Student review [#80351] for International Tourism, Leisure and Events Management MA
at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences

Hello everyone, I’m a 20-year-old girl, born and raised in Germany but with Dutch roots and knowledge of the Dutch language.
Moving to the Netherlands for studying “Leisure and Events Management” at NHL Stenden felt like something that was needed for me, my personal development and self-growth, and so far I couldn’t be happier with this choice. Currently, I am in my first year, second semester, as I started my studies in February.

Being a starter in February means there is a special kind of challenge. This semester structure is mainly designed for September students, which means February intakes get neither the same level of introduction nor orientation. Since we, as February starters, have to change our year group every six months, I’ve had to adapt to new classmates quite often. This has enabled me to meet many fantastic people; at the same time, it may feel quite unconnected, in a way, because of the fact that it is rather hard to really belong to one particular year group.
Despite this, I have never experienced anything but positives from the coaches and mentors. From the very beginning, they have been so supportive and approachable; they are always making sure that one feels comfortable and encouraged to succeed. Their kindliness and guidance make a big difference, especially as I moved to the Netherlands alone. Because of them, I never felt isolated, and I always knew I could tell them absolutely everything.
About the program: I am enjoying being taught on Leisure and Events Management, and the topics are quite interesting. Besides, it helps me a lot for my future career. The study program at NHL Stenden is giving many opportunities and experiences for my future life. Because of the volunteering hours that we have to collect, is every student automatically gaining more knowledge about different event sectors. Also, the opportunity I had to visit the Johan Cruyff arena during my field trip and learn more about their sports or concert events became helpful, making me realise why I chose this study program.
What did strike me, though, was that the first two semesters were quite easy and not as demanding as I expected. But to be honest, the first semester (Sep-Feb) relates more to personal leisure, self-development, and personal life situations. Event planning will be topics for later. Although this made my transition into university life easier, I believe initial semesters should have been demanding to better prepare the student for the advanced stages of this program.

All in all, I am quite happy about my experience at NHL Stenden. The university is friendly and supportive, and even though it always has its challenges, being a February starter and all, I feel very confident and excited about the future here.