Written by Joseph W. Reriani
The initials HAN have come to symbolize to me “High Academic Awareness”. “Awareness” because it can only be experienced to be known. Since I joined the HAN University just over 1 year ago, I have come to expect nothing but the best in terms of education and academic quality. My experience at HAN which actually stands for Hoogeschool Arnhem en Nijmegen has taught me that education is not only reading text books but a lot more.
As an institute of applied science, I have learned the practical application of every module. This made studying very interesting and relevant. Working in groups creates a real life simulation of a real job scenario. Practice and on-the-job-training simulation are aspects highly emphasized by the studies, which I greatly appreciate.
The international aspect of the studies at HAN and the careful placing of students in groups that reflect international diversity has also opened my eyes to the way of thinking and perceiving life of different cultures. I became more “internationally literate”! I have met and made friends with students from all over the world… friendships that I plan to hone for a lifetime. I have come to see that despite what shouts loudest as differences between people, we have more in common than we appreciate or are even aware of. Learning to deal and handle people is very important in any business environment and the knowledge of other cultures is a big added advantage to this end.
While the work load has been heavy in many areas, it has enhanced my ability to work under stress and with closely approaching deadlines. Deadlines are very important in a work environment and they always arise so the earlier one is able to handle them comfortably the better. Deadlines have helped me learn to organize my time much better and increase my efficiency in what I do. I have come to disagree with the saying that “there is never enough time” and I now prefer to blame it on poor time management…thanks to attending a few lectures here and there.
Who am I and what drives me to do what I do? This may not sound like the type of questions that you would expect to find an answer to in an university. The HAN University has the vision of creating an all rounded individual; answering this question is not left out in their academic program. I learned more about myself in a short period of time than I ever did in my life time. By learning about myself I also learned a lot about others, because we are only capable of seeing what we have on the inside.
The studies at the HAN University have been great and I continue to enjoy them and I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a “High Academic Awareness” experience.
Communication Studies
Kenyan Student
