When Lotje Hessels went on exchange to NAU Flagstaff, she came back with more than a diploma credit.
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Every year, students across Dutch higher education share their experiences through the National Student Survey. One theme that consistently scores well at BUas Hotel Management is the opportunity to spend a semester abroad at a partner university. It is not hard to see why. An exchange is more than a change of scenery. It is a chance to study in a different country, in a different language, within a different academic culture. What is rarer is when a student takes that experience and gives something back.
From guest to host
When Lotje Hessels, a Hotel Management student at Breda University of Applied Sciences, went on exchange to Northern Arizona University (NAU) in Flagstaff, she did not simply immerse herself in student life abroad. She took her programme with her.
On her own initiative, Lotje has designed a two-day hospitality programme for a group of Hotel Management students from NAU who will be visiting the Netherlands. Using her professional network and her knowledge of the Dutch hospitality landscape, she has arranged access to two of the country's most prestigious five-star properties.
The first stop will be Grand Hotel Huis ter Duin in Noordwijk aan Zee, where the CEO Stephan Stokkermans will personally welcome the group and present on the hotel's history, concept and operations. The visit will include a behind-the-scenes tour, lunch, and an optional walk through the dunes. Huis ter Duin, founded in 1885 and affiliated with Preferred Hotels & Resorts, is one of the Netherlands' most iconic luxury coastal hotels.
The second stop will be Hotel Des Indes in The Hague, a Leading Hotels of the World member housed in a former 19th-century city palace on the Lange Voorhout. The group will be received in Salon Queen Emma, followed by a guided tour and lunch. Lotje has also developed a self-guided city walk through The Hague's royal and government district, connecting the hospitality visits to a broader understanding of Dutch heritage and protocol.
Both visits have been arranged through Lotje's own network. She has coordinated all logistics, written the supporting materials, and briefed both hotels, all while studying full-time.
What this shows
This is a good practice worth sharing. An exchange student, leveraging her BUas network and professional contacts, has designed and delivered a programme that will benefit another university's students, strengthen relationships with industry partners, and put BUas and the Dutch hospitality sector on the map internationally. That is impact well beyond the classroom.
