Buddy Programs for International Students in the Netherlands

Transcription

1 Buddy Programs for International Students in the Netherlands 1

2 T. Manucharyan Internatonalisation Officer Landelijke Studenten Vakbond (LSVb) Drieharingstraat BJ Utrecht lsvb@lsvb.nl November 2013, Utrecht Special thanks to Sara Panis and Danny Mets from ESN The Netherlands for their valuable contribution to this report. 2

3 Table of Contents I. INTRODUCTION... 4 II. THE TOP TEN Universiteit Maastricht Fontys Hogescholen Saxion Hogescholen Rijksuniversiteit Groningen Technische Universiteit Delft Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam Stenden Hogeschool Universiteit van Amsterdam De Haagse Hogeschool III. BUDDY PROGRAMS IN OTHER INSTITUTIONS & ORGANIZATIONS BuddyGoDutch Leiden United Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen Hogeschool Utrecht Avans Hogeschool TU Eindhoven Universeit Twente Universiteit Tilburg IV. EVALUATION V. RECOMMENDATIONS Annex I: Buddy Program Questionnaire Annex II: Erasmus University Rotterdam - Buddy Programmes Annex III: ESN Report

4 I. INTRODUCTION In April 2012, the Sociaal Cultureel Planbureau (CPB) presented the positive effects of internationalisation of higher education: by binding international talent to The Netherlands, the labour market and higher education can benefit from it. Welcoming international students in The Netherlands became a priority in Dutch politics. The aim of this report is to contribute to Make it in the Netherlands - a joint initiative of Nuffic and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. This program set out action lines to make The Netherlands a welcoming country for international students. The report will present an overview of existing buddy programs in a number of Dutch higher education institutions in order to provide useful insights for the Breaking the Bubble action line of the Make it in the Netherlands program. According to Mapping Mobility 2012 by Nuffic, the top ten Dutch higher education institutions in terms of international student enrollment in were as follows (in descending order): Universiteit Maastricht, Fontys Hogescholen, Saxion Hogescholen, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Technische Universiteit Delft, Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Stenden Hogeschool, Universiteit van Amsterdam, and De Haagse Hogeschool. 1 The report will primarily focus on buddy programs in these institutions, yet similar projects at other institutions will be discussed as well in order to give a broader overview of existing programs. However, it must be pointed out that this report does not include all the buddy programs in the Netherlands. Finally, the report by the Erasmus Student Network The Netherlands (see Annex III) provides information about buddy and mentor programs organized by all the ESN Sections in the Netherlands. The research for the present report was carried out in October A series of telephone interviews were conducted and a questionnaire 2 was sent to international office staff of these institutions in order to find out whether they had a buddy program in place. The following definition of a buddy program was used for the purposes of this report: a buddy project entails linking an international student to a Dutch student for a certain time period in order to help the international student become familiar with and easier adapt to the new university environment and to the Dutch culture and way of life. The findings of this research are presented below. For easy navigation of the report, the section on each organization is divided into subsections such as general information followed by buddy recruitment methods, incentives for becoming a buddy, challenges, best practices, buddy training, areas for improvement, and international student evaluations. It is important to mention that the term buddies is used to refer to the Dutch (and sometimes international) mentors while international students is used to refer to the students with whom the buddies are paired up. It must also be noted that incentives for becoming a buddy, best practices, and the areas for improvement (just like the information in the other subsections) are according to the views of the program coordinators rather than that of the buddies, international students or the writer of this report. 1 p See the questionnaire in Annex I 4

5 II. THE TOP TEN 1. Universiteit Maastricht Maastricht University had the highest number of international students in the Netherlands in the academic year It is safe to assume this also holds true for the academic year. The total number of MU students for the academic year is 15,231. Of this number, 7,234 or 47% are international students. From the total number of international students, 3,966 (55%) are German and 3268 (45%) are from other parts of Europe or the world. Based on calls to individual faculties, it appears that there are no buddy programs organized by Maastricht University itself. Neither does ESN Maastricht provide a mentor program. However, SCOPE - a study association in the Faculty of Economics has a buddy program for economics students. The program is called MyBuddy. It was established in May 2012 and lasts for a semester. It involves matching Dutch students with international students and linking them through even prior to the arrival of the internationals, so that some of the questions of the latter may already be answered. After the arrival of the international students, buddies are expected to meet with them on a one-on-one basis. The pairs are made according to the preferences of the buddies. The SCOPE buddy program offers some events such as a pub crawl, karaoke, Christmas market visit, etc. During these events all buddies and international students can come together and mingle. The vice president of SCOPE and a committee composed of four people is in charge of the buddy program. The program is financed through international student membership fees (10 euros per person) and 2500 euros from the SCOPE budget. 250 people in total (buddies and internationals) are participating in the program this semester (fall 2013). Buddy Recruitment Methods- All students are recruited through lecture announcements, the Facebook page of MyBuddy and SCOPE, the SCOPE website, and s. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy- Some of the incentives to join are as follows: the opportunity for Dutch students to practice the language of their choice and the chance to get to know students from partner universities where they would like to go on exchange in the future. Moreover, they can participate in the activities organized by SCOPE free of charge. Buddy Training SCOPE provides a workshop with general information for the buddies. Challenges The difficulty of connecting Dutch and international students during holidays and the malfunctioning of addresses were mentioned as some of the minor challenges faced by SCOPE. Best Practices Organizing a variety activities, especially in the beginning of the semester in order to build a solid foundation for the remainder of the semester. 5

6 International Student Evaluations SCOPE does not conduct any formal evaluations. However, according to the vice president of the organization, internationals find it valuable to be able to truly interact with regular students instead of only staying with exchange students. 2. Fontys Hogescholen As of the Fall 2013 semester, the Eindhoven branch of Fontys Hogescholen has launched a semester-long pilot mentor program for the department of ICT and Engineering. One social mentor, who is an international rather than a Dutch student, is linked to up to ten international students. The resulting mentor groups participate in monthly mentor dinners. These dinners are free of charge for mentors. In addition, the mentors provide their contact information so that the students in their mentor groups can contact them with questions and practical matters. The mentors can also organize other social activities for their mentor groups, but this is optional, and no funds are provided for these additional activities. The pilot mentor program does not have a budget or any sponsors. 3. Saxion Hogescholen Saxion has 3 locations in the Netherlands: Enschede, Deventer and Apeldoorn. The number of international students is highest in Enschede, followed by Deventer and then Apeldoorn. The buddy program is organized and financed by the Social Cultural Department of the International Office on the central level. The program was established in 2006 and lasts for the first two months of each semester. Incoming international students are linked to a buddy (either a Dutch or an international student) prior to arriving in the Netherlands. The buddies are connected to international students through so that any questions by the latter can be answered even prior to their arrival. On average, each buddy is linked to five to six international students (some have fewer or more students). In the process of matching, the international office takes into account the nationalities, cultural differences, gender and studies of the students in order to create pairs who have a lot in common. Once the international students are in the Netherlands, they can either meet with the buddy in person or ask any remaining questions via . The program is financed through the budget for the Social Cultural department within the International Office. In the Deventer location of Saxion, 14 buddies and 49 students participated in the Fall 2013 program: the buddies and the students were all internationals. Information regarding the two other locations was not provided. Buddy Recruitment Methods The buddies are recruited through or social media. Saxion has one full-time buddy for each of its three locations. This buddy helps with the recruitment process and other matters, as needed by the international office on the central level. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy The three full-time buddies (one per each Saxion location) get financial compensation. All the other buddies at Saxion are volunteers. They receive a buddy T-shirt and a small compensation in the form of a voucher for acting as a buddy. 6

7 Buddy Training There is no special training for buddies at Saxion. However, they do receive a document which contains detailed information about the project, supermarkets, payments, where to find medicine, telephone cards, traffic, public transport, what to buy where, and other relevant information which can help them answer the questions of international students. Challenges The main challenge is that sometimes buddies try to reach the international students, yet the students are not responsive. Best Practices This year Saxion started a pick-up service for international students. On four different days, the buddies went to Schipol to welcome international students and bring them to their respective city by bus, arranged by Saxion. The evaluations on the pick-up service were very good, and they are planning to do it again next year. International Student Evaluations Saxion conducts an evaluation of the buddy program only from the perspective of the buddies. All buddies (Dutch and international) were satisfied with the program and said that they would apply again to be a buddy. 4. Rijksuniversiteit Groningen At University of Groningen, there is no buddy program on a central level. Every faculty has its own program for welcoming internationals. The buddy programs are mainly carried out by ESN Groningen which has a mentor program and an ESN family program. The mentor program, which lasts for a semester, involves linking a Dutch student with one to five internationals. The mentor groups are formed based on the faculty (at the University of Groningen) of the international students. The mentors decide how often to meet with their mentees; however, students are free to contact them in case of questions or issues. Buddy Recruitment Methods - The mentors are recruited mainly through Facebook, mailing lists and introduction guides. Groningen University offers help with recruitment. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy - ESN Groningen has a small budget to compensate mentors for their activities. In addition, all mentors get an ESN-Card which gives them various discounts. Lastly, ESN Groningen organizes a group dinner for all the mentors. Challenges and Areas for Improvement Recruitment and retention of mentors is the main challenge mentioned by ESN Groningen. The section would like to develop stronger links with the mentors so that they remain for longer than one semester. Buddy Training The mentors don t receive formal training; however, in the beginning of the program, they get a presentation and a booklet which contains relevant information. International Student Evaluations - At the end of every semester, ESN Groningen conducts student evaluations. The feedback with regard to the mentor program is positive. 7

8 5. Technische Universiteit Delft TU Delft does not have a university-level buddy program. However, some faculties have a buddy program which entails first-year students (both international and Dutch) being mentored by older students. The university also has a two-week orientation for international students. There is no ESN section in the city of Delft. In the past, there was an attempt to set up an ESN section there; however, it failed due to insufficient support. Recently, a student, who works closely with the international office at his faculty of TU Delft, informed ESN the Netherlands of his plan to start an ESN section there. The negotiations regarding this are still in progress. 6. Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen There is no centralized buddy program at HAN. However, the HAN faculty of business Arnhem Business School (ABS) does have such a program. The program was established between 2010 and 2011 and is divided into two sections: a buddy program for exchange students and a mentor program for degree-seeking students. The study program International Business and Languages an ABS Bachelor program had 28 buddies and 106 exchange students for the Fall 2013 semester. It is more difficult to get Dutch students to participate in the semester-long mentor program. Thus, the mentors for degree-seeking students are often international students, while buddies for exchange students are both Dutch and foreign students. Due to the shortage of buddies and mentors, international students need to apply for the buddy/mentor program in order to obtain a buddy. Buddies for exchange students are required to keep in touch with internationals for the first 6-8 weeks. After that period, it is up to them. In contrast, the mentor program for degree-seeking students formally lasts for a semester, and there is a possibility to extend the program if the mentor and mentee wish to do so. The students are matched with mentors and receive contacts prior to their arrival to the Netherlands. This year there were approximately 30 mentors and 180 international students in the mentor program. Initially, the mentors and mentees were matched in a way that reflected their diversity. However, after some evaluative research, the coordinator of the program came to the conclusion that international students often preferred mentors of their own nationality or background, as the latter would understand their problems easier and communication could be in their own language. Now, the coordinator inquires about the individual preferences of the mentees and mentors prior to matching them. Buddy Recruitment Methods - In order to recruit buddies, they contact students who plan to study abroad or ones who have recently returned from an exchange program. Recruitment is conducted via , through class visits (linked to study abroad information sessions), digital screen announcements, Insite, a video clip on mentoring, and also student career coaches. Recruitment through the career coaches works best as they are best placed to know who would be interested and be a good fit for the mentor program. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy Buddies for exchange students are volunteers. In contrast, buddies for degree-seeking students get 2 ECTS credits for acting as a buddy. These 2 ECTS points are fictive as they cannot be used to fulfill any study requirements. 8

9 Buddy Training All buddies and mentors receive a one-day training in the beginning of the program. The training is divided into a practical information part (where the buddies/mentors are informed about various sources of information), an intercultural part, and a brainstorm session on activities that the buddies and mentors are going to organize for the international students. Challenges One of the challenges is that the coordination of these buddy programs is not the primary responsibility of the staff: it is something they do next to their main tasks. Thus, they cannot devote as much time and effort to the program as they would like to. Another problem is the lack of a budget for the buddy program. Getting Dutch students interested is also difficult. International students are generally more willing to act as mentors than Dutch students. The fact that some mentees do not contact their mentors after the first month was also a challenge mentioned by the coordinators of the program. Last but not least, according to the coordinator of the mentor program: The learning on intercultural competences contradicts with the task of a mentor (creating safety and helping students to land); for this students from similar countries could be better matched than having differences promoted. Best Practices Some of the best practices mentioned by the coordinator of the mentor program were the following: the kick-off event during which mentors meet mentees in person for the first time; letting mentors organize various activities where mentors and mentees can meet informally; for students from the Intensive English Course, they have mentor groups rather than personal mentors, as they have noticed that the participants of this course do not take as much initiative to contact their mentors even though they often have many questions. The in-class group meetings provide a good forum for these students to ask any questions they might have. Areas for Improvement - One area of improvement would be the expansion of the program to help students in other modules. International Student Evaluations We organize yearly evaluations with mentees and every semester evaluation with the mentors. In evaluations the majority is satisfied with the way we organize it, although every half year there are some small changes, based on mentor or mentee feedback, wrote the coordinator of the mentor program. 7. Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam At EUR, ESN Rotterdam 3 and a number of faculties provide buddy programs. Below is detailed information about the buddy program organized by ESN Rotterdam. For an overview of the programs provided by different faculties, see the table in Annex II. The ESN Rotterdam buddy program has existed for at least the past four years. There are currently 40 buddies participating in the program. Each of them has five international students. The groups are formed according to the university faculty of the participants. This is helpful for students in a sense that they can also get study-related information from their mentors, such as where to buy books or what minor to choose. Any remaining students will be 3 9

10 assigned to a group at random rather than based on their field of study. The buddies are free to decide on how to support the students in their group and what activities to organize with them. Rotterdam University helps publicize the pick-up service and the campus tours offered by ESN Rotterdam. The buddies provide the pick-up service and get an hourly wage from the university for it. Buddy Recruitment Methods Buddies are recruited through the communication channels of University of Rotterdam and through Facebook. The selection process involves the submission of a motivation letter, a CV and an in-person interview Incentives for Becoming a Buddy/Compensation The buddies receive 50 euros as a thank you gift for their participation in the program. Challenges The challenges encountered by ESN Rotterdam in relation to the buddy program are mainly related to group formation and group dynamics (such as when some students in a buddy group stay longer than others, which results in new students being placed in a group where some people have known each other for a while). Another problem is that students sometimes drop out of the group after a few meetings. Lastly, the freedom of the buddies to organize their own activities sometimes results in a distance from ESN Rotterdam. The section would like to create a closer bond between the board and the buddies so that they have a better idea of what is going on and how the groups are doing. Best Practices The Intercultural Awareness training (see below) Buddy Training University of Rotterdam provides training for the buddies. It is a day-long event called Intercultural Awareness training during which the buddies receive information about ways to deal with cultural differences. At the end of the day, they receive a certificate for participation in the training. International Student Evaluations International students give positive feedback on the ESN Rotterdam buddy program. 8. Stenden Hogeschool Each program at Stenden Hogeschool has its own initiative for welcoming internationals. The International Hotel Management Bachelor program (in Leeuwarden, Friesland) has a buddy program called the Host Program. It entails first-year Dutch and international students being mentored by second and third year students for 1 module (half a semester). The Host Program starts during the Study Start Week. The program was established in 2008 and is organized in the following manner: Three host coordinators, who are Stenden students and former hosts, work 10 hours a week (paid) to execute the Host Program. They report to the Pre-Arrival and New Student Coordinator. The main responsibility of the host coordinators is to be in an office from h every day and inform new and potential students about matters related to education at Stenden. However, they are also in charge of recruiting, interviewing, selecting, training and supporting hosts. Once recruited, the hosts are paired up to guide a mixed group of approximately twelve Dutch and international students during the Study Start Week. The two hosts and their group of students are matched at random. The program of the Study Start Week includes workshops, introduction sessions, parties and fun activities such as a Sport Day. Following the Study Start Week, there are two social meetings: one with one s host group and one where all the host groups come together. 10

11 Buddy Recruitment Methods The hosts are recruited through posters, flyers, and social media. Both Dutch and international students are recruited as hosts. All interested students undergo a selection process where their competencies for the program, their international orientation and their empathy skills are assessed. In 2013, around 20 hosts were recruited for the February Host Program and 96 (17 internationals and 79 Dutch) for the September program. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy As mentioned above, the three host coordinators are paid employees of Stenden Hogeschool. The hosts, receive two ECTS credits after fulfilling their host responsibilities. According to the Pre-Arrival and New Student Coordinator, many hosts decide to do the Host Program again because they like it so much. Challenges The main challenge encountered by the Host Program is assessing how much help the international students will need when they first get to Stenden. Some students find themselves connected with groups based on the agents that send them here and sometimes it becomes difficult for our programme to work effectively. Sometimes students need a lot of guidance and sometimes none. We as the organisation support the hosts that need to go the extra mile with some students by helping to look out for the others, wrote the Pre-Arrival and New Student Coordinator. Having a more proportional ratio of Dutch and international students was also mentioned as a challenge. Buddy Training In order to get their two active credits the host must participate in a number of training on topics such as leadership skills, interviewing skills, etc. Areas for Improvement No areas of improvement were mentioned as they are satisfied with the program as it is now. International Student Evaluations Based on the questionnaire, which is completed by hosts as well as the participating students at the end of the Study Start Week, the program is perceived as useful and fun. 9. Universiteit van Amsterdam ISN Amsterdam is in charge of the buddy programs at UvA. Currently the program has 50 Dutch buddies and 120 international students. Each buddy is matched to two to three students. ISN Amsterdam wants to make changes to the program so that the buddies are linked one-onone in the future. For this, they will need to increase the number of Dutch students, especially considering the fact that they had so many international student applications this year that they couldn t accept all of them. 10. De Haagse Hogeschool The Academy of European Studies and Communication Management at De Haagse Hogeschool has a language buddy program. The program entails Dutch, international and exchange students tutoring each other in various languages for one or two semesters. After the language tutor and tutee are matched, they sign a contract and meet every week. The tutor keeps a logbook and has an evaluation talk with the program coordinator at the end of the semester. The number of participants is quite large considering the fact that it is organized by only one faculty. Students can use the language buddy program for extra credit. There is free 11

12 space in the curriculum of the Academy for such activities. The low commitment level of some students is the main challenge encountered by the program. As to training, some instruction is provided in the beginning of the program. 12

13 III. BUDDY PROGRAMS IN OTHER INSTITUTIONS & ORGANIZATIONS BuddyGoDutch BuddyGoDutch is a non-profit organization founded in 2010 in the city of Utrecht. Run by five board members, it currently has 290 members - approximately 120 Dutch and 170 international students who study in Utrecht. BuddyGoDutch promotes cultural exchange by connecting international and Dutch students for a semester. The project aims to link students one-on-one; however, due to a shortage of Dutch members, sometimes one Dutch student is linked to two internationals. The pairs are mainly formed through speed dating. This year close to 160 people participated in the speed-dating event which took place on September 24 th and 25 th. In addition to one-on-one meetings (the frequency of which is up to the students), BuddyGoDutch organizes social events which bring together all the participants. These group events usually take place twice a month. BuddyGoDutch is funded by HKU (500 euros each year). Buddy Recruitment Methods - BuddyGoDutch recruits students during the introduction week at Utrecht University and HKU. Dutch student organizations are also contacted with the aim of finding buddies. Most of the buddies are third and fourth year bachelor students. According to one board member, first-year students are usually not so open to meeting internationals, while older students, especially those who have been on exchange, are more willing to join BuddyGoDutch. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy - The main incentive for participation seems to be the chance to become familiar with other cultures as the board members and the Dutch buddies at BuddyGoDutch are all volunteers. Challenges - One of the difficulties encountered by this organization is the small budget which limits the number of big social activities organized for all participants. Creating matches which actually click is also challenging. Students don t always get their number one choice after speed dating (this is partly due to the shortage of Dutch buddies); however, so far there have not been any major complaints about buddies. Best Practices At BuddyGoDutch the Dutch and internationals are predominantly linked one-on-one. Since many buddy programs usually have one or two mentors linked to groups of internationals, the added value of BuddyGoDutch, according to one of its board members, is the fact that this program really aims to create personal links between internationals and their buddies by connecting them one-on-one. The fact that all the buddies at BuddyGoDutch are Dutch is also a positive feature of this project (in terms of Dutch-international cultural exchanges and the integration of international students into the Dutch society) worthy of imitation by other buddy programs. 13

14 Leiden United Two organizations are primarily in charge of buddy programs at Leiden University Leiden United and ISN Leiden (semester-long mentorship 4 ). For information about ISN Leiden, see the ESN Report in Annex III. Leiden United was established in November 2012 after winning a prize from the Van Bergen Fund (related to the Leiden University Fund) to implement the idea of connecting the Dutch and international communities in Leiden. The pilot buddy program started in February 2013 with five board members and three founding members who formed an advisory board. Currently, the program is in its second session. It has 140 participants and is run by seven board members and an advisory board of two founding members. The program entails matching an international student to a Dutch student (based on their field of study, interests and the preferences of the Dutch student for example, foreign language preference). The pairs of Dutch and international students are then placed into groups. The groups have dinner trips to the five biggest student associations in Leiden and also to The Hague campus of Leiden University. In addition to these events, Leiden United organizes other activities such as game nights, a tour on Leidens Ontzet, and trips to Amsterdam and to the Efteling. Each participant pays a 40 euro contribution which covers pre-drinks and the dinners at the student associations. The organization is trying to find sponsors in order to be able to offer some activities free of charge. Buddy Recruitment Methods Leiden United uses the following means to recruit participants: flyers, posters, a stand at LEF (an introduction week activity) and a stand at the OWL (Orientation Week Leiden) information market for international students. They also rely on word of mouth to find additional recruits. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy All students who take part in the Leiden United program are considered participants. Thus, the reward for Dutch students in participating in this program is forming friendships with internationals and improving their English and other foreign language skills. Buddy Training - Since both Dutch and international students are considered participants (as opposed to Dutch students being viewed as mentors), no training is provided to the Dutch students. The leaders of buddy groups, i.e. the main contact persons from each group, receive an with instructions. Moreover, one of the board members is responsible for weekly sessions for questions and problems encountered by participants. Challenges People don't always show up after signing up for the program or they quit midway due to study pressure at school. Leiden United plans to tackle this problem by asking for a small deposit which students will not be able to get back if they quit the program after a certain date. Best Practices The groups really enjoy eating together and are excited about the extra activities. What works well is that we use tickets for the dinners that we hand out at the predrinks, so that everybody gets together and cancelling or showing up late is less of a problem, wrote one of the board members

15 Areas for Improvement - Starting recruitment sooner in order to have more time to recruit participants (they would like to expand the number of participants from 140 to 200) is one area Leiden United wants to address in the future. Thus, for the spring semester they are going to start recruiting in November. (International) Student Evaluations - The evaluations of the pilot program were very positive. Students mainly asked for more activities; therefore, this semester Leiden United will try to organize two activities per month. Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen The Radboud University has mentor groups on central level and buddy programs on faculty level. These programs were initiated on the central level by the university board. Faculty level The buddy program on faculty level has existed since The central university administration provided a format, guidelines and sample letters to the faculties for the purpose of organizing buddy programs. Currently, five out of the seven faculties of the university have some type of a working buddy system of more or less the same nature. The student organizations in each faculty handle the practical aspects of the program, such as pairing up the buddies, etc. One example of a faculty-level buddy program is the Nijmegen School of Management project called In Touch with the Dutch 5 which links a Dutch student to one or two internationals. The program lasts from a semester to an entire year depending on the length of stay of the international student. Central level The mentor program on the central level takes place during the introduction week. It is organized by the International Office in cooperation with the student association Radboud International Students (RIS). Two coordinators from the RIS and a group of mentors run the Introduction Week activities. An After Orientation Day is organized for those who cannot take part in the Introduction week. Students participate in introduction week activities in mentor groups. The groups are made up of international students guided by three mentors. The mentors assist the internationals both during and after the Orientation at which time they are free to organize and attend various events with the internationals. In January 2013, 115 students, 41 mentors and two RIS coordinators took part in the Orientation. In August 2013, 305 students, 80 mentors and two RIS coordinators participated in the Orientation week. In September 2013, 55 international students, nine mentors and two RIS coordinators participated in the After Orientation Day. Following the orientation, students can also sign up to get a buddy from their specific faculty. The buddies get a great deal of training and brochures. The length of the buddy programs varies: There are no obligatory requirements since the programs are run entirely on a voluntary basis. However, the international student organizations of Nijmegen University organize an international students night every Tuesday which may prove to be an additional way to bring together Dutch and international students. Best practices They have noticed that putting students in bigger groups works better than pairing them one-on-one as it is hard to force friendship on a one-on-one basis, and there is a higher likelihood that students will meet like-minded people in a group setting. Another

16 good practice is the fact that the board of the university initiated this program and provided a common format which the faculties were free to adopt. Until 2013, the faculties implementation of the programs were not subject to any monitoring. However, research from this year shows that the buddy programs on the faculty level are more or less on a professional level. Buddy Recruitment Methods Students are recruited through advertisements in the general student newsletter, the Erasmus Newsletter and the International Office newsletter. The RIS Facebook page and website and those of other student organizations are used for recruitment as well. They also recruit amongst the students who have already been mentors in the past. During the Opening Market of the Orientation week in August, they give out flyers to the 1 st year students and recruit international mentors from the pool of International exchange and master students. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy Currently all students are volunteers; however, due to the difficulty of recruiting Dutch students, the international office administration is considering using some form of an incentive. Challenges As mentioned above, they have noticed that sometimes there is no click when the students are matched on a one-on-one basis. In addition, it is difficult to find a sufficient number of mentors as not that many Dutch students sign up for the program. Buddy Training - A general training is provided for mentors of the 1 st year Orientation. Participation is on a voluntary basis. RIS also holds several mentor meetings, detailing on the program and the duties of mentors. Areas for Improvement The participation in the buddy programs is not that high, and it has been difficult to assess whether students are not interested or whether they simply are not aware of the existence of these programs. Thus, more effort has to directed towards publicizing the buddy programs. There are also some ideas about organizing peer groups on the faculty level and introducing an integration course for new international students. International Student Evaluations There is no data yet with regard to how international students rate the buddy programs. International Student Organizations Nijmegen (ISON) which is an umbrella organization of five international student associations is conducting a survey on this subject this year (2013). Hogeschool Utrecht Two faculties at HU have a buddy program the Faculty of Economics and the Faculty of Communication and Journalism. The program at the Faculty of Economics, which pairs Dutch and international students with incoming internationals, lasts a semester. Twelve buddy coaches (both Dutch and international) and 37 internationals have signed up for the buddy program in the Fall 2013 semester. Since the number of coaches is substantially smaller than that of buddies, each buddy is connected to three to four internationals. Buddy Recruitment Methods The Faculty of Economics recruits students through mass e- mails and also by publicizing the buddy program on the HU share point (a common information sharing tool). 16

17 Incentives for Becoming a Buddy Until 2012, buddies at the Faculty of Economics used to get a small financial compensation 180 euros for the entire semester. However, since international students cannot be paid, this policy was abolished, and currently students who choose to be buddies do so on an entirely voluntary basis. Buddy Training - The faculty provides one-day training for the buddy coaches in order to make them more aware of cultural differences and give them the practical knowledge they must have in order to be able to help internationals with the practicalities that they need to deal with when settling in a new country. Challenges According to the coordinator of the buddy program at the Faculty of Economics, the feedback of buddy coaches is the same every year: they would like to have a bigger budget for group activities where all the coaches and international students could come together and interact. Best practices Through the buddy training, the Faculty of Economics makes Dutch students more aware of cultural differences and teaches them how to communicate in a culturally sensitive manner. Avans Hogeschool Only one academy at Avans University of Applied Sciences has a buddy program, and that is the Avans School of International Studies (ASIS). The program has a facebook page 6 and a blog site 7. Buddies are recruited in October for the Spring semester and in June for the Fall Semester. International students are informed about the buddy program at the time of registration at Avans. Buddies contact new students via Facebook prior to their arrival. Once the students arrive at ASIS, they participate in the introduction week during which they take part in various activities. After the students and buddies get to know each other, they choose who will be their long-term buddy. It is up to the buddies and students to keep in touch and organize activities after the introduction week. However, ASIS does hold quiz nights, Sinterklaas parties, picnics and karaoke nights. The program is financed by ASIS and lasts a semester. The buddy program coordinator is mainly in touch with the students during the introduction week and helps with the organization of the above-mentioned events by ASIS. The remaining activities are organized with the help of a Super Buddy who is in touch with the program coordinator, creates events and manages the Facebook page. Buddy Recruitment Methods The Blackboard portal of Avans and the ASIS Facebook page are used to recruit buddies. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy Students get paid only for the introduction week; however, the remaining time commitment is entirely on a voluntary basis. Buddies also receive a letter of recommendation at the end. Buddy Training Buddies are provided with a guide and attend an information session hosted by the program coordinator in the beginning of each session

18 Challenges The main challenges are schedule conflicts of students when the coordinator is trying to organize group events. Best Practices According to the program coordinator, giving students the freedom to decide how long they want the program to last is a good practice as some students want help only in the first week while others require mentorship for a longer period of time. Areas for Improvement - More involvement in the buddy program from the institution as a whole was mentioned as an area for improvement. International Student Evaluations The program coordinators had the following to say about international student evaluations: Excellent. They are very happy. Many become buddies themselves the following year. I think they would like more meet-ups and events. The institution could help with this by creating talks, lectures, and workshops on relevant topics. TU Eindhoven At the beginning of the academic year, TU Eindhoven provides an intensive two-week introduction program for all international students. The students are divided into groups of eight to ten people, led by two buddies either Dutch or international. Following the introduction program, international students take part in coaching sessions with central-level student advisors and faculty-level study advisors. These coaching sessions provide a forum for the newcomers to bring up issues related to their personal wellbeing and to their studies. Most faculties at the university also have Dutch student study coaches for international students. They receive training from the Education and Student Service Center student advisors in order to be able to help international students. TU/e also established a Common Room for the international community. This Common Room is located in the central hall of the university (MetaForum) and is meant as living room were all (inter)national students can meet and interact with each other. The international student association Cosmos, together with a very active group of student volunteers is responsible for the management of this Common Room and organizes all kinds of (cultural) events. Universeit Twente University of Twente has a pilot buddy program, which was established in September It pairs up incoming international students with Dutch students for the first block of the academic year (11 weeks). The pairs are formed according to age, gender, study and hobbies. Participation in the program will be on a voluntary basis. It will take place twice a year in September and February. The main goals of the program are as follows: introducing the international student to the Netherlands in a personal manner; enhancing integration between Dutch and non-dutch students; increasing the intercultural competences of all participating students; and contributing to a vivid international community at UT. The program is run by a buddy group and the Student Union. It is also financed by the latter. 25 Dutch buddies and 35 international students are participating in the pilot program. Buddy Recruitment Methods - The program is advertised through the student associations, Facebook and the newsletters of the Student Union. 18

19 Incentives for Becoming a Buddy The Dutch buddies are volunteers. However, the pair (buddy-international student) get a 50-euro budget to do some activities together. Buddy Training - Briefings are organized and buddy guides are provided for the Dutch buddies. Universiteit Tilburg Tilburg University launched the Personal Pal pilot project in September It is meant for socially isolated international students, in other words, students who have trouble integrating into the Tilburg community due to homesickness, loneliness or trouble balancing academic work and social life. The program links international students to students who are trained as peer coaches. They are connected on a one-on-one basis. Nine peer coaches are enrolled in the pilot program. They are paired with students according to characteristics and interests. The pilot will last for one semester, but they are hoping to follow it with a bigger project. Buddy Recruitment Methods Peer coaches are recruited through Blackboard, direct s (to international students and Dutch students who have been on exchange in the past), and library information screens. Incentives for Becoming a Buddy Participation in the program is entirely on a voluntary basis. Buddy Training Peer coaches attend two workshops which focus on intercultural communication, motivation and goal setting. Challenges One of the challenges is that there are various buddy and mentor programs at Tilburg University, and it is hard to communicate how the Pal Program differs from all others. 19

20 IV. EVALUATION Some general trends were noticeable based on the correspondence with the higher education institutions. First of all, most universities and universities of applied sciences are very decentralized. Therefore, buddy programs are often organized by individual faculties rather than on the central university level. In addition, some universities rely on their local ESN section to provide buddy or mentor services to their students. From the top ten list, University of Groningen and University of Amsterdam did so (for an overview of other universities, see the ESN Report in Annex III). It is also noteworthy that buddy programs at some institutions are handled by the international office staff and at others by the communication and marketing department personnel. Another feature of buddy programs is that they are also very decentralized in a sense that in most cases, after the introduction week, buddies are granted considerable freedom over keeping in touch with the international students they are matched with. All of these factors together make it difficult to accurately assess the availability, quality and efficiency of these programs in terms of supporting international students during their initial days in the Netherlands and in terms of creating bonds between Dutch and international students. Another common feature of buddy programs is the difficulty of recruiting Dutch buddies which results in international students (those who have been in the Netherlands for some time) being recruited as buddies for incoming international students. In this regard, a distinction should be made between two types of buddy programs: 1) those which are primarily meant to help international students settle in the Netherlands in the first few months of their arrival and 2) those which aim to integrate the Dutch and international student communities in higher education institutions in the Netherlands. Considering the shortage of Dutch students in buddy programs, recruiting international students to act as buddies for incoming internationals may be a great solution for providing information and support to international students who are new to the country (the first type of buddy programs). However, such programs obviously cannot contribute to efforts of breaking the bubble between international and Dutch student communities. It must be observed that the majority of the buddy programs reviewed in this report belong to the first category of buddy programs. In other words, they are primarily aimed at providing support to international students in their initial days in the Netherlands. This explains the short duration of the programs (mainly the first few weeks or months of the semester) and the fact that Dutch students are often absent from these programs (one program coordinator even mentioned that international students who have lived in the Netherlands for some time are better placed to help new international students as they all face the same problems). Even if some programs do have a considerable number of Dutch buddies, the relationship dynamics between them and international students are not such as to foster a real connection and lasting friendships. This is because the Dutch students who participate in these programs often assume the role of short-term information providers (mentors) while international students are much like information consumers (mentees). Thus, once the internationals have settled into their new environment, there is no longer an incentive to keep in touch with each other, unless 20