, perception, emotional reasoning; challenges are interactive and collaborative

You’ll compete in small groups, and collaboration is key.

Battle of the Bands

Battle of the Bands is the closing event of Battle of the Faculties. Each performer/band competes to represent their faculty, delivering their best musical and scenic performance.

Format & Components

  • Majority of the act’s members must be from one faculty (minimum 2 members)

  • Performance times: 15–20 minutes slot, max 15 min actual performance

Judging & Awards

  • Faculty judges (one per faculty, cannot score own faculty)

  • Audience votes (online form, cannot vote for own faculty)

  • Awards: Winning Band (highest combined score), Audience’s Favourite (highest audience score if different)