Student Well-being team: ‘We'd like to create more interaction between students’
A chess tournament, picnic, movie night or language course: second-year Law students Amy de Haan and Binela Alispahic from the Student Wellbeing team are organising various activities aimed at connecting students. We spoke to them about their motivation, goals, and plans.
What do you hope to achieve in this role?
Amy: ‘We'd mainly like to create more interaction between students and that everyone feels welcome to join in our activities. Not just students who are already active with a study association, but also those who feel less at home in that environment should have the chance to get involved and enjoy student life.’
Binela: ‘Interaction during activities is important, but we also want to let students know that we're here to support them. By organising activities and offering extra support with, for example, a language test, we hope to contribute to a nicer and more enjoyable time as a student.’
What areas will you focus on?
Amy: ‘We'll focus on issues like how to handle stress and study pressure but also think about ways to connect students with Leiden. For instance, we'd like to organise something for international students to help them get to know each other better and feel more connected to the city and the faculty.’
Binela: ‘We see that students often go straight home after a tutorial or lecture, so it's not always easy for them to make contact with other students. It would be great if we could make a difference in that respect.’
What are the next activities you've got planned?
Amy: ‘We've organised two activities in February. Close to Valentine's Day we're holding a card-making session, where students can order a self-designed card with a personal message in it. And on 16 February, we're holding a movie night in the Student Living Room.’
Binela: ‘We'd also got plans to organise a chess tournament, a lecture, and, depending on the weather, a picnic. We aim to plan an activity every month.’
If you could give one message to students, what would it be?
Amy: ‘Studying is important, but don't forget to enjoy your days as a student too. It's not just about grades and hard work. Take time as well for yourself and enjoy time spent with your fellow students.’