Studying is about more than just passing your courses, says ISO, emphasising that students also develop through extracurricular activities. They might do a board year at their student union, for instance, or join a participation council. Others may choose to enrol in an honours programme. These experiences help students build their network, while also honing various skills and discovering new interests.
But many students don’t get involved in any activities outside their core curriculum. Some simply have no interest, but others feel like they can’t, according to a survey carried out by ResearchNed on behalf of ISO. The agency asked nearly 6,400 students about their considerations regarding extracurricular activities.
Place of birth
The study finds that students’ place of birth plays a role in these considerations, with those from non-Western backgrounds slightly more reluctant than others to engage in extracurricular activities. The same can be seen among students whose parents didn’t go to university. In both cases, there’s a gap of several percentage points.
Survey responses from these students show that they’re worried about falling behind in their studies or running into money problems. The report doesn’t go into detail on this point, but it’s possible that these groups need a side job to get by, or that they’re afraid of taking out student loans.
Which is precisely what ISO is concerned about – especially now that the class divide is set to widen with the arrival of the slow-progress penalty, which will affect about 95,000 students a year. The government wants Bachelor’s and Master’s students who are more than a year behind to pay an extra 3,000 euros in tuition fees.
Money worries are a factor for 42 percent of students from non-Western migration backgrounds who decide to forego extracurricular activities. Among students of Dutch origin, the figure is 30 percent.
Initial exploration
The researchers do qualify the percentages in their study by pointing out that there were relatively few research university students, first-year students, female students and students whose parents went to university among the respondents. So while their report does paint a picture of the situation, it is still an initial exploration, the researchers write.
ISO believes the data provides a compelling case against the slow-progress penalty. “It’s unacceptable that a growing group of students are missing out on these meaningful opportunities”, says ISO chair Mylou Miché.
And it’s not just about these students themselves, the organisation adds in a press release, as others also benefit from extracurricular efforts: “Students who serve on a participation council make an important contribution to the quality of education, and students who do a board year are indispensable to student life in their city.”
Protest
Last Friday, hundreds of students took to the streets of The Hague in a march against the slow-progress penalty. ISO was present at this protest as well. Today, the House of Representatives will hold a debate with Minister Eppo Bruins on his budget cuts and the position of students.
