#2 - Week of the international student: What is it like to study abroad?

Bram (21 years old) and Kris (20 years old), both third-year students at Marnix Academy will leave for Madrid in February 2025, where they will study at Universidad Complutense. They are talking to Sara (20 years old) she has been studying at the Marnix Academy since 2 September and is taking the minor SEN and she is from the Universidad Complutense in Madrid. They share their stories about studying and living in the Netherlands and Spain. All three students still live at home with their parents so going to live independently is already a very nice experience as well. 

Comparing school systems 

We start the conversation about starting school life. Sara explains that in Spain, children go to preschool from the age of three, and from the age of six children start primary school. Then everyone goes to secondary school for four years and all follow the same direction. If someone wants to do something practical then they go to further education for 4 years. If you want to go to university then you stay in secondary school for another 2 years and therefore you choose a set of courses in the 4th year.  

Bram and Kris clearly see similarities. Because in the Netherlands, too, you have to choose a direction in the 3rd year. But fortunately, you can still make another choice in the end. Because Kris had the profile economics but is now doing the Pabo. Another difference is the way students are addressing the teacher at secondary school. In the Netherlands, teachers are addressed as sir or madam. In Spain, teachers listen when addressed by their first name. 

All three of them chose the Pabo. Kris says they gain practical experience from the 1st year. ‘We do an internship one day a week and also, six times one-week internships in the1st year. In the 2nd year, we do internships two days a week. Sara is ‘jealous’ because practical experience is so important if you want to become a good teacher. Her study mostly focuses on theory and, she has done an internship in the 2nd year, but that was quite exceptional as normally you only do an internship in the 4th year. 

Financing studying abroad 

The conversation shifts to finances. Bram and Kris are curious about how Sara manages it all financially. ‘In the Netherlands, we pay €2.530 tuition fee per year,’ Bram explains. And we get a monthly amount as a student living at home. In Spain, tuition fees are only €1.200. For Sara, her tuition fee is paid by the government.  In addition to the tuition fee, she also receives an annual allowance for living expenses. Kris and Bram are curious to know how Sara pays for clothes, going out, and holidays. For instance, in the Netherlands, it is fairly normal for pupils and students to have a part-time job. Both Kris and Bram started working young and managed to work their way up to team leader within their part-time jobs. They say it was a lot of fun, but the part-time job came at the expense of their studies and friends so both have now taken a step back in their part-time jobs. ‘I struggle to find a side job,’ Sara adds. ‘Employers prefer someone who can work full-time. The small jobs out there are very much in demand.’ But fortunately, she can fall back on her parents who also support her financially. 

Studying abroad 

Bram is looking forward to going to study in Madrid. ‘I am looking forward to experiencing a kind of high school feeling again. We will have different subjects and get into different groups.’ Sara agrees. She is taking an English-language course in Madrid, not many students do this, therefore, the groups are also smaller than usual. Her group consists of about 20 students and the normal group size is about 60 students. As Erasmus students, Bram and Kris will join English-language groups and there is a chance they could also join Sara's group. Especially if they choose art! In Madrid, they work a lot in groups of about 5 people. Bram and Kris have to prepare for more and longer days at school than they are used to at the Marnix Academie. University in Madrid starts around 9 am, then there is an hour break around 2 pm and they finish at 5 pm. An hour break is necessary because lunch in Spain does tend to be a bit more elaborate than the Dutch sandwich. 

Sara has been in Utrecht for almost 6 weeks and is already feeling at home. She has a very nice group at the Marnix and she really likes the lessons. As a student, you participate much more than she is used to, it is cheerful and interactive. Her place of residence is Hilversum, she has a nice and bright room and she lives close to the railway station. She does not have much contact with her housemates in Hilversum. For going out, she goes to Utrecht and fortunately, she can stay with friends then because by Spanish standards nightlife in Utrecht ends early, at 04.00 hrs. At this time, no more trains are going to Hilversum. The advantage is that she saves on travel costs. According to Sara, it is very expensive to travel in the Netherlands by public transport. Bram and Kris are lucky in Madrid they can buy a monthly ticket for €8, which will allow them to travel all over Madrid! 

Food recommendations 

Fortunately, Sara is not homesick but what she misses is her grandma's ‘tortilla patata’ and, when it gets colder, the warming soup ‘El cocido’. For that, Bram has an alternative: ‘pea soup, ‘erwtensoep’, which is perfect in winter, and our stew, ‘stamppot’, you should try those too.’ 

Then the students start bragging about food. Sara: ‘Oh, and you can eat the tastiest ‘paella’ in Valencia, which is easy to reach by train from Madrid!’ Kris and Bram go on to explain what makes pancakes and ‘poffertjes’ so delicious. One thing they agree on is that ‘bitterballen’ are very tasty.