Amsterdam
Students at Amsterdam University College (AUC) are generally concerned with the everyday global news during their studies since many courses bring the everyday reality to class to be analyzed and discussed. But apparently, this does not necessarily mean that these students are active news-followers during the academic year. Surprisingly, an interviewed group of Dutch AUC students all acknowledged that it was only at their parents’ house that they took the time to aim attention at the news, usually during the weekends or the lengthy summer break.
Second year Humanities student Saana concluded that the newspaper that got delivered at her parents every morning made the difference. The newspaper welcomes her when she arrives in the living room after waking up, it usually lays peacefully on the coffee table. She does not have a subscription on the Dutch newspaper herself, which would, in case of subscription, be delivered at her dorm, since she thinks that she would not read it that often. It seems as if, for Saana, the action of reading the newspaper only fits at her parents’ home.
It is not only the newspaper that draws attention when Dutch students are at their parents’ place. Dewi, second year Humanities student and Sarah, second year science student, note that they usually watch the news on television at eight o’ clock after dinner with the family. At both their dorm, they do not have a television so they cannot watch the news. When Dewi has time, she checks the Dutch news application called NOS.
A semester at university can be perceived as very stressful for many students, research by the University of Amsterdam has shown. In some cases, it even results into depression and/or severe anxiety. This could explain why some students are not following the news on a daily level during the week. Important to consider is that following the news is often a time-consuming activity and after a long day of studying, the global reality may be a little overwhelming. Furthermore, local as well as global news is not always positive, it can influence one’s mood, so in case of depression for example, it is not always something to look out to.
Thus, some Dutch AUC students prefer to follow the global and local news at their parents’, a place they are familiar with where many news media are present. Though student life learns each individual many things and makes one engage with the local and global news, not every student is as ‘up to date’ as it seems.
Sources
Interview with Saana, Dewi and Sarah
Rochelle Villani 