Many HBO students make the step to university with a bachelor’s or propaedeutic phase, but the question that many HBO students have to ask themselves is what the differences are between HBO and the university so that the transition from HBO to university is much easier. Due to developments such as institutional tuition fees and the possible slow student fine, students have to think carefully about their further education.
Continue studying or working?
Before the economic crisis, there was a high demand for personnel. During the economic crisis, many workers were laid off because things were not going well in many countries. As a result, graduated hbo students were put on the spot to make a choice. For these students, the question was whether they would still look for work or whether they could sit out the economic crisis by following a university course. If graduated students choose to work, they had to look for work well. The time when recruiters & employers promised golden mountains was unfortunately over for this group of higher vocational education students due to the economic crisis. In addition, these students could no longer count on long-term job security and a royal salary. HBO students who opted to continue their studies in order to sit out the crisis must think about their choice of study program. Do these students choose to follow a similar course or do these students go the other way in terms of course choice in order to have more job security after this course.
Differences between a college education and a university education
It may sound cliché, but one of the differences between a higher vocational education and a university education is that the level at the university is indeed a lot higher and tougher. At higher vocational education you get more small-scale lectures and at university the lectures are much larger. At university a student is expected to study independently, while a student at higher vocational education receives more guidance in the various forms of education. In terms of teaching material, the university student has to process more teaching material, but on the other hand, the university student has fewer contact hours. HBO students have more contact hours, but HBO students need to process less material. At higher vocational education, students could sometimes choose to start preparing and learning for the exam at the end, but at university many students are punished because they tried to put too much material into their heads in a short time. At university, attending all lectures and reading summaries is not enough to pass exams. It is a matter of structurally starting with preparing for lectures and learning for the various exams.
Money
Under current student finance rules, a HBO student is entitled to the performance-related grant for four years. After these four years, the student can only borrow for three years while retaining the OV chip card. If a student does not want to borrow money from DUO, the student can take out a zero loan while retaining the OV chip card. If a HBO student has completed his HBO education for more than four years, then the HBO student must stop the student finance in time so that the student can use the OV chip card for as many months or years as possible. This depends on how much delay the student has incurred in HBO. The university is a lot more expensive in terms of books and readers because you usually only use the books and readers for a particular subject once. At higher vocational education, these books and readers are sometimes used several times in courses.
Institutional tuition fees
If a HBO student has already obtained a bachelor’s degree, then that student will have to pay institutional tuition fees if the student decides to follow a university bachelor’s degree. This is because from the 2010-2011 school year, the government will only fund one bachelor’s and master’s degree per student. The universities can determine themselves what rates they charge for the institutional tuition fees. For example, some universities have opted for a transitional arrangement that applies to students enrolled in the 2010-2011 school year. These students pay the statutory tuition fees. Another exception is when students are pursuing a second bachelor’s or master’s degree in education or care.
Slow student fine
The slow student fine will reportedly be introduced in September 2012. This much-discussed measure means that students who have more than a year of study delay pay 3,000 on the statutory tuition fee. This slow student fine not only applies to full-time students, but also to part-time and dual students. Students who have completed a college degree should think very carefully about their choice of education, as more than a year delay means that an additional 3000 will have to be paid. It also means that students at university of applied sciences must, for example, plan well if they plan to do a board year. This is no longer possible without these financial consequences.