Who are you? What do you do in everyday life? And what do you do at Studied?

My name is Sofie!!! Five years ago I traded the Achterhoek to study in the most beautiful city in the Netherlands, Maastricht. Currently I am in the second year of my master in Medicine at the University of Maastricht. I am doing several internships called coschappings in different hospitals in Limburg and Eindhoven region. For this I am now working on my scientific research into adrenal cortex cancer. Besides the many hours I spend in the hospital, I like to share my knowledge in my spare time. This is why I am right at home at Studied as Tutor !

What subject do you enjoy teaching the most?

The most fun subjects to tutor in are, of course, biology and math.

What do you love about teaching at Studied?

In the 2.5 years I have been working at Studied, no two tutoring sessions have been the same. Each student has their own way of learning, interests and sticking points. This allows you to address something different each time. In addition, I myself learn a lot from it. For a future doctor, it is important to be able to explain difficult processes in biology as comprehensibly as possible using the right words, while also being able to see whether someone has actually understood the explanation. This is something you are constantly working on in the tutoring sessions. So the student and I are constantly learning from each other!

What do most students struggle with?

Difficult topics within biology are often heredity, evolution and cells. I try to explain these as best I can using examples, exercises and videos. Whenever possible, I try to link processes in the body to what I learn in the hospital. This keeps the tutoring fun and interesting!

How do you ensure that your students progress?

It is important to first assess where the bottlenecks are. Once this is clear, very nice steps can be taken through regular lessons, the right way of learning and lots of practice. If this goes well, the pleasure in learning will return, which will ultimately only strengthen progress.

What is your most important tip for students?

Processes in biology or tasks in math can sometimes look very difficult at first glance. An important tip, see if you can break down the sum or process into several pieces and ask yourself each time, "do I understand why I am doing this step or this part of the process. If you understand what you are doing, you are much less likely to forget!

What is your most important tip for final exams?

An important tip for the final exam is to practice a lot with old final exams. This way you get used to the way questions are asked and have an idea of what topics are important. Then, if you find out you don't remember something, look it up in your books. And perhaps the most important tip is still: trust yourself! In all those years you've been working toward your final exam, you've been given a lot of material that you now need to apply again. You've got this!

How important do you feel the click with your students is?

A good relationship of trust with students is very important to me! This way a safe learning environment is created, where students are allowed to share everything and dare to make mistakes. Especially during the learning process it is important to make mistakes, because this is where you learn the most. Ultimately, a good click strengthens the ability to learn and practice well, allowing us to achieve the desired results faster.

Do you find your work compatible with your other pursuits?

Sure! Besides my internships at the hospital, I think it's important to make time for friends, family, sports and trips. I also want to leave some time to study and prepare for the patients I will be seeing. Fortunately, my classes at Studied are scheduled in advance with the student which makes my work at Studied easy to plan in conjunction with my other pursuits. By the way, you can make the work as busy as you want. You decide how many students you supervise.

Would you recommend working at Studied? And why?

The work at Studied is definitely recommended. No two tutoring sessions are the same. I enjoy building rapport and preparing for the final exam together. It is special to see how much progress the students make. Moreover, the work is easy to combine with full schedules.

Taking counseling from Sofie? Check out www.studied.nl and contact us!