Student experiences at RUAS

Sarena is studying Mechanical Engineering at RUAS since 2021. She first considered pursuing an artistic degree but was also a talented student in the exact sciences, a field she also thoroughly enjoyed. She chose Mechanical Engineering because it combined the two interests: a technical study and a programme where she can use her love for creativity and design. She chose RUAS because of it’s location: being able to commute by bike and to be able to continue to live in a big city.
In her programme, she has several interesting group projects where she can apply the knowledge she learned in her different courses. Two examples are designing, producing and testing a Laval turbine and a sorting machine in the agrarian sector. To start from scratch and create these projects with a team is something she takes pride in.

Sarena is looking forward to continuing to learn and grow, and for the opportunities that will come her way in the future. She’s interested in the possibility of doing an internship abroad.

Jihane is currently in her final year of International Business. She chose the Rotterdam Business School programme because of the curriculum: getting the opportunity to learn new languages, learning about different cultures and how to present yourself in an international environment. What drew her to RUAS was the vibrancy of the city of Rotterdam with its diverse population and opportunities for growth. Diversity and intercultural competencies are an important focus point for RBS. They stimulate this by implementing the international classroom principle, using the national and cultural diversity of the cohorts as a resource for enhancing student success and intercultural competence development. Jihane particularly enjoys this part of her programme: working with people from many different countries and cultural backgrounds, both students and teachers.

Jihane finished an internship in São Paulo, Brazil at an e-commerce company that operates in the Middle-East. She had an amazing period abroad and got the chance to put her theoretical knowledge into practice during her internship. She’s currently starting her final year exchange at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul, Turkey.

Antonio is a Fast Track student in the International Business programme. This track is for students with a specific academic background where the four year programme is condensed into a three year programme. Antonio chose the fast track in order to challenge himself both academically and personally. He is specializing in Marketing and aspires to be a successful entrepreneur and inspirational leader in the future.
Antonio grew up in Bulgaria and has always been passionate about business and finance. After graduating from a school for Mathematics, he chose to pursue his bachelor degree at RUAS because of the balance between high academic standards and an amazing community of knowledgeable teachers and passionate students. The relationships he has been able to build with students and teachers is one of his favourite parts about studying at RUAS. 

At the moment, Antonio is completing a study abroad semester at the San Francisco State University. He’s looking forward to finding an exciting internship in an international company and wants to continue to grow academically afterwards by pursuing a Master’s degree. In the future, he wants to start his own business and build out his own brand.

Bryton is a recent RUAS graduate in the Creative Marketing and Sales class of 2022. He decided to join the university’s workforce and is now working at the International Education Centre as an International relations assistant. He works in student exchange (incoming and outgoing) and facilitates with staff mobility. He initially chose his Creative Marketing and Sales prorgamme at RUAS because he wanted to pursue a study where he could combine his creativity and his interest in marketing and business. Bryton already experienced several cultural influences growing up that led him to his current path: He grew up in Rotterdam but moved to Curaçao (Elementary and Highschool) and the United States of America (Associate degree). He decided to move back to the Netherlands after his associate degree and pursued a study at RUAS after his return to Rotterdam. His international story did not end there, as he was surprised about all the internationalisation possibilities during his studies that he was able to take advantage of. In his first year, the cohort did an excursion to Vienna. In the second year, they went to Barcelona. In his third year, students have the opportunity to do a 6-month internship abroad and during Bryton's final year he did an exchange programme to Mexico.

His international experiences have been one of the highlights of his degree and have inspired him to pursue a career with internationalization as a major pillar. He is keen to bring new knowledge,  creativity and fresh perspectives on how to future-proof internationalization.

Joris is a final year Computer Science student. He chose this degree after seeing projects made by previous students. The combination of hardware and software was the very thing he was looking for. In his decision for RUAS, location, high quality education and room for personal development were important factors. 

A mandatory part of many studies is to do an internship. Joris’ internship project was working on and finished a radar-controlled stabilised camera system prototype. Which can be used on ships to identify objects that are picked up on the radar. After finishing his impressive internship that he is very proud of, Joris is heading to Taiwan for the fall semester and will be doing his minor in Taipei. He’s looking forward to his study abroad and graduation internship and is considering following up his studies at RUAS with a Master’s degree.