The housing shortage among students we see in Wageningen plays out in all university cities in the Netherlands, and often worse. Three students from the Hanzehogeschool in Groningen made a penetrating documentary about it. It won an important journalistic prize last week.
By: Marc van der Woude
Whereas Wageningen University’s Resource magazine is a kind of lapdog hanging obediently under the Corporate Communications and Marketing department, Leiden University’s Mare is a real watchdog. Hanzemag of the Hanze University Groningen is also such a biter. Both magazines won national awards for journalism in higher education this month. Mare won the first prize for an investigation into the use of ‘smart cameras’ at the university. Hanzemag won prizes in the video and podcast category with a documentary about three international students’ search for housing.
The creators wanted to better identify the problem. They were particularly shocked by the ’emergency shelter’ arranged for international students in Groningen. “Reviewing the footage, it looks like an emergency shelter after an earthquake in Haiti,” says Daniel van de Riet. “150 beds side by side with a small folding wall between them. No kitchen, no refrigerator. They had to share eight toilets. And you get to put down 250 euros a month for that, too.” When the emergency shelter was closed, the students living there had to look for other accommodation.
Van de Riet is himself a student at the Hanzehogeschool. “That this happens in the Netherlands, with your fellow students, you don’t expect that.” He made the documentary as part of his minor in Medialism. “A student in our class was homeless. We found that out while filming. Then it did come very close.”
The students want to make people aware of the problem. “This is happening in Groningen, but also in other student cities in the Netherlands. So we want to give these students, victims almost, a voice. Their story needs to be heard. Twenty-five minutes is actually not enough time to show how big the housing crisis for international students is. The University of Groningen, Hanzehogeschool and the City of Groningen could offer more explanation about this problem, but they all point at each other. This problem is far from being solved,” Van de Riet said.
The documentary “Sorry, no internationals” can be seen here:
The video shows that as in Wageningen, communication by the university leaves much to be desired. Expectations could be managed better than they are now. International students feel unwanted and experience a lack of care from the university. They are brought in with an attractive educational offer, but then left to their own devices. “Surely a developed country shouldn’t have this kind of problem,” says one student. Another: “It is best to come without any expectations. Then it can’t disappoint either.”
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