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| Scores of internatiol students get help from UT services regarding legal paperwork, visas and housing among other essential matters. |
In the Bastille Atrium, at the beginning of the day, each student received a personal checklist on which they could see what matters they had to take care of. To enable the newcomers to deal with the requisite formalities at one time and place, all of the necessary departments were represented at the market.
At the International Office stand, for example, the students could get information on public transportation or meet & greet sessions. The visa department took care of the residence permit procedures and accepted passports to be brought to the Gemeentelijke Basis Administratie (GBA), in order to register with the municipality. Appointments were made to go get bank accounts activated on Saturday, September 1.
Housing and Acasa answered questions about accommodation; rental contracts could be signed on the spot. Students who had questions about scholarships were able to get their information at the scholarship office. The Central Student Administration was represented for registering and photographing the students in order to obtain a student card. Questions about insurance were fielded by an insurance company.
For specific educational questions, all of the faculty internationalization coordinators were present. Medical services enabled students to register for medical care such as a doctor, dentist or physiotherapist. The Student Network Twente was on hand to provide information on internet facilities. ESN Twente distributed the International Student Handbook together with a welcome envelope.
An estimated 125 students visited the introduction market. The goal of this revolutionary introduction market is to eliminate the sight of bewildered incoming international students scurrying around to obscure corners of the UT campus to ascertain how to survive at the UT. Kudos to the organizations involved for initiating this effort.
