It was recently announced that the Kick-In will be overhauled from next year onwards, including the removal of the final day of the introduction programme. In addition, the programmes for incoming bachelor’s and master’s students will be merged.
Overcrowded activities?
Although the University Council was largely positive about the revised format, it still expressed concerns about its ‘logistical feasibility’, according to the advisory letter submitted to the Executive Board on Wednesday morning. Speaking on behalf of student party DAS, Luka van Houte said: ‘We need to be careful that activities do not become overcrowded. The associations serve different target groups, so they should be closely involved in designing the new programme.’
Another concern raised by the council was why only the extracurricular component of the Kick-In is being revised while the academic programmes remain unchanged. In the council’s view, some compromises should also be made there. ‘The student community has taken responsibility by adapting the programme,’ said Van Houte. ‘We are not yet seeing the same from staff. It cannot be the case that the responsibility falls disproportionately on students.’
The council also questioned whether the anticipated cost saving of €23,500 will actually be achieved. It argued that the Executive Board should evaluate this thoroughly.
Evaluation
Rector Tom Veldkamp said he took the recommendations seriously, but stopped short of making firm commitments about changes to academic programmes during the Kick-In. He did, however, pledge that the new format would be carefully evaluated. ‘As in previous years. I am pleased that the Student Union implemented changes based on recommendations from the annual evaluations. In recent years, that proved impossible due to time constraints, which meant the programme remained largely unchanged for a long time.’
According to Veldkamp, it is only natural that such a significant change to the Kick-In, following a lengthy period without major adjustments, has prompted discussion within the community. ‘There will undoubtedly be mistakes and miscommunication along the way. But we will evaluate this as well, and learn from it.’
