Work on some of the rooms hasn’t been rounded off yet. Three Law students have already scoped out one of the finished rooms on the fourth floor. Giulia, Beatrice and Iidii are very enthusiastic. “Normally, we’d prefer to study at home rather than in, for example, the Polak Building. But these rooms are nice and quiet. There are fewer distractions and they still feel like home.” The three students discovered the room by accident on their way back from a seminar in the Tinbergen Building. “And we definitely wouldn’t mind if most students weren’t aware of these areas just yet.”
Asbestos
Setting up the study areas was quite an undertaking. The walls at Tinbergen contain asbestos, meaning the builders couldn’t remove them outright. Still, the university managed to find a purpose for the existing smaller spaces. Project leader Sandra Klarenbeek: “We were still missing smaller, intimate and ‘cosy’ study areas that you can use as a group. With this in mind, we looked whether we could make small ‘living rooms’ in Tinbergen.” These living rooms can be found on floors 4 to 8, while floors 9 to 12 offer special quiet rooms.
Both the study areas and the quiet rooms will be given a light-hearted makeover. There will be desk lamps, plants – and in some rooms even rugs. The walls will also be repainted in a fresh hue. “We asked a designer to make some wallpaper and paint designs that allow us to choose from a variety of themes. Some of them are a bit busier; others a bit calmer. Because our students don’t all want the exact same deco either. ESHCC students, for instance, are very enthusiastic and would like to be able to play music, while an Econometrics student wants to study in peace and quiet,” explains Klarenbeek.
Quotes
Some walls will even feature images or quotes. These quotes were suggested by students. Some examples: Your library is your paradise and I am a citizen of the world, known to all and to all a stranger.
Second-year International Bachelor of Economics & Business student Christoph heard about the new areas from a friend. We find him in one of the rooms on the sixth floor, where redecorating hasn’t been rounded off yet. “It’s true, this room could be a bit homier; it’s still somewhat uninviting. But it’s quieter than Polak and more peaceful than the library, so it’s the best place to study for the time being.”
A total of four rooms on the fourth floor have been completed so far. Work on the other rooms will be rounded off by the end of the year. But students can already use the study areas on each of the floors 4 to 12.
According to Klarenbeek, this puts an end to the shortage of study areas on campus for the foreseeable future. “We’ve agreed a quota of one study area for every ten students. With these new areas, we’ve even exceeded this minimum. Right now the question isn’t whether there are enough study areas, but whether students can find them.” That definitely remains the biggest challenge. But if you need to bury yourself in your books, be sure to drop by Tinbergen too.
