Quinten Jansen

Quinten’s motto is: ‘I want to do more.’ And that seems to work very well for him, because, as the faculty selection committee writes, ‘Quinten’s broad interests immediately stand out as a clear sign of his motivation.’ He is simultaneously enrolled in two Bachelor’s programmes, namely International Relations & International Organisations and Philosophy, is doing excellent work in both, and is able to skilfully integrate what he is learning, which is crucial. The lecturer who supervised his Bachelor’s thesis attested to the latter in a glowing letter of recommendation.

Quinten also has a great eye for opportunities to train outside the UG. For instance, he took part in the Netherlands Asian Honours Summer School (NAHSS) and was subsequently selected for a course on United Nations & Multilateral Diplomacy in Nijmegen. As part of the latter, he was given the opportunity to take part in the Model of the United Nations competition. In the context of the NAHSS, he was a consultant at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate (in The Hague), where he was asked to be the project leader on a project in which the Dutch chemical industry was audited regarding its role in achieving the Dutch climate goals and its position relative to the chemical industry in other countries, such as Singapore. As part of the Summer School, Quinten was able to visit local industries and institutions in Singapore, where he also attended a course unit in Public Policy. Quinten served in the University Council on behalf of the student party De Vrije Student (The Free Student), where he among other things championed the creation of placement positions for students in companies associated with the University of the North. Finally, Quinten was also junior correspondent for the Organization for World Peace in Canada, he took part in the Associanzone Diplomatici of the Change the World: Model of the United Nations programme in New York, and he was active for Doctors without Borders and the World of Eirin in Romania.

In short, Quinten takes his motto very seriously. His interest clearly lies in international diplomacy, as he made clear during his pitch, and he hopes to follow up his Groningen degree programme(s) with a Master’s programme at the prestigious College of Europe in Bruges.