Testimonials

‘I can learn a lot from students because they bring fresh perspectives’

I work as a teacher and the first thing I’d like to tell you is that teaching is wonderful work. It's a great opportunity to apply in practice what you’ve learned (knowledge of theology and religious studies, but also pupils’ personal growth), you can grow and develop in many ways, and it’s anything but boring.

The slogan that teaching is different every day may be a cliché, but it’s also very true. I warmly invite you to come and shadow me for a day.

As a teacher, you also often play the role of mentor. You also have opportunities to eventually become dean, coordinator, profile paper coach or headmaster.

I can also learn a lot from you, as there are undoubtedly many new insights in the field. And it’s very useful to have someone sit at the back of the classroom.

I always enjoy getting feedback on what I do in practice and on my performance in the classroom. Don’t hesitate to ask lots of questions, and have a good look around to see whether this is the right work environment for you.

‘For graduates, it’s a great opportunity to show what their job looks like and how it reflects what they learned in their degree programme.’

I encourage you to take part in the ‘Mentor for a Day’ project. For students, it’s a wonderful opportunity to get to know a Faculty graduate and his or her career so far.

They can start to grasp how the degree programme’s content, training and skills have shaped the graduate’s career, and this can help students in their study choices. For graduates, it’s a great opportunity to meet students from their ‘old’ Faculty and show them what their job looks like and how it reflects what they learned in their degree programme. Once again: I highly recommend this project!

‘As I sat at the back of the classroom, my hands were itching to get to work with these groups’

Until last year, when I was in my third Bachelor’s year, I suspected that there was life after graduation, but I had no idea what it might look like in practice. The great thing about the degree programme in Religious Studies is how broad it is, leaving many options open. But this also means you have to make choices based on considerations that may have been covered in the Bachelor’s degree programme, but didn’t necessarily receive that much attention. So what should you base your choices on?

My approach was to make a list of all potential professional fields, and teaching was one of them.

I then approached Michaël Kruiper to ask him whether I could spend a day at the Willem Lodewijk

Grammar School to see for myself what it was like to work as an RE teacher. Even if you already know what you want to do, I’d still encourage you to have a look at what it looks like in practice. Your experiences on a day like this can either confirm or disprove whatever image you’ve formed, making your potential choice more or less interesting for you. Job-shadowing helped me to choose a Master’s degree programme and check my expectations against the lived experience of someone working in the field.

As I sat at the back of the classroom and saw how lively a group of pupils can be (something that may be less welcome on a regular Monday morning), my hands were itching to get to work with these groups. I also became enthusiastic in the breaks, hearing Michaël talk to his colleagues and pupils about organizing a joint Easter celebration. Thanks to this job-shadowing day, my interest has turned into more of a sense of direction, which is something I think all students need.