How did you realise what it was you wanted to do?

To be honest, that’s changed a lot. When I came to Groningen I was very confident I would end up doing something related to public international law or international criminal law. Soon afterward, I decided I wanted to specialise in the legal ramifications of the use of nuclear weapons and the like. During the second year of my LLB, I fell in love with EU law and was sure I wanted to work in that field, and more specifically in the field of EU home affairs – that was one of the reasons I went to Budapest. Then while, in Budapest, I met a friend who is a lawyer and does commercial and contract stuff for music festivals. Through conversations with him, I started to think twice about my choices – I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do EU law or something else.  After a minor existential crisis, I decided to switch to IP law, and in particular copyright law.

 

What’s next for you?

I’ll be doing an LLM in IP law at Queen Mary University of London. I was encouraged by a professor to explore options outside of the Netherlands and applied to Edinburgh and QMUL. I was accepted to both, but the course options at QMUL speak to me much more than those at Edinburgh, so I chose QMUL.

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Do you have any tips for current and future LLB students?

I’d say to keep your options open. There are a lot of opportunities in different fields of law that could be interesting. It’s OK to change your mind if you suddenly explore a new field of law that would be of an interest to you. It’s important to be enthusiastic about what you do. I’d recommend using your exchange and the flexibility you have with regard to choosing your own courses to explore other options. The exchange courses tend to be focusing on specific areas of law, which can help with deciding what you want to do.

How did you realise what it was you wanted to do?
In the first two years of the LLB, although I had found some courses more interesting than others, I had yet to find my calling. When I arrived at NTU, I had the opportunity to choose commercial and business law courses. As I have always had an interest in business and trade issues, I had to take those classes! I found myself really engaged in the courses and deeply inspired by the topics discussed during the lectures. Professors from the RuG and NTU also gave me exemplary guidance and valuable career advice which helped confirm my choice.
Looking back to 2015, when I was still deciding on my undergraduate path, my LLM choice makes full sense. Back then, my options were either international law or international business. Now, for my postgraduate education, I am going to study International Commercial Law!

What’s next for you, where did you apply and why did you decide on the university you did?
My first destination after graduation is a summer internship in the legal department of Ferrero, the Italian chocolate company (does Nutella ring a bell?). In September, I will start my LLM in International Commercial Law at University College London. During the application process, it came down to choosing between UCL and Leiden University (EIBL LLM). I knew and felt that UCL was personally a better fit for me – while both are extraordinary schools, the modules offered at UCL match my interests and future goals better and I have a gut feeling that I will thrive at UCL university and in London.
 

What do you plan to do after your LLM?
I wouldn’t want to jinx it, but my ambition is to work in an international law firm in London. For anyone who aims to follow this path, it is important to know that – after our LLB – it is necessary to take the Graduate Diploma in Law and the Legal Practice Course. These will enable you to start training as a solicitor in England and Wales. It is best to start applying for a training contract two years in advance, so make sure to plan ahead!
 

Do you have any tips for current and future LLBers?
I’d say to take your studies seriously but don’t lose your head in them. Go to extra lectures, attend conferences, read books that aren’t assigned reading, and explore fields outside of what is covered in your courses. But do not neglect your personal and social life – enjoy yourself, stay healthy, get involved in extra-curricular activities! You want to come out of the LLB as a well-rounded individual – you want to know your niche but also how to connect with people and work well with others.

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What are you doing next and how did you realise what it was you wanted to do?
Since I was in a little bit of a dilemma as to what I should choose for my LLM, I decided to connect with current LLM students and explore my options. I knew I wanted to stay in Groningen, so I spoke to a former LLB student about LLM and career options and she told me about the LLM in Energy and Climate Law that she was doing. I am myself quite an environmentally concerned person and so this option seemed like something I would really enjoy studying. She also said the programme was very intellectually rewarding and very relevant in terms of career prospects, which are another aspects that are important to me, so I decided to stay on in Groningen for a year. 
 

What do you plan to do after your LLM?
My eventual goal is to end up in working in Brussels in either a legal or policy function. I’ll be applying for jobs in both Brussels and Amsterdam during my LLM.
 

Do you have any tips for current and future LLBers?
If you don’t like it, stop doing it. You need to be passionate about what you study and what you do for a living. It’s important to care about it, so if you don’t, find something that does make you passionate. Find your ‘thing’ and then dedicate yourself to it. At the same time, it’s important to have a balanced life and stay in good shape both physically and mentally because being a student doesn’t mean being in the library all day – you need to be active. Take care of yourself in all aspects.

What did you do during that semester off after returning from Durhman? 
I started off doing the Dutch civil effect courses, as I want to be able to qualify as a lawyer, whilst working as a research and teaching assistant. In the second block, I was offered the chance to move to Brussels for a five-month traineeship at a boutique public affairs firm, which I combined with teaching European law to Dutch students in Groningen once a week. Although the word ‘lobbying’ often seems to have negative connotations, personally I found the work very engaging and the fact that it was a boutique firm meant that we didn’t end up representing clients that we might have disagreed with on a personal level. 

 

What’s next for you, where did you apply and why did you decide on the university you did?
I applied to LSE, UCL and Oxford and decided to head to LSE in the end. I’ll be doing an LLM in European Law, though will probably be doing other courses as well – that was one of the reasons I chose to do an LLM in the UK, you can really design your own study programme there, and LSE in particular has a huge range of choice. Of course, LSE’s reputation and the excellent quality of teaching also played a part, as did the fact that in terms of what I’m interested in, it really is the place to be. The university aims to bridge the fields of law, politics and economics, which means that besides law, I will get the opportunity to study international economics. Of course, the network helps too.

What do you plan to do after your LLM?
I’m narrowing down the scope of what I want to do and would like to try out a few different types of internship in order to fully make up my mind. I enjoyed my time doing public affairs in Brussels, but I’d like to explore the routes of legal practice, academia and the public sector too. The idea of working for the Commission or another EU institution is interesting to me as well.

Do you have any tips for current and future LLBers?    
I think the most important thing when making decisions is having a healthy balance between a good dose of ambition and being realistic and open to options. Don’t be afraid to change your mind, you never know what is going to turn up. To be honest, a lot of people have a very limited view of what is out there, and ambition might result in a bit of tunnel vision, so definitely keep an open mind. I’d definitely recommend enjoying the process of exploring itself! And of course, doing what you’re passionate about makes all the difference – after all, you’ll be spending a LOT of time working.