Discover English news online

New and lost in a Dutch jungle? Do you scratch your head in puzzlement when you come across information only in Dutch? Every year, large groups of international students arrive on campus, not knowing a single word in Dutch. Newcomers need to quickly find information in English to ‘thrive and survive’ living in the Netherlands. Here follows a few friendly websites to help you discover your way, as you venture into a Dutch world.

Robbin Engels

UT main site
utwente.nl/en
The main portal of the university offers a news and activities overview section to keep you informed of the latest happenings. Read articles on the latest scientific developments in all the faculties and institutes that perhaps can connect to your own research work. Scroll to the bottom of the page and digitally navigate your way around the university. By clicking on ‘phone book’ you can search for staff or students by name. The emergency number for on campus ‘2222’ is listed, along with phone numbers to call for ambulance or fire assistance.

ITC News
itcnews@itc.nl
At the hub of international activity, the ITC Faculty has hundreds of international students, making it the faculty with the highest foreign student population at the UT. The faculty produces a quarterly magazine in print and digital form, and readers can find on their website regular news items, feature articles, alumni updates and event coverage. Read on topics related to the latest discoveries in geo-science: remote sensing, urban planning, and ongoing development projects and field work being carried out in other countries.  

Insego
Insego.com
Created by expats, for expats, Insego is an online social network and community blog, where expats and those with a global perspective can interact, share and offer one another advice related to expat living. Monthly, Insego attracts 10,000 visitors from 70 countries, yet the majority of members are from the Netherlands and Twente region.

Dutch News
Dutchnews.nl
For a daily dose of national news, opinions, feature articles, blogs and job opportunities for expats, visit the Dutch News website. For free you can subscribe to receive a digital newsletter on your mobile phone and keep abreast of current events, adding in your thoughts to conversations with Dutch colleagues, professors and friends, when they rattle on about a Dutch world that you might know little about.

International Office
utwente.nl/internationaloffice/en/
For all your practical concerns about studying or following an internship abroad, go to the International Office site. You can get your messy paperwork in order, learn basic information and ‘how to…’ matters. The site informs you on visa and passport applications, work permits, driver’s license, housing, how to learn Dutch and much more.  Periodic news in English is posted, and you can always just drop by their offices on the third floor of the Bastille building.

Learn Dutch
dutchgrammar.com/en/
This online Dutch grammar course provides a pleasurable way to learn Dutch when you have time in your schedule. You can listen to Dutch audio to get a feel for speaking the language, including the difficult double vowel sounds as in ‘buurman’ or ‘eieren’ and the word ‘boer’ as in the title of the popular Dutch television program ‘Boer zoekt vrouw’, which roughly means ‘Farmer looking for a wife’. And there is no reason to be scared to speak Dutch; no one will hear you when you are behind the computer. Click on the Dutch grammar section to learn the technical bits and pieces of the Dutch language.

Student Union
studentunion.utwente.nl/en
Enter the portal to the Student Union, an organization with alliances to the executive board and over 100 associations, committees and foundations, and with a main purpose: to help you have fun! Learn how to get an X-tra Card, join in for a drink and conversation with the Rector or rent office space for your new business. The site posts loads of news and information in English and promotes student activism.

Expat Coach in Netherlands Daily
paper.li/Livelifenowexpt
Nicola McCall, an expat from Amersfoort, has created a website to keep expats informed while living in the Netherlands. Learn daily about health, business, art and entertainment topics. On a regular basis, she publishes interesting articles on education from a range of news sources – Forbes to HarvardBiz to the British Council – and knows firsthand what it’s like to be out of your comfort zone.