Equally diverse was the range of topics discussed during the debate, hosted by Debatcentrum Sphinx. Student noise problems, Maastricht’s multilingual history, the positive impact students have on the city, the pressure on the housing market, the university’s language policy… Participants also discussed what “internationalisation” actually means and whether it might be more fitting to refer to “Euregionalisation” here in Maastricht, where most international students come from just across the border in Belgium and Germany. Naturally, there was also talk of the government’s plans to curb the internationalisation of, and increased use of English in, Dutch higher education through measures such as the proposed Balanced Internationalisation Act. Attending the debate, UM President Rianne Letschert once again criticised the government’s plans. In her view, the situation in Maastricht – with UM focused on expanding in Sittard, Geleen and Venlo – is already balanced. “So these measures are entirely unnecessary for us.”
No longer at home in their own city
Do the residents of Maastricht see things the same way, though? After all, as one local claimed, “That’s what it’s about: people no longer feel at home in their own city. UM is losing local support; the university is too international for the kind of city Maastricht is.” His proposed solution was for the university to offer more education in Dutch – as advocated by his own political party, Nieuw Sociaal Contract, one of the governing parties. The idea is that this would encourage international students to learn the language, integrate into Dutch society, and become more likely to stay in the Netherlands after graduating. If they’ll still want to come in the first place, that is: ironically, one Dutch student remarked that the reason why he moved here was to pursue an English-taught degree.
And it’s not that they don’t want to learn Dutch, several international students explained. But language classes are expensive, and they must prioritise their studies – and besides, they pointed out, Dutch people tend to switch to English as soon as they realise their conversation partner isn’t fluent in Dutch. “I asked my neighbour if I should learn Dutch”, one student recalled with a laugh. “He said, ‘Don’t bother. We’ll reply to you in English anyway.’” Even the critical local quoted above admitted to speaking English with the expats on his street.
"A little more patience"
A German lecturer at FASoS asked the Dutch attendees to have “a little more patience” with international UM employees. They are willing to make an effort to integrate into Dutch society, he said, “but we’re getting a lot of heat from the government. People are scared.”
Letschert, for her part, acknowledged that there is room for improvement in the relationship between UM and the city. But as she pointed out, it’s unlikely that the friction between town and gown – from noise complaints to bike chaos – will ever disappear completely. “We’re a young university in a very old city. The universities of Leiden and Groningen are 450 years old and still struggle with the same issues. We’ve already come a long way here.”