Magister JFT

In this Associations Friday, we spoke with Magister JFT. This is the study association for Tilburg Law School. A faculty at the university with a wide range of studies, some of which are unique in the Netherlands. The members and board of Magister are engaged in organizing several professional activities, so that students can get acquainted with high-level companies. However, that is not all that Magister does. You'll also find plenty of Brabant-style conviviality here. They love their beers and therefore often organize cantus. We spoke with vice-chairman Hidde Dreverman and commissioner PR Yannick de Gans. This law student and public administration student told us all about Magister. If you study at Tilburg Law School, you should definitely read this blog. Below you can learn more about Magister: a study association with a great social aspect.

COULD YOU TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT MAGISTER?

"Magister is a study association, but officially a faculty association. That means we are there for all bachelors and masters of Tilburg Law School. For those students, we organize social and professional activities, which are basically voluntary. Everyone can decide for themselves what they do. For example, we have members who only do all the social activities, or just the professional activities, but also a combination of the two."

"We also is to support the student. The basic things you get with a membership are discounts on books and tutoring. So in addition to that, you have the professional and social part, which you then get to decide how much you use that. So our association is basically the support of the student, and in addition to that part social and part professional."

WHAT IS TILBURG LAW SCHOOL'S POSITION IN THE NETHERLANDS?

Yannick tells us: "Tilburg Law School's studies are very highly ranked in the Netherlands. At first we were below Leiden, but we have now surpassed them, so the studies are definitely respected. It is also the only law school with public administration. Global Law is another fairly unique study in the Netherlands.

Hidde adds, "Tilburg's Brabant friendliness is generally respected. There is less 'elbow work' than in the Randstad. So the image of students is that they are all just a bit more amiable."

WHAT TYPIFIES A MEMBER OF MAGISTER?

Yannick: "I think there is quite a lot of diversity in it, but at the same time there are also very opinionated people. Magister members are people who actually have an opinion about everything and who certainly don't mince their words. They don't go along with the flow, but are who they are and don't shy away from it."

"I think that also typifies the law students a bit," Hidde indicates.

WHAT ARE HIGHLIGHTS IN A YEAR WITH YOU GUYS?

"The CoBo's," Hidde tells us with enthusiasm. "Those are the constitution drinks. On September 1, we are changed as a board. You are then being hammered in at the ALV (General Members' Meeting). Then there is a big party with all members, former boards, study associations from Tilburg and sister associations from all over the Netherlands. They all come to congratulate you. You then also go to the other cities and other venues to party, drink and hand out the necessary congratulations."

"Compared to other study associations in Tilburg, it's pretty intense. That's kind of funny to see."

Yannick adds, "Other highlights are the association weekend and the active members day. These are moments where you get to do all kinds of fun things with a close-knit group of people. In addition, of course, the gala and the dies are two special, cool parties."

HOW CAN YOU DEVELOP YOURSELF?

"You have quite a few people who start at the first-year committee. There they often build up a group of friends. Eventually, they start doing more and more with the association, where some go on to do a board year. So you see quite a few people who 'grow through' the association."

Hidde adds: "Experience has shown that if you are going to do a board year, you must have done a few committees. You have to have some experience with the association. You have to know what is going on and how everything works because otherwise you are thrown in at the deep end."

HOW DO YOU CHARACTERIZE YOURSELF AMONG THE STUDENT ASSOCIATIONS?

"I think there's a big difference in that. The last thing I want is to burn down other associations," says Yannick. "Magister is really an established thing within Tilburg Law School. It's very big and we're relatively quite active. Besides the fact that we have professional events, many events are also really fun, with a great sociability aspect. That's kind of typical of Magister compared to other associations."

Hidde adds, "I think a lot of students don't join a student association in their first year because they want to pass their courses. I would have liked to join a student association myself. Then I found out about the sociability of Magister, where you can make it as busy as you want. I feel completely at home here. With that I want to say that you can find your way in a study association like ours in your own way."

WHAT IS YOUR AMBITION?

"We actually mainly hope that we can organize everything again as usual. Everything has stood still a bit, of course. Our goal is therefore mainly to get the students to see each other again as much as possible."

"Furthermore, we just want to expand, because we are able to do so. The studies are growing, so there are opportunities. So we are constantly looking for ways to expand. For example, to make the Legal Business Days bigger. That way we want to become better known and bigger, which will eventually attract more members."

Yannick: "A lot of people are having a hard time with corona and the associated measures. I think we can support the student a lot in that. That's why it's really a goal to guide the students of Tilburg Law School through the corona crisis in a good way, so that we ultimately come out of it stronger as an association."

WHERE DO MEMBERS OF MAGISTER END UP IN LATER LIFE?

"That's actually nice to see. At Tilburg Law School only 35% of all graduating students end up as a 'Toga profession', i.e. as a Lawyer or Judge. That's actually the nice thing about Law: you can go into the business world or work for a soccer club. It is super diverse. You can't really think of anything else. For that reason we also try to show students all areas of the spectrum, so they don't only come into contact with law firms."

WHAT DOES A MEMBERSHIP AT MAGISTER LOOK LIKE?

"You can basically just become a member. You then pay a one-time fee per year. Some people really do it for the book discount, but others just for certain activities. When you become a member, you can do anything and how much you do is up to you."

"On top of that, you have people who become active members. They join a committee or board. If you join a committee, you organize activities. If you do a board, you also organize activities, but you also coordinate committees. We have different rooms for different studies, where each room organizes extra activities specifically for a study."

Take a look on the site of Magister JFT to find out more.