Crown Princess chooses law studies and Defence

Princess Amalia will study law at the University of Amsterdam next year, but she will also become a working student in the army. This has been announced by the Dutch Royal House.

The Crown Princess is almost finished with her bachelor’s degree in politics, psychology, law and economics (PPLE). She will then pursue (link in Dutch) a second bachelor’s degree at the same university: Dutch law.

But for the next two years, she will also participate in the Defensity College (link in Dutch) training programme, in which she will be trained as a military reservist. She will begin physical training as soon as she has recovered from her broken arm.

Military work-study programme

The Defensity College programme is a ‘military work-study programme’ for students at universities and universities of applied sciences. ‘We offer you a unique part-time job during your studies and train you to become a soldier,’ the website states.

Participants are appointed as corporals and work one or two days a week. They are paid for this. A 21-year-old corporal like Amalia would earn 2,500 euros per month in a full-time job, so for Amalia that is basically 500 to 1,000 euros.

There is a ‘training programme’ in which students learn about the army. They also receive general military training for reservists, in which they learn how to shoot and use a gas mask, for example. Ethics and military law are also covered. They must then refresh their basic skills annually. In addition, they can receive training in areas such as cyber security and ‘policy writing’. (HOP, BB)