{"id":102012,"date":"2019-08-27T10:41:22","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T08:41:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=102012"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:24:25","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:24:25","slug":"from-meat-market-to-tea-with-biscuits-hospiteren-can-be-quite-frustrating","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/08\/27\/from-meat-market-to-tea-with-biscuits-hospiteren-can-be-quite-frustrating\/","title":{"rendered":"From meat market to tea with biscuits: hospiteren<\/em> can be quite frustrating"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve replied to an ad advertising a room and are invited to come over so that your prospective flatmates can assess you (a so called hospiteeravond<\/em>), refrain from bringing expensive bottles of wine, and don\u2019t pay the current residents too elaborate compliments on the condition of their toilet. And most of all, remain true to yourself, because you will <\/em>find a room eventually. On average, Rotterdam students visit four houses before being offered a room.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRachel Sender<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\t

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In short<\/span><\/p>\n

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  • Hospiteren <\/em>is a typically Dutch phenomenon that involves several students \u2013 possibly five, ten or fifteen at a time \u2013 all applying for a vacant room in a student house, having a \u2018job interview\u2019 of sorts with the current residents.<\/li>\n
  • EM interviewed 279 EUR students about hospiteren<\/em>.<\/li>\n
  • More than a quarter of the students have to go to an hospiteer <\/em>night five times or more before they will find a room.<\/li>\n
  • Women on average hospiteren<\/em> more often than men, but in a shorter time. This way they find a room a little faster.<\/li>\n
  • Expensive rooms are often readily available for internationals, but the internationals have a hard time in the hospiteren<\/em> circuit.<\/li>\n
  • According to the Stadswonen housing association, the waiting time for a room in Rotterdam has almost tripled in the last five years.<\/li>\n
  • Read tips from students to be successful in hospiteren<\/em> at the bottom of this article.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

    EM surveyed 279 EUR students on the act of hospiteren<\/em>, a typically Dutch phenomenon that involves several students \u2013 possibly five, ten or fifteen at a time \u2013 all applying for a vacant room in a student house, having a \u2018job interview\u2019 of sorts with the current residents. We asked the students about their hospiteren<\/em> experiences, how long it took them to find a room, and how many times they had to be interviewed (among other things).<\/p>\n

    If you are looking for a room, having a proper network is crucial. Students often find rooms through their friends (27 per cent of respondents). Knowing a current resident in a house with an available room can be a distinct advantage, but more often, students need the housing association\u2019s assistance (36 per cent).<\/p>\n