Careers & alumni

Compared to a mono-disciplinary bachelor, a University College offers a broad study programme. The bachelor Global Responsibility & Leadership combines the best of both worlds: it offers you a wide variety of opportunities to explore different disciplines, but also the advantage of structured guidance, similar to a dedicated bachelor programme. This will benefit your choice for a master’s programme after graduation, as you will have a strong background related to one of the three majors. Below are some examples of programmes our alumni have enrolled in after GRL:

After getting your master’s degree, you can choose to apply for a PhD position or start working as a policy advisor, a consultant, an entrepreneur or as a development specialist in both the private or public sector. Given the fact that your bachelor is internationally orientated and recognised, you will have outstanding career perspectives in an international working environment.

Below are some examples of job positions and employers from alumni that have started work immediately after graduating from UCF:

Could you briefly introduce yourself and your current position?

Hi there! I'm Jasmine Hufferd, a graduate of the second Global Responsibility & Leadership (GRL) cohort. Currently, I am working as a teacher within the American public school system, specifically in Oregon. Next to working, I am studying to get into law school. For this, I recently completed the LSAT exam. 

Why did you decide to study in Leeuwarden?

I have always had the ambition to study in the Netherlands. My grandmother, I call her oma, was born and raised in Groningen. Therefore, I have always been familiar with the University of Groningen itself. However, once I started looking for programs there, I was surprised to find my favorite one takes place in the city of Leeuwarden. Then one thing basically led to the other. The GRL program drew me because I wanted a study with an interdisciplinary policy approach, next to connecting with my family ties in Groningen. 

What did it bring you?

The program has helped open me up to new experiences and new cultures as well as finding my found family among the students on campus. I look back fondly on the connection and new ideas it brought me. It was a key time in my life and will always have an effect on my own positionality as well as my future goals. An example of this is having learned to always look for new solutions as well as how to approach hard times and topics.

What’s the best remembrance/memory you’ve got of your University Colleage Fryslân (UCF) time?

The best remembrance. I have of my UCF time, was the first year thanksgiving celebration with everyone. I invited the campus to celebrate my own country's holiday and almost the whole campus turned up to celebrate with food and drinks. It was one giant potluck dinner. We all spent an amazing night together just enjoying each other's company and each other's food.

Why did you decide to study in Leeuwarden?

When looking for Bachelor programs, I mainly focused on the actual content of the different programs, the university's reputation and factors like class sizes and interactivity. Both the country and the city I would study have honestly been of only secondary importance to me. However, after having decided I would apply for the Bachelor’s program Global Responsibility & Leadership and even more after my acceptance I started to increasingly engage with what it would look like and mean to study and live in the Netherlands and in Leeuwarden. This only increased my excitement for my study time in Leeuwarden. Personally, I was in particular thrilled to study in a city which is big enough to offer all one could need, for example in regards to shops, but which is also not too big and hectic. Furthermore, the beautiful countryside surrounding Leeuwraden and the proximity to the North Sea and the Ijsellmeer have made Leeuwarden so attractive to me.

Why did you choose this specific program?

There are actually quite a lot of reasons which made this program so appealing to me. First, I saw it as an unique opportunity to be part of the very first cohort of students to actually study Global Responsibility & Leadership. I was convinced that this would provide me and the other students with the wonderful opportunity to effectively shape the program and grow with and within it. Second, I was greatly attracted to the idea of highly interactive and small-scale education and the highly liberal, open, cosmopolitan and thought- and discussion-provoking atmosphere. Third, the international outlook of the program in both its structure and content greatly appealed to me. Fourth, the truly interdisciplinary approach gave me the opportunity to follow my different passions and interests and reflect on complex challenges from different perspectives. And finally, as naive as it might sound, I was hoping that this program would be the perfect place to educate me and others to try to make the world a better place.

What did it bring you?

Something between a lot and everything. In other words, studying Global Responsibility & Leadership at Campus Fryslân greatly impacted not only my (future) career and equipped me with highly useful tools and knowledge, but it made me the person I am today. It made me more reflective, open, critical and curious, more self-sufficient, self-confident, diligent and perfectionistic. The program, the people and the overall atmosphere have been the perfect breeding ground to critically reflect on both myself and my personal opinions, attitudes and development, as well as on the world as a whole. Both personally and academically, I learned that regardless of how complex a problem or an issue looks from the outside, reflecting on all aspects, it is often even more complex. But just as its many facets make a diamond sparkle, the complexity of today’s world is what makes engaging with it and finding solutions so necessary, but also attractive, inspiring and thought provoking.
And lastly, my studies also enabled me to develop so many deep and inspiring interpersonal relations. I had the pleasure and honor of meeting so many inspiring and simply fantastic people and making so many great friends, friends for life.

How do you look back on your time at CF?

I look at my time at CF with great pleasure due to all the great experiences I have had there and with great sorrow because it is already over. Of course, not everything has been perfect during my study time at CF, assignments have been annoying, courses stressful and bureaucratic processes complicated. Furthermore, the Corona pandemic has had far-reaching consequences ranging from the cancellation of my exchange program to online education and the inability to see my friends and the CF staff for months. However, all in all, when looking back at my time at CF I mostly think of all the amazing experiences I had here, what I learned and how I developed. Also in hindsight, I can say it was absolutely the right, the perfect decision to study here.

What’s your best memory of your CF time?

I must admit that it is quite hard to pinpoint one specific memory as there were so many, but if I would be forced to pick one it would probably be that I could give one of the opening speeches of the very first academic year of our faculty. This has not only been an immense honor, but especially in hindsight, it manifests my deep attachment to the faculty and the program.

What is the most important thing that you have learned?

From all the things I have learnt, the most important one probably is to always think, critically reflect and to always look beyond the surface. Based on René Decartes who also thought, worked and taught in Friesland and his famous quote ‘cogito ergo sum’ (I think therefore I am) I would conclude that (critical) thinking is core to becoming a responsible leader and hence the very essence of Global Responsibility and Leadership.

What are you doing nowadays?

Right now I am studying the Master International Relations at the Central European University in Vienna.

Why did you decide to study in Leeuwarden?

I mainly started studying in Leeuwarden because of the unique programme Campus Fryslân had to offer. I wanted to study in the Netherlands and I could not find a programme that matched my interests as well as Global Responsibility & Leadership did. Therefore, the city was not important to me. Fun fact: I had never even visited Leeuwarden before the first day of moving there!

Why did you choose to study Global Responsibility & Leadership (GRL)?

I chose to study Global Responsibility & Leadership because of the interdisciplinarity of the subjects and relation to global problems. It makes me feel useful to learn to understand the challenges we are facing and to work on possible solutions. Although it was a bit scary to start the programme in the first year of its existence, I thought this would be a great opportunity to help shape the study.

Why did you decide to study at the University College Fryslân (UCF)?

I chose for UCF because of the small-scale education and possibility for alternative examination. I have a very critical opinion towards the education system where written exams (with predefined questions and answers) are the foundation of knowledge-testing. Examination at UCF is based on various assignments, both individually and in groups, which was very attractive to me. Furthermore, the international aspect of the community was a reason for me to choose the programme.

What did it bring you?

Studying at CF has brought me a lot of new experiences, friends, opportunities and (self-)knowledge. I work at CF, while also pursuing my MSc. there. I have made great connections and have developed both academically and personally. Overall, to be honest I don't think words can properly describe this, and you really have to experience it to understand.

How do you look back on your time at CF?

As I am still part of the community, currently studying Master Climate Adaptation Governance I can not objectively look back at CF as a whole yet but I will look back at the time as a GRL student ;) Especially the first 1,5 years when we lived together with all students (although we were only a small number haha), were super special. We have made very intense connections and have grown academically together. What was special being the first cohort is that sometimes it really was a team-effort, instead of an individual challenge to pursue the study. I am mainly very proud of all of us that have graduated now, and the community that we helped build. Looking back, I would not have wanted to miss this!

What’s your best memory of your Campus Fryslân time?

The best remembrance of my time at CF were, despite all the hard work, the parties that we had in our student accomodation and in one of the many bars/clubs in the city centre. At first I did not expect it, but Leeuwarden really is a fun student city! Especially after exam weeks we used to plan an evening with everyone to party and de-stress from all the work, which led to many great memories.

What is the most important thing that you have learned?

The most important thing I have learned is that, although it sounds a bit cheesy, you have to get out of your comfort zone to grow. Going to a study that did not exist yet, in a city that I did not know, with people from around the globe that I hadn't met yet, studying such a broad and interdisciplinary topic was intimidating. But looking back at what we have achieved, it was crucial to get out of the comfort zone and take on the challenge.

Could you briefly introduce yourself and your current position?

Hi! I am Marre Linthorst, graduate from the bachelor Global Responsibility & Leadership. After my graduation I decided to stick a little bit longer in Leeuwarden for my gap year. I did not know exactly which direction I wanted to go in so I did not immediately start my Masters. I am currently working at the front desk of our own Campus Fryslân to save up money for my Masters next September. I am going to apply to Marine Sciences and Climate Change in Gibraltar. 

Why did you decide to study in Leeuwarden?

I chose to study in Leeuwarden because of the programme Global Responsibility & Leadership. During highschool, I visited almost every university in the Netherlands searching for a bachelor that would suit me the best. This was the only bachelor in the Netherlands I could find that combined all of my interests with the overarching topic of sustainability. Even though I had never been to Leeuwarden before attending the Student for a Day at Campus Fryslân, I fell in love with this small city. I have had three amazing years in Leeuwarden, hence why I decided to stay a little longer. 

Why did you decide to study Global Responsibility & Leadership (GRL) program?

I decided to do the bachelor programme Global Responsibility & Leadership because it combined all the topics I was interested in rather than focussing on one subject. I wanted to study and research the relationship between topics such as economics, earth sciences and politics. In particular, how can we reduce climate change and its impact while keeping in mind the perspective of economists and politicians. Therefore, economics and politicians have to understand the scientist and vice versa. With this programme I hoped to become one of the people that were able to connect both of these areas. 

How do you look back on your time at the University Campus Fryslân (UCF)?

I will never forget my first year living together with my whole cohort at Kanaalstraat. This was a very unique experience, since you were not only seeing your classmates at school, but you were also living with them. This has definitely made it easier to make friends at university, as you already get to know a lot of people on a deeper level because of this. Another experience I will never forget is the six months I spent in Australia as part of my minor. I absolutely fell in love with the country and the people and I am very glad I got to experience it. 

What’s the best memory you’ve got of your UCF time?

In 2022 we went on a ski trip to France with NCF (a student organisation of Campus Fryslân ), which I helped organise as part of the Travel Committee. Even though the organisation of it did not go as smoothly because of pandemic, the actual ski trip was one of the most fun things I have experienced during my time at UCF. Students from the first, second and third year of GRL but also masters students from CF joined the trip. Getting to know all these different people while being on holiday together for a week was an amazing experience and one I will always remember.