Maastricht University

“The decision to continue my studies here was obvious because I love both the city and the university. Additionally, I have a strong affinity for Maastricht University's project-centred learning approach. Being able to select the courses I will take is also something I consider to be positive. Next, a significant opportunity provided by Maastricht University is the possibility of taking part in an internship, which I find very attractive.

Besides the great curriculum, I decided to pursue my master here because of the vibe of the city and what it offers to its student.”

How would you describe Project Centred Learning?
"I think that project-centred learning is a great way of applying our knowledge to real-world problems. It is a good way to develop your teamwork and presentation skills. It also allows me to become more practical and learn a great deal about how to apply my knowledge to different cases. It’s also a good opportunity to connect with fellow students and learn from them."

What was your first impression of your master’s programme at Maastricht University?
"My first impression of the programme was positive, as expected! It was everything that I wanted when I decided to stay here for the master's. It was great to meet new students from different backgrounds and learn from them when working on the projects. I also really liked that we could choose our project for the semester."

What do you think of Maastricht as a city?
“It’s quite fancy, cute, and packed with students. It has a great atmosphere for students. The city has many places to chill; for example, after classes, I love having a drink at Tapijn with friends when classes are over. There’s always a good vibe going on. I also like how everything in the city is reachable by foot or bike. There are numerous activities available, such as bowling, movies, escape games, and sports.”

"I would like to raise awareness about sustainable food choices, through large organisations or by using social media.

"I have a bachelor’s degree in Psychobiology from the University of Amsterdam. Even then I was already interested in food and coaching people.

During my bachelor I was also chairwoman of the cooking club at my study association and I really enjoyed raising awareness about and helping others with sustainable food choices. When I visited the Open Day at Maastricht University and saw this programme, I knew this was what I was looking for. Because my bachelor’s programme had a strong focus on biology, I was accepted right away.

Health Food Innovation Management is a very interdisciplinary programme. Besides gaining knowledge about the food chain in all its aspects, digestion and health effects, we also learn to develop innovative concepts, how to bring them to market, about law and management aspects. There is a very good balance in theory and practical application.

I wasn’t familiar with the Problem-Based Learning concept at all, but was positively surprised. Together with the international classroom, the many different backgrounds of my fellow students and the practical aspects of this programme, I think it’s the perfect preparation for a successful career after graduation.”

After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Biometrics, Bibi Teeuwen was looking for a master with a focus on the nervous system and brain. This happened to be the same year that the master’s programme Biomedical Sciences added its sixth specialisation ‘Neuromodulation'.

“The brain and the nervous system have always interested me”, Bibi explains. “Neuromodulation looks at the technology that directly stimulates the nerves to relieve the patient from symptoms. This sounded like ground breaking work and I wanted to learn more about it”. During her one-year internship, Bibi had the opportunity to work on a research project that focused on sacral neuromodulation. An electrical stimulation therapy that can have a positive effect on patients with an overactive bladder. Bibi still remembers the multidisciplinary approach: “This project was a collaboration between the department of Urology at MUMC+, the research school for Mental Health and Neuroscience at FHML and the MRI center Scannexus. I worked with all these stakeholders and I learned a lot by working in the field.”

Biomedical Sciences (BMS) students have a lot of freedom in choosing their internship projects. Sacral neuromodulation is a relatively unknown research field, but can have an enormous impact on the quality of life of the patient, that’s why Bibi chose to work on that project after talking with a PBL-tutor and one of her professors in the field.

"The master’s programme itself and the staff are so interesting, I would recommend BMS to anyone, regardless of the specialisation you would like to follow. Maastricht University is also very cozy; there is a lot of close contact with other students and staff. The Problem-Based Learning method allows you to work on projects with a small team of students, instead of sitting in a study hall with 200 other students. This really enables problem solving skills and prepares you for the labour market, where you also have to work with multiple teams.”

The other specialisations of Biomedical Sciences are Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism, Regenerative Medicine, Genetics and Genomics, Biomedical imaging, Inflammation and Pathophysiology.

Estefania works for the European Patient’s Forum, the leading voice of patient organisations in Europe. Her role involves creating a dialogue between patient organisations and stakeholders for European projects. To uphold patient empowerment through patient advisory boards, Estefania relies on practical knowledge and tools she gained from the master’s programme Governance and Leadership in European Public Health.

The value of governance
Estefania: “My job title is Membership and Governance Officer, as an alumna for a master’s with ‘Governance’ in its name, you could say I had a head start during my job application.” Besides governance in complex European health systems, Estefania can also rely on leadership courses such as stakeholder engagement, leadership training sessions and writing policy briefs. “One of the best things the programme gave me was an internship at the European Commission, where I worked for the policy strategy unit at the Health and Food Safety department and really delved into the EU-bubble.”

Between patient communities and policymakers
Estefania now works for the European Patient’s Forum, an umbrella organisation representing 79 patient organisations at the European level. “I work in the coordination of patients advisory boards; groups of patients that provide their perspectives on European projects. Think of it as roundtables where policymakers sit alongside industry representatives, patients, patient organisations and healthcare providers - hearing all these different voices is very inspiring.” Examples of current European projects are Digital Health and Universal Access to Healthcare.

Academia in favor of real-world problems
Estefania isn’t settled in her career just yet, she aspires to conduct a PhD in the near future and become a professor. “Working at the European Patients’ Forum gives me insights into what the real-world needs are, which I can use in academia.”

If you are looking for the same insights without necessarily pursuing a PhD, the master’s programme will still suit you well. “Many cases that we discussed reappear in my job. If you hear about authentic cases taught at Maastricht University, know that they truly prepare you for the real world”

Clinical epidemiologist and post-doctoral researcher Frits van Osch studied Epidemiology because of its strong focus on research methodology.

Epidemiology teaches students research methodology and statistics and is a broad field with many subdomains, for example clinical epidemiology. “Working on studies with fewer participants wasn’t that interesting to me. I like to work with large datasets, studies with thousands of participants in order to establish connections.” The Epidemiology master’s programme teaches students how to properly design and conduct studies in order to find determinants of health and disease and disease outcomes. “Epidemiology gives students a toolbox for setting up different types of research in the correct way, varying from trials that work with a small number of people to large studies aimed at providing insights into the health of entire populations.”

Frits stayed at Maastricht University to work on his doctorate. He researched the relationship between smoking and bladder cancer. “I was part of a collaboration between Maastricht University and the University of Birmingham. We already knew that smoking causes bladder cancer. Our statistical model showed that it’s more damaging to smoke a few cigarettes in a prolonged period of time, than a lot of cigarettes in a shorter period.” Frits was one of the first researchers that also looked at the smoking habits of people after their diagnosis with bladder cancer. “Most people in our cohort continued smoking, perhaps because on average they are older than 70. Additionally, stopping with smoking after diagnosis seems to have only a small impact on bladder cancer reocurrence, although we are eagerly awaiting results from more prospective studies to confirm this.”

Currently, Frits works as a clinical epidemiologist at VieCuri Medical Centre. “Together with my team, we consult on all research projects that are set up at VieCuri, from student projects to large pharmaceutical trials. We do not conduct the research ourselves, but provide advice on the research project. That means I get to look at a wide variety of research projects, for example on the evacuation of patients from the hospital in case of flooding.” Also, Frits is often involved in setting up research projects using large quantities of patient data, in collaboration with several health professionals, such as the VieCuri COVID-19 database in which he currently co-supervises a PhD student together with research

When I was searching for the right Master’s programme for me: my interests leaned towards biomedical engineering with a mix of mechanical and electrical engineering. I wanted to learn biology and chemistry in order to apply some of the engineering principles. Maastricht University gave me the freedom to study these topics and explore such a fascinating field despite my engineering background.

What was your first impression of your master’s programme at Maastricht University?
My first impression was overwhelming (in a good way, of course). The difficulty level is high and demanding but it is completely worth it. Each week we had a different professor walk us through interesting imaging modalities such as Ultrasound, Microscopy, Spectroscopy, MRI, CT, etc. This introduction opened up the possibilities that lay ahead and would be explored in greater depth in the courses that followed.

What do you think of Maastricht as a city?
Maastricht is quite beautiful; the architecture is decidedly more Belgian than in the rest of the Netherlands, which makes it quite unique from most Dutch cities. The Belgian influence does not limit to architecture but includes the food, the infamous ‘Vlaai’ and the beers. The proximity to so many neighbouring cities such as Cologne, Aachen, Brussels, and even Luxembourg or France make it a unique student city to live in.

How is your student life?
I moved to Maastricht last year and so far, student life for me has been great. I have enjoyed working out at UM Sports, interacting with my fellow students through various activities in the city. There are a lot of student associations that exist for almost every hobby, I am yet to explore this but I do look forward to joining one in the future.

Cost-effective healthcare is not equal to lower quality

The healthcare sector is facing limited resources. Without smart innovation, quality of care is at risk for all patient groups. Jessica Storm, an alumna of the master’s programme Healthcare Policy Innovation and Management, researched the cost-effectiveness of fall prevention for one of the largest and most vulnerable patient groups, people older than 65. Her thesis states that fall prevention can save organisations time and money while upholding the quality of life for older people.

Jessica’s thesis, called “A systematic review of economic evaluations of fall prevention interventions for the elderly” won the Catharina Pijls Encouragement Award, which is granted annually to one student with an outstanding thesis.

Fall prevention for older people
About 90% of falls among older people lead to fractures, which are very expensive for healthcare. “Hip fractures are one of the most expensive diagnostics that you can have. My thesis focused on the effectiveness of fall prevention compared to its cost, for older people living at home.” Jessica found that group-based exercise programmes for women over 65 years old were the most cost-effective.

Her thesis won the Catharina Pijls Encouragement Award, recognising her excellent work. Jessica won 2000 euros she can spend freely. “Winning the award isn’t as important as the attention the topic of elderly care now gets. I spent the entire day discussing with the panel members about my research and the senior healthcare sector.”

A double master’s in healthcare
Jessica recently graduated. During her master’s studies, she participated in a double master’s programme, organised by Maastricht University and the University of Cologne. “Every year, a few students are enrolled in the programme. For me, it was a unique opportunity because the master’s programme Health Economics at Cologne focuses on the German health system and its finances, but Healthcare Policy Innovation and Management at Maastricht University provided a broader international scope including innovational work.”

Jessica adds that Maastricht University also gave her the tools to work on resource management, communication, and stakeholder management. Topics that she will work on daily in the healthcare sector.

Trainee manager in an elderly care home
Through student jobs and internships alongside her studies, Jessica found her passion in working with vu

I was drawn to this master’s program as it entailed tackling very urgent environmental and economic matters in a practical way. It identifies the problems within the industry, and looks at how it can solve them from the perspectives of multiple different fields, along the entirety of the value chain.

What was your first impression of your master’s program at Maastricht University?
My first impression was that it is a very interdisciplinary program. I had to become comfortable with being uncomfortable with what I don’t know. The goal of this program is not to become an expert in many different fields but to be able to bridge that knowledge gap when approaching different challenges.

How is your student life?
I tend to keep myself pretty busy. There are plenty of extracurricular activities and associations to choose from. I like to take some sports classes at the UM sports but also going to public lectures and Dutch classes when I have the time. It is also very easy to unwind when everything gets a bit too much, by going for a walk along the river or reading a book in a small café somewhere in the city centre.

What are your plans after graduating?
After graduating, I would first like do some travelling, after which I would like to live and work somewhere within the Netherlands.

I like project-based learning. It teaches you a lot, even though it is certainly not easy. It helps you prepare for your professional career as it is like working in a real workplace within a group of programmers. Because the environment here at DACS is so international, you also learn a lot about intercultural communication. I would absolutely recommend PCL to a friend.

What was your first impression of your master’s programme at Maastricht University?
It is a good follow up to the bachelor here. I like the courses. I also notice that the workload is higher, which is normal, but somehow I did not expect it that way. It feels a bit like I am extending my bachelor here.

How is the contact between you, your lecturers and fellow students?
I like that we call everyone by their first name and that teachers are so approachable. Our contact is friendly and informal. In a study like this, it is very important to talk about topics with friends and to work together on assignments. I think that is why many friendships are formed here at the faculty.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now?
My ultimate goal is to work at the European Space Agency. I am not certain if I will be there in 5 years, we will see. Because I am not sure whether I want to start working yet, I might first do a second master's degree. Otherwise, I hope to work for an interesting company where I have many holidays, so that I can travel.

Michelle always had an interest in working at the intersection between health and communication. She obtained two bachelor’s degrees at the University of Amsterdam; one in social sciences and one in communication. For her master, Michelle looked for a programme that could combine her two bachelors. After a visit to our Master’s Open Day and an open talk with former programme coordinator, Michelle registered for the master’s programme Health Education and Promotion. Michelle: “both on an academic and personal level, it really was the best year of my student life. I learned a lot and was surrounded by other people who were new to Maastricht, which created lasting friendships. Maastricht itself is also a great small student city with a lot of gastronomic options”.

Michelle remembers the projects she took on with her fellow students and how much those projects fitted with her study goals. “We were given a lot of freedom. If a student was interested in HIV, he could work on that topic throughout the year. I chose to work on several projects, such as bullying at school or helping people quit smoking.” Michelle also joined the PREMIUM Honours programme for high-performing students, during which she worked at Philips for three months to help develop an app for mental fitness training. “Afterwards, I went to Oslo for my thesis on promoting fruits and vegetables to toddlers in a preschool environment. Fair to say I took every opportunity Maastricht University gave me.”

Michelle uses her talents for communication and strategy to improve people’s health. “The master’s programme Health Education and Promotion focusses on behavioral change. It gives access to a wide variety of career opportunities within the health sector. Understanding behavioral change and knowing how to influence it is important in any job, whether you’re working on campaigns, change management or designing interventions at societal level. Personally, I still use my background and skills to help organisations at a strategic level. That’s what I love so much about the master.”

A bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry in Canada, an English teacher in Vietnam, and a master’s degree in Global Health in Maastricht. Rochelle's journey is not one you see every day.
After completing her bachelor’s degree, Rochelle travelled to Vietnam where she worked as an English teacher. This was an eye-opening experience which ignited her passion for public health, global challenges and education. That's when the search started for a suitable master’s programme. In 2019, Rochelle started the master’s programme Global Health at Maastricht University.

“I chose Maastricht for the programme – I was very interested in Global Health and Maastricht kept coming up as a great university, so it was a relatively easy choice." Rochelle was also pulled in by Maastricht’s Problem-Based Learning method and the focus on international collaboration. Rochelle found these selling features translated directly into the course where she was provided the opportunity to discuss complex topics amongst her peers. “Our cohort was incredibly international, which gave us a lot of insight into how other healthcare systems work and how other cultures view health. In addition to learning from leading academics and peer-review publications, we learned from each other’s personal and professional experiences. This allowed our understanding on the topics to grow more meaningful, and personally allowed me to unlearn certain biases and incorrectly held ideas.”

During Global Health, students choose between 11 different elective tracks - Rochelle chose Implementing Innovations. In this track, the focus lies on translating global health innovations and interventions to the local context.

Rochelle works as a Project Officer at ERINN Innovation. Her role is to bring the many stakeholders of research together, bridging the gap from science to policy, industry, and society. In her words: “Make your science matter! If you come up with good ideas, but no one knows about it, what’s the use in it?”

Rochelle’s favourite memories of Maastricht? “Despite living through the first wave of COVID-19 in the latter half of my masters, I loved Maastricht and have so many great memories of my time there. It's hard to pick just one, but my favourite place in the city is the café Alley Cat - I had a lot of great study sessions and chats with my classmates there! And of course, the Global Health Christmas party!”