I really like your way of studying because you’re always keeping your mind on the classes

“In Italy I am studying for a degree in Languages and Literature in English, Spanish, and Russian. Unfortunately, I can only take English and Spanish here, but I follow some Italian classes to get enough credits.

I didn’t know the VUB before my university offered me a place here, but I wanted to go to Brussels because it seems like the perfect city. It is the center of the European Union, and you can feel it is very international. Today, I’m on campus because I have class. I take eight courses because, being an Erasmus student, I have to transfer a lot of credits to my home university.

The way that you study here is very different from the way we study in Italy. Here, you have to make assignments and give presentations. In Italy you follow the class the whole semester and at the end you take the exam. We don’t do presentations, essays or assignments. I really like your way of studying because you’re always keeping your mind on the classes. When you have to make an assignment about a subject, you can really explore what you’re learning. You can put a bit of yourself into it. If you just read the book at the end of the semester, it’s just something to memorize and forget after the exam.

I had some trouble with administration when I just arrived. I think in the first week I sent an email to the administration office and they answered three weeks later. Italy is pretty famous for being slow in administration, but this was a similarity I hoped I wouldn’t find!

I really like how many events are organized on campus! When you have just arrived here and you don’t know anyone and don’t know what to do with yourself, it is a great opportunity to explore your surroundings and get to know people!”

On the occasion of the VUB’s 50th anniversary, prof. dr. Martina Temmerman asked the students in her introductory course on journalism genres to make portraits of people on the VUB campus. The ‘snapshots’ resulting from the project Humans of the VUB offer a lovely cross section of life on our university campus in 2019/20.