FASoS Introduction Days for Master's and Premaster's students 2024

Programme

* More information about the yoga session can be found in the menu on the right hand side

During the Introduction Week, the Student Representatives are organising sessions that you can seperately register for as well through the links below the programme:

UM’s labyrinth — How to find your way around main student platforms

To make it here, you’ve had to interact with at least multiple pages of our university website and application platform. But what if we tell you there’s more to navigate through? In your first semester, you’ll have to learn your way around UM’s student interfaces, especially Canvas and Student Portal. Let us give you a quick tour of these systems and discover together how to seamlessly manage your courses, prepare for tutorials, and access other important resources. Join us for this interactive session and step confidently into your student journey with UM!

Register here
 

Campus Safety 101 — Guide to Essential Resources & Support Services

Discover mental health support resources, FASoS emergency response protocol, reporting procedures, inclusive facilities such as prayer rooms and gender-neutral toilets, and tips for a soft landing in Maastricht. Join us to learn more about campus safety and well-being essentials!

Register here
 

Studying at FASoS with a Learning Disability

Are you someone who deals with a learning disability or just someone who'd like to know more about the topic? Come to this session, organised by your Student Representatives along with the Disability Support Office to ensure that you have all the tools you need to succeed at Maastricht University! Learn more about the procedure to make sure you get the accommodations you need, as well as what the Disability Support Office does! There will also be a Q&A session to make sure all your questions are answered.

Register here

Programme

*More information about the yoga session can be found in the menu on the right hand side

The following PBL assignment will be discussed during the Introduction Days:

• PBL assignment
• Reading: Nussbaum, M. (2016 [2010]). The Silent Crisis. In: M. Nussbaum, Not for Profit (pp. 1-12)

During the Introduction Week, the Student Representatives are organising sessions that you can seperately register for as well through the links below the programme:

UM’s labyrinth — How to find your way around main student platforms

To make it here, you’ve had to interact with at least multiple pages of our university website and application platform. But what if we tell you there’s more to navigate through? In your first semester, you’ll have to learn your way around UM’s student interfaces, especially Canvas and Student Portal. Let us give you a quick tour of these systems and discover together how to seamlessly manage your courses, prepare for tutorials, and access other important resources. Join us for this interactive session and step confidently into your student journey with UM!

Register here
 

Campus Safety 101 — Guide to Essential Resources & Support Services

Discover mental health support resources, FASoS emergency response protocol, reporting procedures, inclusive facilities such as prayer rooms and gender-neutral toilets, and tips for a soft landing in Maastricht. Join us to learn more about campus safety and well-being essentials!

Register here
 

Studying at FASoS with a Learning Disability

Are you someone who deals with a learning disability or just someone who'd like to know more about the topic? Come to this session, organised by your Student Representatives along with the Disability Support Office to ensure that you have all the tools you need to succeed at Maastricht University! Learn more about the procedure to make sure you get the accommodations you need, as well as what the Disability Support Office does! There will also be a Q&A session to make sure all your questions are answered.

Register here

The faculty's Front Office is situated in the hall of the Grote Gracht 90-92 building.

You can turn to the Front Office for all kinds of questions and requests, such as:

• Questions about course registration and time tables
• Obtaining a place for a course in case of late registration (using a token)
• Certified copy of results (transcript)
• Obtaining a certificate of English Proficiency
• Questions about the Student Portal or Student Intranet
• Obtaining a document regarding expected graduation
• Any other questions

Opening hours:

• On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, between 10.00 - 12.30 and 13.30 - 16.00. Closed on Wednesdays
• Closed on public holidays and during education-free periods

The International Relations Office (IRO) is responsible for the organisation of incoming and outgoing student exchange.

• Information video

Opening hours:

Monday, Tuesday and Thursday between 12.30-13.30 at the Front Office desk, Grote Gracht 90-92

Contact details:

Students can contact the International Relations Office via e-mail or via +31 (0) 43 388 2032

The Board of Examiners (BoE) is responsible for the enforcement of the Bachelor’s and Master’s Education and Examination Regulations. The BoE is also entitled to make argued exceptions to these rules.

If a student has questions for the BoE – e.g. on the Education and Examination Regulations, or wishes to submit a specific request for the BoE - the student can:

Send the request via e-mail. Send a written (paper) request to the Service Desk BoE of FASoS, Post office Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, or submit the paper request at the faculty’s Front Office

Exam Administration

The Exam Administration is responsible for:

• Organising exams
• Processing and administrating of exam results
• Archiving exam-related documents (Files4Students)
• Conducting graduation procedures
• Executing different procedures related to the domain of exams

Contact details:

Students can contact the Exam Administration Office via e-mail or for urgent matters only via + 31 (0) 43 388 3946.

Students at FASoS can consult a student advisor to discuss their personal development and plans for the future. The student adviser offers information, advice and guidance with respect to all study-related matters.

In case of special circumstances, such as an illness of some duration, family circumstances or functional disorders, it is advisable to notify the student adviser so they can support you in adjusting your study plan and can provide you with information that will enable you to organise the special arrangements you need.

At FASoS we have the following Student Advisers:
- Pia Harbers (BA & MA Programmes in European Studies)
- Miranda van den Boorn (BA & MA Programmes in Arts and Culture)
- Raf Widdershoven (BA Digital Society & Master Globalisation and Development Studies & Master Media Studies: Digital Cultures)
- Saskia van Bergen (BSc Global Studies)

• You can book an appointment with them by clicking here.
• Watch the information video

• Student Portal
• Student Intranet
• Canvas (My Courses)

Student Portal
Your personal university one-stop-(info)shop
The one-stop location with all the information you need as a Maastricht University student is the Student Portal. Here you can find your timetable, information about your courses, your grades, important messages from the university, and more.
 Watch the Student portal video

Student intranet
On the FASoS Student Intranet you can find a lot of important information regarding:

• Study programmes and regulations
• Registration
• Course registration
• Year planners
• Rooms and roombooking
• Education
• Exams

And much more...

Canvas
Canvas is the new Learning Management System of Maastricht University. Students can use Canvas to access all materials, articles, assignments and messages for the courses they are taking. Canvas also makes it easier for students and lecturers to communicate and collaborate with one another in a course-specific context.

You can access your courses in the Student Portal, by clicking 'My Courses'. Please watch the videos below for more information on how to work with Canvas.

SOFASoS is a community of students that are here to help FASoS students navigate through and enjoy their time at FASoS, and turn Maastricht from a city into a home. 

We stand for togetherness by providing a sense of belonging for students and a space where they can express themselves. We also believe that knowledge is power, which is why we provide crash courses. These are (Virtual) classes where tutors help others tackle the best way to prepare for an upcoming exam. They come in handy for those who need a helping hand or answered questions to feel secure about an upcoming exam. Our events commitee also allows FASoS students to feel part of a community by coming up with events that enable students to socialise, experience the city, and grow. Therefore, SOFASoS’s only goal is to enrich the student experience at FASoS and give them a home away from home.

If you want to check out our content, head on over to our Instagram or LinkedIn!

Email: president@sofasos.org
Phone: +31 6 34261680

Office Location:
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Grote Gracht 80-82 6211SZ Maastricht
FASoS bike shed 

Feel free to email or text us to get involved, register, ask questions, or get more information on any of our upcoming events or services.

You can already sign up via our website! By becoming a member, you will also contribute to combating the climate crisis since, in collaboration with ‘One Tree Planted’, SOFASoS plants a tree for every member signed up.

 SOFASoS website

So, who are the Student Representatives? We are a team of 30 BA and MA students that are here to be your voice at FASoS. From Programme Committees and the Faculty Council to yearly events and facility projects, the Student Representatives are here to make your experience at FASoS as nice as possible. Where do we represent you?

Faculty Council
Once elected to the position of Faculty Council member by fellow students, Faculty Council members work hard to ensure (along with the student advisor to the Board) that the students’ voice is heard when making key decisions about Faculty policy. Along with the staff’s co-chair, they are allowed to set part of the agenda of Faculty Council meetings. Officially they have the right to consent and advice on Faculty decisions. Faculty Council members maintain close contact with the students and the rest of the Student Representatives to decide whether a Faculty decision should be approved or not. Furthermore, they scrutinize the decision-making process during the Council meetings, and submit proposals that can improve the quality of student life.

Programme Committees
All BA and MA programmes at FASoS have their own (cluster of) Programme Committees. Programme Committee are each appointed bodies, made up of students and staff, which work to improve the content and structure of the study programs they respectively represent. Student members are expected to set forth the perspective of their fellow students during regular committee meetings which cover such matters as the evaluation of courses, the planning of curricula, possible changes to the Education and Examination Regulations, and any other pertinent issues which arise during the course of the year. These meetings are collegial, with students and staff working together to find common solutions.

OMT – Education Management Team
The OMT’s mandate is to discuss and find solutions to Faculty-wide Bachelor-level problems concerning the organization and level of education. It consists of the Associate Dean of Education, the Directors of Studies of European Studies, Digital Society, and Arts & Culture, a secretary and three Student Representatives. In addition to this, relevant employees from the Faculty are invited to individual meetings to give their input concerning their field of interest. As opposed to the Program Committee, the OMT is responsible for overarching issues such as entrance requirements, the overall continuity of the study programs, and structural problems in the Faculty. The OMT is a working group that seeks to find solutions through the sharing of ideas and perspectives.

The Student Advisor to the Faculty Board
The student advisor to the Faculty Board takes part in the biweekly meetings of the Faculty Board (FB), the highest ranking decision-making body in the Faculty, which is composed of the Dean and two Associate Deans. The administrative director of the Faculty and the deputy secretary to the Board are also present during the meeting in an advisory capacity. The FB oversees the management of the Faculty and takes the most important decisions with regard to education, research and budget allocations.

While the student advisor is not formally part of the Board and has therefore no voting rights, they have a strong influence on the decisions taken by the FB. This is mainly because most decisions are made by consensus, and formal votes are a rare exception. The student advisor represents all BA and MA students in the Faculty and they are hence well acquainted with all the programs offered at the Faculty. The student advisor is crucial in ensuring that the Board is aware of the position of the student members of the FC and it takes it into due account.

Library Committee
The Library Committee is the responsible body for the collection of literature of the Faculty. The main concern of the Student Representative in such Committee is to make sure that all the right literature is available in the ICL. Moreover, the student is asked to give their opinion on budget, allocation and other logistic issues. The Committee meets few times per academic year, and different issues are discussed (e.g. subscriptions, Open Access, collection of books). The Student Representative should therefore try to accomplish that as much literature as possible is available online and easily accessible, while trying to improve the learning spaces and the LibSearch System.

Complaints Committee
As a member of the Complaints Committee of FASoS it is the student’s responsibility to participate in the examination and assessment of the complaints that have been filed against FASoS. Prior to the meetings between the complaining party and the Complaints Committee, the Student Representative needs to know the case and examine the material that has been provided by the complainant to assess the case. It is important the the student speaks up during the discussion, since he/she is the only student in the room and can provide the faculty staff with a different perspective on the issue discussed.

Maastricht University offers a wide range of ICT facilities to students and staff:

• wireless internet
• a personal UM account with a virtual desktop environment
• advanced printing possibilities
• Use of Surfdrive to store and share your files
• free Office 365 education software  and more

More information:

• ICT Powerpoint presention about your personal account
• ICT Services Homepage
• ICT Services Support webpage

The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASoS) is housed in several historic buildings in the city centre of Maastricht. These structures and the artwork in and around them add to both the city’s and the university’s special atmosphere. The buildings, as well as the arts and cultural heritage, are definitely worth a closer look.

Use our interactive map to explore FASoS and Maastricht hotspots. See where students are taught, study and relax and get a taste of the city of Maastricht.

Disability Support

If you are a UM student with a disability and/or chronic illness, such as dyslexia, ADHD, autism, Crohn's disease, you can request the support and facilities that are necessary to accommodate your individual needs.

You can send an email to disability@maastrichtuniversity.nl or come by at our open office hours every working day between 11:00-13:00h at the student services center.

It is also possible to schedule an (online) meeting.

More information

Information about other support services such as the UM psychologists, wellbeing movement and Career Services:

Wellbeing movement UM

Psychological support

Individual career counselling 

We are very active on Social Media. Join our channels to stay up-to-date about everything that's going on at FASoS!

Follow us on:

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Join the YOGA session in the FASoS Garden during the introduction week (optional).

FASoS offers free yoga sessions for FASoS students and you can already have a first experience during the introduction week on Monday 26 August from 17.00 - 18.00 and Wednesday 28 August from 17.00 - 18.00

Michelle Nijssen from Yoga pur Sang works with elements from Kundalini yoga, Hatha yoga and Taoism. You focus on getting body, mind and soul in sync. Michelle’s sessions are more an experience than an exercise.

You can bring your own yoga mat and wear comfortable clothes.

Namasté

• Watch the information video