What sets Generation Z apart from other generations? What drives today’s youth, and what keeps them awake at night? No one can tell us better than Gen Z themselves. That's why we are portraying 24 students from Radboud University. In this episode: Coen Vulders, 27, Medicine, started Open Boek Nijmegen.

‘I don’t know whether young people have more psychological problems than they used to, but they certainly talk about it more. A crushing student debt, combined with uncertainty about housing and getting a permanent contract, can be a huge drain on your mental well-being. Not to mention climate change and wars.

A few years before the Covid-19 pandemic, I suffered from a severe depression for which I spent three years in treatment. During the lockdown, many of my friends said they felt lonely and were not sure what to do with their lives. That is partly why I started Open Boek Nijmegen: a platform where we talk about mental health problems among young people.

I used to want to be a gastroenterologist or a cardiologist, but my depression made me interested in psychiatry. In November, I will start working as a resident in a closed, high-care psychiatric institution. There, I will have to deal with a very vulnerable target group that is surrounded by a lot of prejudice. I would like to show that these are real people too.

Among residents, there is much more focus on personal well-being and burnout prevention than in the past: we check with colleagues to see if they are OK, and when someone has had a rough day, we take over their night shift. Older doctors sometimes think we’re just making a fuss; they just want to keep working.

Educational institutions and employers really do have a role to play in improving the mental well-being of young people. I’m fed up with the whole discussion about this generation needing to become more resilient. At some point, the plate is just full, and the system needs a complete overhaul.’