What do you do as a coordinator?
“I’m sort of the link between two worlds: the university and elite sports. First and foremost, I’m the point of contact for current and prospective students who excel in the arts or sports at a high level. The latter group is the largest. Together with my colleague Emiel, I show them all the options available, and in consultation with the study programmes, we find ways to best combine their studies and sports. That means a lot of discussion, coordination, and sometimes adjusting expectations.
It often starts with listening and offering general tips to help you prepare for your program. There’s so much to consider when starting a study programme, and no two elite athletes are in the same situation. For example, a sailor is abroad much more often than a rower; a speed skater’s peak season is in the winter; and another athlete might have to travel frequently between sports, school, and home. We work together to figure out what’s needed.
With a Top Performance Status at VU Amsterdam, athletes can utilise a number of facilities. For example, you can choose convenient seminar times that fit in with training sessions. If you are abroad for a tournament, you can ask the faculty for a flexible deadline or attendance requirement, or an alternative assignment. We often refer students to the study adviser, who helps them draw up a realistic study plan. We also discuss long-term planning: what if major athletic opportunities arise? How will you get on with your studies?
In addition, I act as an ambassador for elite sports within VU Amsterdam. I explain, for example to study advisers and lecturers, what life as an athlete entails. Not because they should be granted more exceptions, but because understanding and being supportive often make up half of the solution. Ultimately, the aim is for the elite athlete to successfully complete their degree programme. It is important that we do not lower the bar; the learning outcomes remain the same."
Why do they receive extra support?
"I believe that, in principle, every student facing exceptional circumstances deserves support, including elite athletes. We have also reached national agreements on this with the Ministry, NOC*NSF and other educational institutions as part of the FLOT Action Plan: Flexible Education and Elite Sports [translated from Dutch].
Ultimately, all students want to successfully complete their studies. I wish the very best to everyone who wants to complete their studies and has been juggling everything for months, whether that involves training or caring for family members. When someone finally earns that degree after all the training sessions, work placements, competitions and exams, I am genuinely very proud of them.
If we can help athletes to get a degree alongside their sports careers, we are investing not only in their current performance, but also in their future. A sports career usually lasts only a limited number of years and is often precarious. After that, a whole new life begins, and it can be difficult for elite athletes to make the transition into the labour market. They often lack practical experience.
It also adds value to society. Athletes carry so much valuable knowledge with them from their sport! And don’t forget that they represent the Netherlands at major tournaments and, in doing so, also make an incredibly important contribution. And to be honest, other students (and really everyone, including myself) can certainly learn a thing or two from top athletes. Their experience, discipline, perseverance and ability to plan ahead are impressive."
What are the biggest elite sports at VU Amsterdam?
"The standouts are hockey, rowing, and we also have a lot of female football players studying here. Of all the universities, VU Amsterdam has the most student hockey players. We have good contacts with the Dutch hockey association, which also considers dual development as very important. The Bosbaan is of course right around the corner, which makes studying at VU Amsterdam easy to combine with rowing. They sometimes train six days a week and twice a day.
We also have athletes, rugby players, and 3x3 basketball players, for example, but there are too many sports to name them all. The most unusual ones, I think, are ultimate frisbee, trampolining, lifesaving sport, and freerunning with a discipline called 'Chase Tag,' a kind of tag with obstacles at world championship level. That's really exciting to watch. It's incredibly fun to see so many different sports pass by, and to learn about the world behind each one."
How many students does it concern?
"Right now VU Amsterdam has about 150 students with a Top Performance status. Most are athletes, and a small portion have one based on cultural achievements. Some have status for a certain period, for example for a one-time participation in a European or World Championship abroad. In principle you qualify if you have a status from NOC*NSF. You don't get that easily — it has to be an internationally organised sport and the very highest level.
There's also a large group of students who compete in elite sports but without a Top Performance status. For example because they don't yet meet the required level. Often they're right up against the highest level, which puts them under extra pressure during their studies and sport. We try to support this group too. They would actually be best helped by a status, but the criteria are very strict. I find these conversations are difficult to have."
What are popular fields of study for elite athletes?
"At VU Amsterdam it's mainly Medicine and Human Movement Sciences. The latter especially fits well with their interests and future prospects, and the teachers there are familiar with the provisions of the Top Performance scheme. That makes students experience this as a study that's easy to combine. With Medicine it's sometimes a bit trickier, for example with planning their master's (the clinical placements). But we can usually find good solutions for that as well.
What I find really positive is that elite athletes increasingly choose a field of study because it really suits them, not just because it's easy to combine with sport. That's necessary, because it only works if you choose something you can develop yourself in and see yourself using later. For athletes it's also nice to have something else to sink their teeth into besides all the training and competition pressure. Ultimately you need this motivation to get through your studies."
The hockey and rowing World Championships are coming up soon in the Netherlands, with VU Amsterdam students participating too. Are you going to watch?
"Of course! I'm a huge sports fan and always follow such tournaments with great interest. It's really nice that you know some of the participants. At the same time, there are so many World and European Championships every year that VU Amsterdam students take part in. I'd like to see them all, but unfortunately that's not possible. I follow our athletes as much as I can, and I always ask them to let me know about their sports achievements. But I also really enjoy following them in their studies, and I encourage them in that just as much. I don't have personal favorites — generally every elite athlete is equal to me. My enthusiasm isn't tied to a particular student but to the development I see."
Do you see them as athletes who study, or students who play sport?
"That differs depending on what phase of their career they're in. Emiel and I speak with a lot of prospective students, who often make the transition to senior level within their sport during their studies. Sometimes they make it, sometimes they don't. I see them mainly as people: they try to do their best, both in their studies and in sport, and they face a lot of challenges in that.
One lives entirely for their sport, another draws a lot of energy from their studies instead. And that can change too: sometimes sports take priority for a while, sometimes studies do, and sometimes it's mainly about how you juggle it all at the same time. That applies to all students with personal circumstances. I'm glad I can be there to help in those moments. Ultimately these are young people trying to make two very ambitious dreams come true at the same time. That deserves respect and support wherever possible."
