Last weekend was a busy one at Erasmus University Rotterdam, with a lot of young, and really really young people. IDEA Center was present at Bachelor Open Day on Saturday, October 5th - welcoming prospective students and telling them more about our work - and at the Weekend of Science on Sunday, October 6th where we welcomed children aged 8-14, and their parents, to introduce them to university and to science.
IDEA Center and our Academic Outreach Programme had a strong, joint presence at the Bachelor Open Day. Prospective students from the Netherlands and abroad were able to join our morning sessions with diverse student panelists to hear about their experiences in the first study year: the challenges that came with it, but also new things they discovered (about themselves), and tips to prepare. We learnt that everyone has a different student journey, and that’s okay. The important thing to remember is that you are not alone in this – fellow students, family, and the university is here to help!
At our stand, visitors were invited to continue the conversations with our students, learn about the work of IDEA Center, explore the multicultural student associations at Erasmus University Rotterdam, and even find out what our fortune cookies predict for their future studies! But above all, they were happy to see that the university finds inclusion, diversity, equity and access important topics to address.
Academic Outreach Programme
Our Academic Outreach Programme hosted an inspiring session for pupils from our partner schools. Our amazing outreach ambassadors shared their stories, and these prospective students had the chance to ask all the questions they had about university life and their future studies.
But that’s not all, Outreach also had a stand at the Open Day and it was a huge hit! Participants not only got to chat with staff and ambassadors in multiple languages but also got creative making personalised bracelets. It was a fun, hands-on way to express individuality and bring a little piece of the university home.
We’re proud to have made meaningful connections, and it was heartwarming to hear even our colleagues say they would ‘borrow’ our bracelet-making idea for next year!
Getting to know our university at the national Weekend of Science
On Sunday, children aged 8-14 were welcomed at EUR for the yearly (national) Weekend of Science where they were introduced to the wonderful world of science and technology. Together with our colleagues at the Science Hub, the Academic Outreach Programme of IDEA Center organised a Campus Challenge where children actively explored our campus Woudestein. We had a wonderful sunny day out on campus with plenty of curious questions and nice surprises along the way!
In addition, we hosted an interactive AI Flashbattle where children and parents ‘battled’ in a game of ‘who knows more about EUR?’. As a twist, children could use ChatGPT for help, and parents their general knowledge and common sense only. Did you know that ChatGPT is very good in finding the birthyear of Erasmus? We had a lot of fun hosting the battle and seeing the (sportive) fire in our participants, young and old(er).
We want to thank all participants of our workshops for their curiousness, enthusiasm, openness, and critical questions. And to all future students who expressed their intention to study or work at EUR in years’ time, we cannot wait for you to join us!