A year at TIAS: There’s more than meets the eye

If you believe that the Netherlands is only synonymous to Van Gogh, coffee shops and tulips you are entirely mistaken: the university experience at TIAS School for Business and Society can completely change your initial idea and open a future full of opportunities. At TIAS you will find students from all over the world. We have 26 nationalities in our year of over 110 students.

Here at TIAS, the study method is essentially the exact opposite of the one in Italy, where I am from: practical and hands-on, projects to be presented every week in front of the class (strictly in English) and group work and the study material is always readily available directly online. It was precisely the desire to challenge myself with a new and different method of university study that brought me here.

Furthermore, the possibility of knowing and discovering the lifestyle of young students and professionals who came to the Netherlands like me from the most remote corners of the planet, makes me appreciate and live with curiosity every day I am spending here in Utrecht. The experience is continuously enriching my cultural background and experiences, and to be a citizen of the world in the true sense of the words.

Moreover, the Netherlands is a country in which, even though English is not the mother tongue, 95% of the inhabitants speak the language. This fact makes life, study and work truly convenient and enjoyable for international students. Among the factors that make life here very pleasant, there is an open and tolerant attitude of the citizens, who often invite others to give their own opinion: this, you will see, will be really common also in the academic and working environments (everyone has a voice, and everyone is listened to respectfully). Finally, the Netherlands is in a strategic position with respect to the great European capitals, so much so that it is often defined as the "gateway" to Europe: it takes about an hour to fly from Amsterdam to Paris, or to Berlin, to Brussels or to London. And, if you don't feel like flying, you can always catch a fast train!


This blog was written by Full-time MScBA student Michele Piccoli (29) from Italy.

Read more about the Full-time MScBA