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From home desk to lecture room: tips for a flying start

The new academic year will get underway in a few weeks. The University is busy preparing to welcome you all again. However, the plans remain somewhat uncertain due to the coronavirus. All the more reason to start the new academic year well prepared. This article is therefore all about tips!

This is the third part of the summer series From sesk to Lecture room.
Part 1: Start of the new year 
Part 2:What dit you miss (and what not)

Maybe you have just left secondary school, or are starting a master's degree in Leiden or coming to study in the Netherlands for a semester. Maybe you are already in your second year, or even more advanced in your studies, but due to all the circumstances with coronavirus you have not had the chance to discover Leiden the old-fashioned way. For this reason, we have collected a number of hotspots in Leiden for you, located along the route that is most commonly used by students: from Leiden Central Station to the Kamerlingh Onnes Building (KOG). Take the route if you want to grab a quick coffee, something to eat or if you just want to relax after a long day at the University.

Route from Leiden Central station to the KOG
Click on the map to see the hotspots.

Tips from the experts

Of course you can also use the summer period to get to know Leiden better. The summer vacation also gives you time to think about the coming academic year. You can set new goals, decide which (extra) subjects you want to take and plan to do extracurricular activities. These choices can be difficult and the situation with coronavirus has not exactly made making choices easier. We give you some tips from the experts:

‘Follow your personal interests. Both in your studies (electives, master's) and in your free time (study associations and side job). Don’t make choices based on strategic reasons, but on what you actually like doing. If you do that and know how to discover your passions, then the rest will follow automatically.’

Annemarie Drahmann, Associate Professor at the Department of Constitutional and Administrative Law

‘Networking is key. Don't spend too much time on getting top grades and don’t spend all your free time in the library. In the end, the grades you receive and the theory you learn in your studies are not the most important things. What is really important is taking the opportunity to meet interesting people from all over the world, make good friends, exchange great ideas and start projects together that actually make a difference. Think about it – in 10 to 20 years you will be shaping this world and when doing so it will be nice to have good friends.’

Luuk Jordens graduated with a master’s degree in Corporate Law and is currently working as a lawyer

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