By: Tsjalline Boorsma
Can you introduce yourself?
I am Camilla van Kooten and I am 21 years old. Before I started my studies at UCR, I backpacked in Australia and New Zealand for a year. I am currently in my third semester and majoring in Social Sciences: International Relations, International Law and Human Geography. Students might know me from CURA, where I am the treasurer, or from Elliott, where I bartend regularly.
Which position are you running for?
I am running for External Officer for AAC!
When did you decide you wanted to run?
I would say that this semester, I decided to run for this position specifically. During my events as an ambassador of UCR, I noticed that still a lot of people do not know what a University College is; even though, for example, UCR already exists for ten years. I could say that at the beginning of this semester, I was specifically interested in the position of External Officer.
What did you do as an ambassador?
I gave presentations at high schools and at markets to promote UCR. I mostly did this near Rotterdam, because that is where I am from.
Why this board?
I have always been passionate about academics, hence the choice for AAC. As one of the aims of the AAC is to “safeguard the quality and ensure the high standards of education at UCR”, this board seems perfectly suitable for me. Don’t we all want to receive excellent education?
Why do you feel you would be the right person for this position?
Next to the regular tasks, such as making the guides, I would actually like to focus on additional points as my time as External Officer. Through the UCSRN, I would like to strengthen the position of University Colleges in general. As a collective organisation we can show who we, the UC’s, are. You probably know the typical generalisation about UC’s: they are too expensive, elitist, and you need to have a respectable resumé. Next to this, I would like to create a masters platform, which is a place that is accessible for all UCR students where they can find information about masters and with contact information of the alumni who pursued that specific study. For that I would like to collaborate with AuroRA, who already has an alumni network, and use the expertise of the UC’s who already have such a platform.
Is there anything else you would like to tell Tabula Rasa’s readers?
Grab a beer, come to the pre-election night and listen to all the speeches! And of course… vote for me on the election night!
Tsjalline Boorsma, class of 2016, is a Human Geography and Anthropology major from Groningen, the Netherlands.
