The students of Radboud University are from 94 different countries, recent numbers show. Allysa, Niyara and Gabriella have no fellow countrymen in Nijmegen to get along with. They represent their nationalities on their own.

 

Alyssa Rostant: ‘All of those academics on bikes was quite a sight!’
From: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Studies: General Linguistics (Master)

‘Depending on my mood, I say ‘by plane’ when people ask me how I got here. But the real answer is that I came to Nijmegen to study linguistics. I met a professor at a conference in the Caribbean who happened to be carrying out research in my field of interest. He also happened to be a Radboud alumnus. So that’s how I ended up here.
Some people think it’s strange that I come from Trinidad, which is surprising. The university stresses the importance of internationalisation, but sometimes it seems like they’re referring exclusively to Europe. When I first registered for my Master’s programme, I was missing several documents and the university wasn’t particularly helpful. But the papers they needed were hard to get in Trinidad.

At the end of August I attended the opening of the academic year in the Stevenskerk. All of those academics on bikes was quite a sight! It’s amazing how many people cycle here. The Netherlands is a whole new world for me. Everything is extremely well-organised; even the busses leave on time. I love that everything is so predictable and that it’s safe to walk pretty much everywhere. I have no plans to leave Nijmegen anytime soon. I’ve made a few good friends, but it wasn’t easy in the beginning. The Dutch are friendly and polite, but they’re also a little standoffish and distant.

For those interested in travelling to Trinidad and Tobago, I highly recommend going in February to experience carnival. I know the Dutch celebrate carnival as well, but this is completely different. The experience is truly amazing.’

 

Niyara Mardamova (31): ‘What I miss most is Uzbek food’
From: Uzbekistan
Studies: Planning, Environment and Territories (Master)

‘I love how green it is here; Uzbekistan doesn’t have forests. When I registered for the Erasmus Programme, I chose the programme, not the city. I’ve been here a month now and have a lot of respect for the Dutch culture. The education is more intense than what I’m used to. I also studied in the United States, where most students take three courses per semester. Here I take seven! The quality of Dutch education is excellent and the professors are highly motivated. I feel like I’m really working on my intellectual growth.

It’s great to see how proactive the Dutch are in the way they deal with problems, especially in their battle against the water. I’d love to learn more about this. We have water problems in Uzbekistan as well.

My friends back home don’t really understand what I’m doing here. Uzbekistan is a country with a strong culture based on tradition. It’s unusual for women to go abroad alone to study. I’ve been away from home for a while now and I’m starting to miss my family. The thing I miss most is Uzbek food, which is the best in the world.

I don’t want to generalise, as I’ve only met a handful of Dutch people, but the Dutch seem a bit standoffish compared to Uzbeks. People in Uzbekistan are extremely friendly. If you’re stressed or unhappy, they come to you to cheer you up. I’d encourage everyone to visit Uzbekistan.

 

Gabriella Isaac (19): ‘Dutch people don’t go out of their way to help you’
From: Zimbabwe
Studies: International Economics & Business (Bachelor)

‘The bus leaves according to a schedule? Not when it’s full? Wow. I’ve been here a month and everything is still so new to me. I feel a bit lost, to be honest. Nijmegen wasn’t the obvious choice for me. A lot of people from Zimbabwe study in South Africa, but my mother visited the Netherlands in 2012 and loved the atmosphere. When I graduated from secondary school, we researched Dutch Bachelor’s programmes online. I eventually settled on Nijmegen because of its reputation.

When I arrived in Europe last month, I had no idea what to expect. I thought the Netherlands would be cold, but it was even hotter than Zimbabwe! My first experience with Dutch people is that they don’t go out of their way to help you when you’re lost. At Schiphol, I was handed a map at the information desk when I told them I couldn’t find the bus stop. It was the first time I was completely on my own.

The first few days here were pretty stressful because I had no idea how things worked. Fortunately, my mentor mum during the orientation week was extremely helpful and showed me where to buy a bike. I’m starting to get used to my degree programme now, but found it extremely challenging in the beginning. This is because I had just graduated secondary school and Zimbabwe has a very different system than the Netherlands. Here, they don’t tell you how many points each assignment component is worth, which makes things a bit difficult. I live at Hoogeveldt with lots of other international students and I love it. We’re all in the same boat.’