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We can make a difference in the life course of young adults

A fascination for changes in people's lives and for the power of peer feedback is at the heart of the XChange project that Veronique Schutjens started when she was appointed Senior Fellow at the Centre for Academic Teaching in 2018. In this project she develops a methodology to teach bachelor exchange students to reflect on their international experiences and to make better use of this experience to develop their employability skills.

“The beauty of being a university teacher is to make a difference in the life course of young adults. During their educational program in a crucial life course phase, students learn and grow and we, the teachers, are in the wonderful and enviable position to be able to guide and influence it. We teach them to aim high and set concrete goals,” Veronique Schutjens wrote in her proposal for the XChange project.

Self-regulated learners

Every year, some 1,000 students aim high by studying abroad. "I saw with my own Geo-students that after their time abroad they immediately started again with their studies and life here. In fact, they did little with their experience. While it is often a very special time in which, in addition to deepening the content, you also gain a lot of life experience. Moreover, an exchange abroad can significantly increase your chances on the labor market, provided that you have actually done something with it. The vision of the university is that our students will become self-regulated learners. Through my project, I want to teach them to reflect more and to share the results more with other students. Awareness, goal setting and reflecting are central to this. The ultimate goal is the development of employability skills - or in terms of the UU: transferable skills."

With this goal in mind, together with Elma Zijderveld of Onderwijsadvies & Training, Veronique developed a programme for exchange students, that consists of a pre-departure training with two meetings, two stay-abroad assignments and a back home meeting. In the pre-departure training the students discuss with each other learning objectives in the field of employability skills, and ask for feedback from acquaintances. A powerful tool is the writing of a letter to oneself, which will be sent later, during the foreign stay. "This letter is quite confronting: you read the intended plans back in your own handwriting. Outside the familiar, familiar environment, the student is sometimes in a vulnerable situation, and things can sometimes turn out quite differently.”

Experience expert

That happened to Julian, now a third-year student in Social Geography & Planning. He was supposed to go to Innsbrück, but it turned out there was nothing organised for him at all - finding a place to live was almost impossible and the information provided was extremely scarce. He decided that it would be better to spend his time elsewhere and opted for a language course in Argentina and to travel around South America. "The great thing is that my predetermined learning goals have come true," he says enthusiastically: "I wanted to learn a language and get to know the locals. Because I was staying with a host family, I did a good job. Moreover, I learned to deal with disappointment and to think in terms of solutions." Julian was one of the first groups of students to take part in the training of Veronique and Elma. "Throughout the process I have set goals in advance and I am more aware now of what I have learned.”

Reflective And Interactive Learning

The format that Veronique has drawn up will be tested and further developed in the near future and integrated with the course Intercultural Learning at the Faculty of Humanities. Veronique is working on an educational concept she called ‘Reflective And Interactive Learning’ (RAIL). "Once the training is set and effective, I expect teachers to be able to use the format broadly. In addition to the experience of exchange, it can also be applied by teachers and students in other learning activities such as an internship, field trip, voluntary work or a part-time job. In all cases, it's about raising awareness, setting goals, and reflecting on these goals. In short, about getting more out of each learning experience."

If you have any questions or would like to know more about the project, please feel free to contact Veronique Schutjens.