Are any of them International? Probably not.
The Coronavirus outbreak has not resulted in fewer registrations for student associations. On the contrary, the number of registrations in Groningen is much higher than last year.
In the past period, 900 interested people have registered at Vindicat, while there is only half that space available. This may partly be due to ‘hazing’ having been banned by the Dutch government this year, in association with other anti-Coronavirus regulations: Vindicat were involved in several high-profile stories of ‘hazing’ rituals, including new recruits having been sent to hospital with head injuries (among other incidents). The student association has also come under fire following some of its members creating a ‘bang list’ of female members, and an article in the members magazine ‘De Ster’ that named a ‘slut of the summer’.
A full history of Vindicats’ misdeeds can be read (in Dutch) on nu.nl, however the actions of the society as a collection were deemed so bad that the University of Groningen and Hanzehogeschool pulled funding from the organisation in 2018.
The more collegiate Albertus Magnus registered 1,200 interested people, while the association has room for 500 new members. As reported by the Groningen local broadcaster OOGTV.
Due to Coronavirus-related measures, the introduction week this year is somewhat different from usual. Although KEI week did take place, it consisted mainly of online activities. This also applied to the introduction days of the student associations.
The fact that the Groningen student associations received many more registrations is something that’s also occurs in other associations in the country. Students who are interested can register online from the comfort of their own home, making the procedure much more accessible this year.
Image via David Dixon. License here: Creative Commons Licence.