After a visit to Paris he started working as a family doctor in Rotterdam, but in 1826 he was appointed Professor of Zoology and Mineralogy at the University of Leiden.

In his youth Van der Hoeven was influenced by and paid tribute to the German philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder and he was friendly with Willem Bilderdijk, a prominent Dutch lawyer, author and historian, known for his Revivalism.

By the 19th century it had become impossible to understand and comprehend all knowledge, but Van der Hoeven was a rather old fashioned scientist, (representing the Biedermeier era) and a generalist: neither specializing, nor becoming a theoreticist.

In 1834 he started a magazine in natural history and physiology (Tijdschrift voor natuurlijke geschiedenis en physiologie).

Van der Hoeven was also involved in education, writing a biology book for pupils in secondary school, although, paradoxically, he was one of the last professors in Leiden to teach in Latin.