Hester Bijl

Bijl received a PhD from the Delft University of Technology, along with a master's degree from Leiden University.^[2]

In 1999, she started working the Delft University of Technology in the aerodynamics department.^[6] In 2013, she became dean of the faculty of aerospace engineering at the Delft University of Technology.^[4] In 2021, Bijl was appointed rector magnificus of Leiden University, succeeding Carel Stolker.^[4] In 2024, she was reappointed.^[5][7] She is the first female rector of the university.^[8]

Bijl is on the supervisory board of the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research and on the board of the Leiden Bio Science Park.^[2] She has been a visiting researcher at the NASA Langley Research Center.^[2]