Behind the scenes with Anouk

About Anouk

My name is Anouk and I am 20 years old. I am studying Business Administration at Saxion Enschede and I am a third year student. Even though I don't live in a student house in Enschede, I am having a great student time in Enschede by participating in a lot of activities next to my study programme.

Enschede was a practical and familiar choice for me

I live in Hengelo, so Enschede is a city I've known for a long time. I find Enschede more vibrant than Hengelo. Despite the fact that I still live at home, I have a really nice student time and it is also nice to have my friends close to home. My choice for Enschede was partly practical, but I also like to be familiar with a city. Everyone often thinks that it is nice to study in Groningen, but I still think “why not Enschede?”. I don't think I would have made much of my studies in Groningen for example, because then I think I would be too distracted with other things.

Blues evenings, salsa night and the NANO challenge

I am involved in all kinds of activities besides my studies. For example, the first two years I was very active with horse riding. Now I am active with fitness and sometimes go to the Big Gym with classmates after school. It's nice to work out with fellow students. I am not part of a student association, but I often go into town with my classmates to have fun. For example, on Thursday evenings we often go to blues evenings or salsa night.

In addition to my studies, I also participated in the NANO challenge of EnschedeLab. This took place on four Thursdays, where you work together in a multidisciplinary team from different institutions. For example, I worked with a number of ArtEZ students, who knew exactly how to design. What I think is so cool about the NANO challenge is that you get a research question that actually takes place in Enschede. Then you really feel that you are contributing to something and that what you do makes sense. I have often been given assignments that were made up to prepare students for "real" life. Now I am already part of that “real” life.

At the NANO challenge I got a question about smoking in Enschede. In general, smoking causes a lot of nuisance and it was our job to think about how this could be solved. We came up with a robot as a solution. We thought: How can you ensure that people are psychologically influenced by a robot? That should not happen with campaigns or flyers – there are already plenty of these. It should be something fun, such as the "paper here" attraction of Holle Bolle Gijs in the Efteling (theme park).

During my studies I also came into contact with Flowmundo during various practical assignments, where I even got a job in the field of HRM. They help to match young talent with real clients. This just goes to show that gaining real practical experience can be very rewarding!

There is always something fun

What I like most about student life in Enschede is that there is always something to do. There are parties on the UT campus (which are also open to other students), festivals, but also parties at cool locations such as the airport. And if that's not there, I'll go to the Oude Markt. Enschede is not a city to really go "clubbing", but more for the fun and the terraces on the Oude Markt.

ENERGY – CORONA - TEAM

When I think of my student days in Enschede, I get energy. I think Enschede is an energetic city and I really have a good time here. When I think about my student days I also think of corona, of course, which sometimes throws a spanner in the works. My plan is to go to South Korea in September for my minor and of course I hope that can continue. Finally, I think of the word “team”, because I notice that everyone in Enschede gets along well with each other. It doesn't matter what you look like or how you are. I have the feeling that there are less high standards and that everyone is less isolated than in the larger cities. Everyone likes and loves each other.

Time to relax at Het Volkspark

My absolute hotspot is the Volkspark, especially in the summer. To the park with friends: bring a dress, music box and tasty drinks and then order pizza. I always have a lot of fun with that. It is nice to be so close to nature and to be able to kick a ball, for example.

Open up!

My most important advice for prospective students is: open up and be social. I really find that once you're a little social, you'll make enough friends here. But what is important: be yourself. You are not easily weird in Enschede in what you do or what you say. The atmosphere is low-key, so just be yourself.

And if you have the ambition to go abroad: DO IT! It is better to think "oops, this isn't it", than to think "what if I had done it". Although it is expensive for students to go abroad, it is quite an experience. It's also exciting myself, but I'm just going to do it, because what if I do get homesick, for example? I'm going to take the chance and just try it!