Testimonial Yoeri de Bruin

When considering social matters, a lot of activists have the desire to dismantle oppressing systems, but to truly bring equality to the world we need to know what systems are in place in order to do so. I think a lot of people with the drive to bring change oppressing systems tend to experience this longing but don’t always know where to begin. For me, I started this journey with a bachelor's in Social Work from the Hague University of Applied Science. After feeling the need to do even more for society in general and having new ambitions to further my academic career I completed my pre-master in Sociology and was admitted to the Social Inequalities programme.

The courses within the programme explored the many topics in which inequality is present and how these intricate systems are interconnected to be upheld by those in power and in which ways people are affected by them. This was mainly done through interactive classes in which we applied the theories to various cases, as well as contemporary events. I found this way of working very enjoyable as it immediately became clear what the actual value and practicality were of the theories which were just presented. Besides that, most assignments offered multiple options, as well as a lot of freedom in the execution of the assignment to find your own way towards a great paper. This allowed me to mainly focus on power structures and dynamics, while others may prefer topics like racism or other forms of discrimination. 

Keeping the importance and broad scope of sociology in mind, the social inequality programme connects the macro with the micro, the abstract systems and the tangible effects on the individual. The knowledge obtained will be useful in many fields of practice. For me, I have expanded my knowledge within higher education in combination with my social work background to enrich both my teaching skills and to empathise with my students in their own respect.