Are you excited about International Studies and would you like to share your knowledge and experiences with prospective students? Would you like to participate in Open Days and other events? If so, you might have what it takes to be a student ambassador for the BA programme International Studies in The Hague!

What does life look like after International Studies? For Chris Colijn who graduated in 2018, it involves working on his Master’s in Russian and Eurasian Studies, in combination with a bustling traineeship for “Raam of Rusland”, a think tank, focusing on Russian and Ukrainian politics, economy and culture. How does he do it? In this interview, he elaborates.

The bachelor's programme in International Studies is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Ko Voskuilen was among the very first batch of students to follow the study, and Sophia Healy graduated this summer. How do they look back on their time at the university?

Aisha Hassan came to the Netherlands when she was two months old. Her mother had fled Somalia and made a new home here. Aisha doesn't remember much about that time, but her mother’s stories about Somalia ignited a lifelong interest in developing countries. ‘Her stories have always fascinated me.’

Sometimes student life merges rather smoothly into a working adult life. This is the case for Boris Kowalski. At International Studies, he chose Russian as his language and Eurasia as his region of specialisation, he obtained his Master’s degree at Oxford in Russian and Eurasian studies, ended up in Ukraine during the presidential elections and now he works at a think tank in Poland, where he can put into practice everything he has learned. ‘The region’s internal contradictions appeal to me the most.’

Organised in three separate sessions throughout the day, and broadcast live online to guests and families who could not join, over 200 students received their Bachelor’s Diploma of International Studies on 3 September 2021 at the graduation ceremony in the historic Pieterskerk in Leiden.

What would it be like if you could work with the best in your field every day? Alumnus in International Studies Niels Drost knows just what that’s like. He currently works as a junior researcher at the Clingendael Institute.

When I started as chair of the International Studies programme last year, I bought a brand new paper notebook. With a nice strong cover, over one hundred empty pages were waiting to be filled with a large promise of inspired notes, ideas and observations. Now, nearing the end of my first year as chair, I have indeed filled all its pages with a huge diversity of scribbles.

In this year’s PRINS course, so many things were different from previous years. The International Studies consultancy course for third-year BA students took place in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. This meant that all programme elements were carried out online – including the closing ceremony on June 18.