It’s on a larger scale, has a bigger programme and is more international than ever. On paper, Eurekaweek 2017 surpasses all preceding editions, leading to high expectations among the new batch of first-year students.
Like their predecessors, there was one thing that the members of the 2017 Eurekaweek Committee quickly agreed on: ‘let’s do something that hasn’t been done before’. But what can you come up with if you’re dealing with more participants than ever and many of the programme items are predetermined? “It wasn’t easy, but we pulled it off fortunately,” says Loek Wijnhoven, who handles communication. “After all, you want to distinguish yourself from the preceding edition wherever you can.”
International
After all, you want to distinguish yourself from the preceding edition wherever you can
The most striking difference with previous Eurekaweeks has to be the extra day added to this year’s programme. Whereas up till now, participants could use Sunday to mentally prepare for the rest of the week; this year, a share of the incoming students already have to get cracking over the weekend. Because the programme on Sunday is dedicated to EUR’s international student body.
“As a committee, we thought it was a shame that the programme never included anything special for our international students,” explains Wijnhoven. “That’s why we established this day.” The opening day has a very Dutch flavour. For example, the participants can savour some typical Dutch treats and play Dutch games. And there’s a one-stop shop that internationals can turn to for all sorts of practical matters. The day will be rounded off with a visit to the open-air cinema.
New activities
But there are more than enough new activities for non-international students as well. For example, the campus day and the information fair have been merged into a single big event at Woudestein, on Tuesday. “We saw some overlap between the two events, so we decided to combine them.” And this step has created new room in the week’s programme for a Masters Day on Wednesday. “We thought it was important to also include a serious item in the programme for this group of students.”
Besides all these ‘firsts’, the Committee has reserved more than enough time for some age-old favourites. The new students once again have the opportunity to check out Rotterdam’s different student associations. And the week will be concluded, as always, with a Night of the Songs – and, of course, a Cantus.
Enthusiastic already? Well, we hope you’ve bought a ticket, because Eurekaweek 2017 is sold out. The organisers have set up a waiting list for any tickets that become available due to people cancelling at the eleventh hour.
