The benefits of a board year

The transition from student life to working life can sometimes feel like a big one. Many students lack practical experience and would like to gain this first during their studies. A board year is the perfect solution for this and offers students the opportunity to apply different qualities in practice and to experience what it is like to be in charge of a student association or organization. A board year is therefore very instructive, and research also shows that it gives you a head start on your CV. Read below why you should definitely consider a board year!

What does a board year look like?

As a student, you can do a board year at many different associations and organizations. Consider, for example, a student association, a study association or other organizations aimed at students. A board year can be either full-time or part-time. In the first case, it is difficult to combine with studying, so it is customary to take a gap year for this. In the case of a part-time board year, this can often be done in addition to studying. Whether you receive a fee/salary during a board year also differs greatly, but in principle you really do it for the experience and not for the money.

The content of the board year is of course very dependent on the organization for which you do this. In most cases there are permanent positions and duties, such as a chairman, secretary, treasurer, internal affairs and external affairs. The chairman is responsible for overseeing the rest of the board members and will often be the one to make decisions when necessary. As the person with ultimate responsibility, it is important that the chairman is aware of everything and he/she is often the point of contact for other parties. The secretary is often responsible for all administrative tasks and taking minutes during meetings. The treasurer is responsible for the financial affairs and is therefore responsible for drawing up and maintaining all budgets. The internal affairs are concerned with the members of the association and, for example, forming committees and recruiting new (board) members. The external affairs concern the acquisition and setting up partnerships with external parties. In addition, there are often other things involved, such as marketing, coordinating committees and other operational tasks.

The benefits of a board year

During a board year, you will develop many qualities that will certainly come in handy during your work. You are at the helm of an association or company and naturally develop leadership experience and a sense of responsibility. Because you have to work so closely together, and you will also often meet and present, you improve your communication skills and collaboration skills. Because you are of course also in contact with members and companies, you broaden your network, and it is also very pleasant. A board year helps you find out your qualities and interests, because you gain practical experience and will see many different functions and sectors come by. Given all these advantages, it is therefore not surprising that a board year looks very good on your CV and therefore certainly gives an advantage when you apply later.

A board year is not only very instructive and good for your CV, but what also makes it unique is that you do it together with only students. This often results in regular activities and drinks, so very nice! A board year therefore combines student life with working life and is a perfect solution for students who would like to gain experience before they really want to apply for a serious job.

A board year at deBetaStudent

During a part-time board year at deBetaStudent, you and other motivated students are responsible for developing the platform that connects science students and the business community. You will run the BetaStudent as your own business, and there are several challenging responsibilities that come with it. But what makes it so much fun is that you get all the freedom to implement your own ideas for the BetaStudent. All this from an office between all kinds of start-ups at the VU Amsterdam, with weekly drinks and a monthly activity. It is not a requirement to live in Amsterdam, because we also have board members from other cities. And as icing on the cake: you get paid part of the company's profit!

The current team consists of 6 motivated students who already have experience with committees or a board year. As a result, we have a team that complements each other and wants to take the BetaStudent to a higher level together. A part-time board year can easily be combined with your studies