KEI Week or ESN: choosing your introduction route

Compare purpose and timetable

KEI Week is a broad city introduction for new students, while ESN's programme is particularly visible among international arrivals. Dates, registration terms and included activities change, so compare the current official programmes instead of relying on last year's social posts.

Mark the events that solve a real arrival need: a campus tour, association fair, practical session or small-group meal. Large parties can be fun, but they are not the only place where friendships begin.

Build recovery into the schedule

Leave room for registration, groceries and sleep. Share a meeting point with new friends, keep your own route home and skip an event when your attention has run out. The useful result of introduction week is not a full wristband photo; it is two or three contacts you can message next Tuesday.

Turn introductions into an ordinary-week network

During each event, learn one practical detail about the person you meet: faculty, neighbourhood, sport, language or the kind of plan they actually enjoy. The following day, send a specific invitation such as lunch after a shared lecture or a short market trip. General promises to 'meet sometime' rarely survive the sudden structure of the first teaching week.

Associations and introduction groups can make Groningen feel accessible, but belonging does not require immediate membership or constant attendance. Compare fees, time commitments and conduct rules before joining. Keep contact with people outside a single group as well. A resilient social network includes classmates, housemates and at least one activity that is not organised around late nights.

• Save names with a small reminder of where you met.
• Choose one daytime and one evening activity.
• Do not share identity or housing details with a new contact unnecessarily.
• Leave any event where pressure or behaviour feels unsafe.