Peer Group Gifted Students

University wide peer group

In cooperation with Student Wellbeing Officer Zarrea Plaisier,  Student Psychologist Margreet van Laarhoven and Dean of Students Femke Willekens, we have set uo a peer group to get in contact with fellow gifted students, to share experiences and to learn from each others individual coping strategies. Students from every program and year are welcome. 

Where and when?

• Dates: 6 February, 19 March, 9 April, 14 May, 4 June, 3 September, 1 October and 5 November 2024.
• Time: 15:00 – 16:00 hrs.
• Location: we meet in A102 (Academia building).
   

Background information

About 10% of the student population in higher education are gifted students. Quite often these students possess high cognitive abilities with the potential to excel, but academic success is not always the norm for these students. Sometimes they run into difficulties during their study career, such as lack of intrinsic motivation, less developed study skills and executive functions, procrastination, perfectionism, high sensitivity or loneliness and feeling gloomy due to lack of connection with fellow students. Gifted Students often study in a different way (top-down and visual thinking) and show high adaptation skills, which means they often go unnoticed.

Goal of the Peer Group Gifted Students

To increase the study wellbeing and study success of gifted students it is important that these students become aware of their giftedness and ‘’being different’’, so they learn to understand the root of their study challenges. We would like to give these students the opportunity to connect to other gifted students and show them how to ask for the right study guidance and advice.

“A gifted person is a fast and smart thinker, who can handle complex issues. Autonomous, curious and driven by nature. A sensitive and emotional human being, with an intense way of living. He or she loves to create.” (Source: Rianne van de Ven)

For whom?

The Peer Group Gifted Students is aimed at all students with characteristics of giftedness, who would like to connect with other gifted students. In some cases giftedness is identified by an official test, but this is not always the case. We very much welcome all students who recognize themselves in the characteristics of giftedness.

Set-up of the Peer Group Gifted Students

The goal of this meeting is to connect to other gifted students, to identify the needs and wishes of gifted students in higher education to increase study wellbeing and study success. In co-creation with the group, we will invite various guest speakers to the on campus meetings, who will explain different aspects and challenges of giftedness in higher education, either from their own experiences with giftedness or by discussing insights from the scientific literature. There is no need to pre-register.

More information?

If you are not available to attend the on campus meetings, but would like to receive further information about the Peer Group Gifted Students, please contact the coordinator, Ms. Zarrea Plaisier.  E-mail: z.plaisier@tilburguniversity.edu. Please provide your mobile phone number, so we can invite you to the informal Whatsapp Group for contact with your peers.