Background
Have a coffee, show off your clothes
The university’s library is not merely a place to work, and if you are cramming, you won’t be alone: “It’s group discipline.”
Wednesday 30 November 2011

“The shower has already been cleaned” jokes History student Evert-Jan Westervelt (23) in response to the question as to why he goes to the university library. He’s outside on a break. His UB [university library] day started this morning at half past eight.

Upstairs, three lads are standing in the corridor outside the English reading room. It is nearly five o’clock and the Medical student is leaving – it’s time for a drink. The two Law students have to carry on. They have exams next week and that means UB time, from eleven in the morning to twelve at night. So, why aren’t they in the KOG, the Law Faculty’s library? Vincent Verhulst (22), a second-year student, explains. “There are too many pretty girls there, it’s distracting.” Here in the UB, he can shut himself away in one of the glass cubicles.

The glass cubicles are for students to work in and the majority of them occupied by the afternoon; the reading rooms are full, too. Downstairs, all the computers are occupied and although one seems to be free, an explanatory note reveals the words: OUT OF ORDER. Along the sides of the room, several people are waiting to see if they can get place, despite the crowds.

Many students only go the UB during their exam periods, a fact noticed by loyal UB visitor and French student Sophie Kerstens (20). “Certain groups, from Law, for instance, have flocked here today. They come here in large groups the week before their exams. I notice them leave for hour-long breaks and when they return, they work for half hour.”

On enquiry, it emerges that most students take a fifteen-minute break after working for one and a half hours. Neeltje van Aardenne (23), a History Masters student from the University of Amsterdam, says: “Time’s divided pretty much into 70 per cent work and 30 per cent breaks.”

But what attracts these students to the UB? “I’ve never been able to work it out”, says anthropologist Jan Jansen, who is specialised in literacy problems and reading cultures. “Reading is an introvert process. At home, I used to just turn up my stereo and work all day. Actually, the university library is not intended for this use: it’s a place to consult books, it wasn’t built for student discipline. But in socioscientific terms, it’s really intriguing that people engaged in something as individual as science can do it collectively – it’s a kind of group discipline.”

Law student Verhulst admits that he never visits the UB alone: “I always go with a group of housemates or fellow fraternity-club members from Augustinus.” And housemates Lotte Straathof (24), Medicine, Kayleigh Hendriks (20), Political Science, and Lisa Hennink (18), Psychology, are at the UB together, as there was too much disturbance at home. Hendriks remarks: “Often, you could get the impression that there are only fraternity members here.” She is a member of Augustinus herself, “I always see other members here in the UB.” Straathof adds: “And it’s pleasant here; I sometimes come here even when I don’t have exams, just to drink coffee.” Van Aardenne says: “When I’m at home, I always do all those practical things that have nothing to do with my study, but I also come here because I know I’ll meet people to chat to on my break.”

Everyone has their favourite places. According to Verhulst, the Augustinus members can usually be found in the English reading room. A group of Minerva girls outside mention Oriental Languages, and other students mention it too, because it’s nice and quiet. Political Science student Hendriks observes: “Most people go to the same table with their fraternity club or society. I like to go to Social Sciences. If anybody else appears, you tend to think: hey, you’re in my place.” Her housemate Straathof adds: “Sometimes I see someone on the street, and I think: I know you from somewhere. But sometimes I don’t know them at all, I’ve just seen them so often in the UB.”

It’s all about seeing and being seen, declares Straathof. “The UB is like a catwalk sometimes and I actually think: what are you wearing? I thought you came here to work!” Hendriks adds: “That’s what they tell you about the UB during the introduction days too.” Do the three housemates dress accordingly? Hennink, in a red sweater and jeans, laughs: “Well, not today, anyway.”

Silence reigns in the reading rooms, if you ignore the sounds of pages being turned and the click of keyboards. Eline van Breemen (19) and Tiemen van der Vuurst (20), both students at the Academic Teacher-Training College, are happy. Van Breemen says: “Everyone comes here to concentrate. I haven’t experienced any distractions at all.”

Now that school children can be refused entrance, thanks to the introduction of the LU card, the only possible distraction – apart from the quiet whispering in the reading rooms - is caused by the texts on the tables. Law student Thomas Vegting (23) isn’t troubled by the scribbles on the desks. “If you’re fed up of your books, you can amuse yourself by reading them. Some of things people have come up with are really witty and others are almost works of art.”

The vandals can communicate among themselves by means of the tables too. “Get a life” it says in the History reading room. “Get one yourself” is the retort next to it. And in the girls’ loos, someone has scrawled: “God is dead”, but “dead” has been crossed out and “exists” written above it. The same loo claims asserts that “My ex does it for free” and provides the phone number, of course.