My two weeks at VU were absolutely wonderful from the very first moment I came to campus. I was greeted with such enthusiasm; I could tell immediately that this was something special. I was fortunate enough to take The Attachment Nest: Development and Care within a spectrum of (a)typical socioemotional and economic development, which is a psychology course taught by world class professors, both from different continents than myself. Our class actually had members hailing from almost every continent, which meant that discussions on cultural differences and the nature of the human person gained a whole new depth between our shared and differing experiences. On one day I would sit next to a classmate from South Korea, and then the next day one from Turkey, and then one from Switzerland or Argentina or Canada or the Netherlands, to name just a few. I had never anticipated being able to have friends from all over the world, but I am now lucky enough to be in such a position, which continues to surprise me all the time. The coursework itself was deeply enriching as well; instructors would fly in and give lectures on topics spanning a great breadth of our focus area, always making the material accessible and present. We even went on excursions as a class, witnessing the good work done by the field with our own eyes. Prior to taking this course with VU, I had begun to fall out of love with psychology as a discipline, which had started to feel sort of cold and distant for me, but being here meant reuniting my understanding of the field with its real purposes---the betterment of lives.
The incredible VU summer school team makes the experience even better; they set up little trips to Amsterdam's beautiful neighboring cities and deeper into the city itself, all the while helping their students get more integrated and on occasion even showing the students around their hometowns. I miss this team just as much as my classmates and friends in other courses.
This program provides unbelievable opportunities for exceptional encounters--with one's field, one's new friends, and even oneself--all the while growing closer to the world at large. I cannot express how highly I recommend attending and embracing all of the good things that will come your way!
