Binding study advice and course credits
By Hermien Miltenburg
What is a binding study advice? What must students do to pass their first academic year? Study very hard? Make sure that they obtain all their course credits? Join a student association? The most important thing is to keep your focus on your study. This increases your chance of receiving a positive binding study advice.
Focus on your study in the first academic year
Most young adults have problems successfully completing their first academic year. So many things are new to them. A new educational institution. A completely new way of studying. A lot of new knowledge … and then they are also expected to obtain enough course credits. That’s a real challenge because insufficient course credits leads to a negative binding study advice.
Living in a student house
New students who move away from home and into a student house face even more challenges. Student advisors and lecturers advise students to keep their focus on their programme of study during their first year. Attend the lectures, complete all the assignments, take all the examinations and stay in touch with your student counsellor. 10 tips for study success
Contact with fellow students is important for social control
The best social ‘control’ for students is one another’s company. Your son or daughter will quickly build a new network. Support from fellow students is important for most students. Feedback from fellow students has a great impact on how first-year students behave. A student who goes out on Thursday night is expected by other students to show up to the Friday morning lecture. The social network that students build is their first professional network. Some students continue to benefit from these contacts throughout their lives. And, of course, a student with a lot of social contacts enjoys a more rewarding student life. Living in a dorm or a student house can contribute to this.
Relaxing and obtaining course credits
Doing something in addition to studying is an important way to relax. Students who only study are unable to relax well. Was your daughter a fanatic horse rider when she was at secondary school? Perhaps there’s a student horse riding club. There are discussion clubs for students, student associations, study associations, a student drama group and every student city has a student orchestra.
It isn’t advisable to become a board member of a student association in the first academic year. In later years, however, being a board member can help students develop competences in addition to their study. If a student has a large number of course credits in the first academic year, he/she can still join the board of a student association.
Binding study advice, obtaining course credits
In their first academic year, students can obtain a total of sixty course credits. Universities of Applied Science (HBO) and academic universities require a certain number of course credits. This number can differ, even within one HBO or university. Failing to obtain the required number of course credits will result in a negative binding study advice and the student will not be allowed to remain at the educational institution and cannot repeat the first year of the programme. Did your son or daughter obtain the required number of course credits? Congratulations. But don’t be worried if they failed to achieve all the sixty credits because it is often possible to repeat subjects.
Why is there a binding study advice?
Not all students choose the right study programme and not all students are capable of studying the programme they have chosen. It is never pleasant to have to leave a programme, but if your child fails to complete his/her first year they can always begin a new programme of study. If your son or daughter has to stop in their second year, it is more difficult to begin a new programme of study. A large amount of time and money has already been wasted, and by then most students also feel less motivated to study. If your son or daughter thinks that they will have to leave their academic programme, encourage them to look for an alternative together with their student advisor. Their chosen field may be the right one, but perhaps it’s better to try at a lower level. Or perhaps the level is good but not the chosen field. If a student receives a negative binding study advice, this does not constitute an end to their student career. You can always choose another programme of study that is better suited.
The right balance for a first-year student
Finding the right mix between studying and relaxing, between doing well and accepting the fact that things sometimes go wrong is the right attitude during the first academic year. As a parent, you can help your son or daughter find the right balance. Don’t ask them only about academic results, but also ask if they are enjoying this new phase and enjoying their fellow students. The fear of a negative binding study advice shouldn’t spoil the pleasure of studying.