Student testimonial
Student Annelies – MSc International Land and Water Management
Annelies van Zinderen: “During the BSc International Land and Water Management I quickly found out that this programme suits me well. As a result, I was soon quite sure that I wanted to continue with the master’s International Land and Water Management (MIL). After looking into several other master’s programmes, MIL turned out to be the ideal middle ground for me, as it integrates both social and technical domains.”
It highly inspired me to try to find solutions for a real problem from a real client.
“The fact that the study suits me so well is partly due to the ideological side of it: trying to improve the world a little. I also find nature and agriculture very interesting and I am always curious about people’s motives for certain choices. Why do they manage their land in a certain way and what are the consequences? And are they also prepared to apply other techniques? In addition, I really like that you can do fieldwork in this study and that you learn to go from a problem to a concrete plan that can be implemented. This makes the study very tangible.”
Real life case
“I am happiest when I can go into the field myself. I did this, for example, during the course Sustainable Land and Water Management in Albaida in Spain. It is my favorite subject in the programme. The nice thing about it is that you work on a real life case abroad. This way you can gain new experiences and figure things out for yourself. We worked with a drone and used several erosion models that I had not used before.
”What’s more, it is also extremely motivating to be with all your fellow students, about 70 in total. In groups of five you have your own project, but often you work together with all the other students in the same room. Then the deserved beer and dinner together. All of that adds a lot.”
“It highly inspired me to try to find solutions for a real problem from a real client. For my group it was a Spanish winegrower. We have created a design that will help him reduce erosion in his vineyard, such as a plan for different waterways to divert run-off from his field and collect it in a water basin. We also proposed laying grass strips between the vines, and restoring terraces. That can help to slow down water flows and therefore allow better infiltration.”
Erosion in olive groves
“I am doing the Sustainable Land Management specialization. For my thesis research I spent two months in Portugal to measure erosion in olive groves. Around the city of Evora, I investigated in seven olive groves what the differences in management are between conventional and organic olive groves and what effects they have on erosion. I measured soil structure, soil resistance and infiltration, and collected data. My research was part of a large European project, in which the biodiversity and socio-economic characteristics of Mediterranean olive groves were studied.”
“I don't know yet whether I would like to work abroad after graduating. I will first do an internship at a Dutch consultancy firm in the field of agriculture, nature, water and soil, Aequator Groen + Ruimte in Ede. I would like to finish my student days in the Netherlands and through this internship I can see if consultancy work suits me.”