DAI Week 1 is coming up in less than 3 weeks
Dear incoming and returning students @ DAI 2018-2019,
We sincerely hope this long-awaited welcome mail finds you terrific, well rested after a summer with lots of shade, and excitedly looking forward to the introduction week in Arnhem: yes, indeed: coming up very, very soon. We trust you had already found your way to our CALENDAR so that you have known since long that Thursday October 11 is the first DAI-day of this year.
If you are planning to land in the Netherlands prior to the 11th, possibly with the intention to base yourself in Arnhem or Rotterdam, Amsterdam or elsewhere, for a longer period of time it can be quite a challenge and time commitment to navigate the Dutch Bureaucracy and enter the system. We are humbled (as well as thrilled) to be able to present you with an evolving document of tips for and by DAI students to share experiences.
At this point we think all 64 of you have managed to succesfully (re-)enrol with ArtEZ University of the Arts. If any formal issues remain to be resolved before the 11th you are most welcome to contact DAI's senior co-ordinator study trajectory Rik Fernhout, but it might be helpful to know that during and right after the introduction week there will be ample possibilities to bring your personal questions to the fore. Our program ends on Monday 15 at 14:00 after which we will create additional space for face to face meetings with a member of the crew dealing with strictly personal matters. Please send an e-mail to Rik and indicate to whom you think it would be helpful to speak to, or, alternatively what topic you would like to tackle during a private conversation, so that we can pick the right interlocutor for you.
Thursday October 11 - Monday October 15
We hereby warmly invite you to drop off your luggage at the Stayokay in Arnhem (with the exception of incoming students Jiatu, Assem and Hasan as they will be accommodated at the downtown Dream Art Institute) before 14:00 as you will need a tiny half hour to walk from the hostel to WALTERbooks, where, from 14:30 onward, the door will be wide open for you. Between 15:00 and 18:30 we will introduce you, first and foremost to each other, then to us, the CREW and to all things DAI (how to live and work and roam together)in the academic year 2018-2019. After this extensive introduction which will include a broad overview and explanation of the workings of the curriculum, the formal Education and Exam regulations and our Roving Roof Rules, we will continue our conversations during PIZZA PARLER @ Bar.De.Groen where we will eat and drink, listen and talk and perhaps, who knows, even move our feet (till midnight).
The following days (Friday, Saturday, Sunday and part of Monday) will be packed with presentations by our 6 How To Do Things With Theory tutors (four of them incoming), representatives of the 7 CO-OP study group tutorial teams and the expanded Planetary Campus team ( Roaming Assembly + Factory curators as well as Kitchen advisors). There will be introductions to several ongoing student-led activities. The full program of the week, the names of the lead tutors and the titles of their seminars, study groups and workshops, the student led activities, all this will be proudly published and elaborated upon in DAI BULLETIN number 1 of this year, which will be send out shortly before the actual start of the introduction program. Keep an eye out (and register to our mailing list if you haven't done so as of yet).
For this first week you do not need to prepare anything, other than perhaps, brace yourself: a roaming campus of 64 students + tutors + crew is huge and the perspective of spending a lot of your DAI time together right from the start might be intimidating or otherwise overwhelming. Hard wired Clementine Edwards (DAI, 2018) writes:"...you will get hungry. Socialising and thinking with 70 people for 18 hours a day takes a LOT of energy. Drink lots of water, keep eating...." Read her helpful and entertaining ŸOU WILL document and come mentally prepared !
Some important practicalities
As you must have understood from the information on our website, food and accommodation during the DAI-week are paid for by means of your annual contribution of 1500 euro to the Project Fund but the trip to Arnhem must be fully paid by yourself.
That said: PLEASE KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS and TICKETS back and forth to Arnhem. Our Infrastructure team will create a data-base on all things travel & reimbursements and will reach out to each of you during the introduction week. In relation to destinations outside of the Netherlands we need to know what expenses you make in order to travel to Arnhem, departing from your homebase. We refer once again to the information about the Project Fund, what it covers and under which conditions. Please read this important information carefully.
Concerning the youth hostel in Arnhem: bring your own towel. Sheets are provided but towels are not, although it is possible to rent one. Breakfast will be served at the hostel.
Finally: our chefs need to know in advance about any food-allergies or glutenfree or vegan or other diets. In general we take care to provide you with 3 vegetarian meals per day, hostels often serve breakfasts which include meat options. Please contact Jacq about any dietary requirements ASAP.
Welcome (back), the summer has been (too) long, we are eagerly looking forward to your bright and shining presence in Arnhem.
Warmly,
Gabriëlle Schleijpen and all members of our crew
For questions:
Rik Fernhout: Project Fund, enrolment, all things study trajectory ( but NOT the content of the curriculum),
Jacq van der Spek: travel, food, sleep