Hey you! I bet you are wondering how your life is going to be when you are a university student (at HZ). No worries, I had a lot of questions and expectations of what it would be like, as well, and now here I am to break it down to you.
8:00 – Rise and shine! It is time to wake up and prepare to go to uni. Of course you can hit that Snooze button one or two times, but don’t do it too much – you have classes to go to and you don’t want to miss on those.
9:00 – First class is already starting. I know, I know, you are tired, you want to go home and be in bed, but that is how university goes – if you want to stay on top of things and pass easily, you have to go to classes regularly. However, make sure you grab a cup of coffee or tea before you go to class, it will definitely give you the energy to pass the day!
10:30 – And first class is over! You have 15 minutes before the next one, so use them to grab something to drink or eat, or if the weather is good, go outside and enjoy the sun.
10:45 – Another lecture starts. Bear with me – it is only 1 hour and 30 minutes, so you got this! Make sure you have a laptop/notebook with you, so you can make notes of the most important things. That way, you will have less work to do when you go home and more time to hang out with friends or just chill (with or without Netflix).
12:15 – Now your class is over and it is time for the lunch break – 45 minutes free time! If you have time the day before, prepare a homemade lunch. If not – worry not, there is a canteen where you have plenty of choices – sandwiches, frikandels, krokets, soups and salads as well. Approximate prices are:
* sandwich (you can have one in literally all variations) – between €2.50 and €3.50
* frikandel/kroket – €1
* soup – €1.20
* salad – between €2.50 and €3.50
13:00 – Time for another class and maybe your last one. Usually there are no crazy days where you have to stay from morning until night, but sometimes you can have a long day of class – from 9:00 till 17:45. However, staying until 17:45 is the maximum and there is no way you can have lectures after that!
14:30 – Yaaay! Day at uni is over, it is time to head back home! Take some time to rest and watch a TV show, listen to some music or just take a nap (my favorite choice).
16:00 – If you have a lot of studying to do, you need to wake up from that nap now! Start doing your project, make notes for the upcoming exams (exams are always coming) or do one of your assignments for the next day. If you don’t have anything to do, then just call a friend and go for a walk or go somewhere for a coffee/tea.
19:00 – It is dinner time! Make sure you have at least basic cooking skills before you come to the Netherlands – it will be much easier for you. Little tip: pasta is always a good idea!
20:00 – Time to hear what is happening back home. Call your parents, grandparents, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend – I am sure you miss them.
22:00 – Okay, so you updated yourself on the latest events happening in your loved ones’ lives – now have fun! If it is Thursday or Friday, it is guaranteed that there is a FISA party waiting for you. FISA is an international student organization, which makes sure all international students have events, parties and trips to go to. Back to what I was saying – it is a good idea to meet up with friends before the party and have a warm up in someone’s house. Be a good guest and don’t break anything!
00:00 – Go to that FISA party and have as much fun as you can! Vlissingen is a small town, it is no Amsterdam, but don’t underestimate it – you still have opportunities to have fun and experience student life!
03:00 – Party is over, it is time to go home! Be careful though – riding a bike back home after drinking alcohol is not always a good idea. Take a shower, go to bed, be glad you had an awesome night out and prepare for the next day!
And this is what it looks like! Of course, this is just an example and it is to give you a glimpse of what college life is all about. No two days are the same – sometimes you have classes from 9:00 till 16:00 and you have so much studying to do that you don’t have a free minute. Other times you have a free day and you do nothing but chill and hang out with friends. My point is that being a student is one of the best times in your life – you experience life on your own, meet new people from different cultures and gain new perspectives. Yes, you will miss home, face difficulties and even question your choices, but believe me – it is all going to be worth it! Just come to Vlissingen and see it all!
