One of the Netherlands’ most unique campuses lies in the town where Brooklyn took its name. Nyenrode Business University’s main campus includes a 13th-century castle. We spoke to a recent graduate to learn about life on the Nyenrode campus.
Unless you’ve been to the Netherlands, it’s likely you’ve never heard of Breukelen.
As Maxim Mommers reflects, “In the Netherlands you have several choices. You can go to Amsterdam, you can go to Rotterdam, but there was this special thing which was called Nyenrode.” (00:47)
It’s obvious there was something about Nyenrode Business University that captivated his attention. And taking a closer look at Nyenrode, we can start to see why.
It’s one of the few universities in the Netherlands that specializes in business programs, and one of even fewer to be privately-run. The university’s private status does mean that its tuition fees are higher compared to public universities. However, being outside of the public system also brings a greater level of freedom and control.
To help students cover the higher cost of tuition the school offers scholarships. One such award comes from the so-called Nyenrode Business Game.
In this game, which forms part of the school’s admissions process, students take on a business challenge from a well-known company. They must present their case in groups to the judges. The winning group gets interviewed by university staff, and from those interviews, one lucky student is selected to receive a full scholarship at Nyenrode.
Maxim won the Nyenrode Business Game a few years ago. He received a full scholarship to study the school’s Master of Science in Management, specializing in Financial Management. He’s not shy to admit that the scholarship was the deciding factor in his choice to study at Nyenrode. (02:09)
One of the first things that Maxim noticed at Nyenrode is that most students live on campus, which is uncommon in the Netherlands. The main campus is situated in Breukelen, a Dutch town internationally recognized as the origin of New York’s Brooklyn name. In the Netherlands, it’s better known for being the home of Nyenrode.
The campus itself is nothing like your typical campus. It’s set in the grounds of a medieval castle that dates back to the 13th century, with the total estate covering 60 hectares. Maxim says that living on campus was “something that quite intrigued” him – and ended up being the thing that made his time here so special. (01:01)
Another quirk of Nyenrode was how it chooses its faculty members. Because some lecturers combine their teaching with business careers, it leads to a well-rounded educational experience for students.
“If you compare it to other universities and to my bachelor university, those people were teaching full-time,” Maxim begins. “The people that are teaching at Nyenrode you often see that they have a career, or they had a career before, and teaching is something that they do on the side. So you’re not not only learning from the books, but also from what’s actually happening in practice.” (03:41)
Let’s take a closer look at what student life is like on this Dutch campus.
“Interesting,” chuckles Maxim, describing campus life in Breukelen. “Everything is really extreme, so the highs are really extreme, the lows are really extreme, and I think that that’s a natural thing when you’re living together with 300 people on two square kilometers.” (06:29)
However, it’s also an environment which helps you to form close relationships with your classmates. You study together, you live together, and you socialize together. Maxim compares the campus dynamic to that of a family.
“You get really close in a really short amount of time. So the campus atmosphere, it feels like a big family, but as you know in all families you have some issues, but in the end I think every family member loves each other.” (07:06)
The campus environment presented some challenges to Maxim like balancing his studies with the thriving social life on campus.
“Because I had the scholarship I had to perform academically first, which I did for the first few months. So I put my social life a bit on hold as much as I could.” (05:05)
Yet, the pressure to succeed wasn’t Maxim’s only challenge during his master’s. Being exposed to a diverse student body was a great chance for him to meet new people. As it happens, it also made him realize the importance of staying true to yourself. (08:13)
Maxim soon discovered that a bigger network doesn’t necessarily mean a better network. He wanted to meet new people, but realized that it’s important to meet the right people. Those who would enrich his personal and professional life.
“You have a lot of students with a business background, with very successful parents, so you can imagine that living on campus is quite extreme in some ways,” he explains. “So while building your network sometimes you have to say, ‘OK, this is something that really goes beyond my own moral values and so here I stop.’ And in some cases you have to say, ‘OK, maybe I’m a bit narrow-minded so I have to broaden my horizon a bit.’” (13:30)
During his time on the Nyenrode campus, Maxim always sought a balance between his studies, social life, network, and personal ambitions. Eventually, finding that balance helped him discover what success really means to him.
“What I learned from my time at Nyenrode is that you can pursue your goals while delivering value for others as well. I think that combination is the true meaning of success – at least for me.” (14:18)
If you’d like to learn more about studying a master’s at Nyenrode Business School, feel free to reach out to one of our Nyenrode ambassadors.
