Why TU Delft? Each month Page 4 asks a member of TU Delft’s foreign legion to share their thoughts with us. This week we meet, Deborah Hauptman, from the USA, who is an assistant professor of Architectural Theory.
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This is an excellent European university. I had been at the TU as a guest lecturer, so I knew it was a good fit for me. Also, I’m able to teach in English here.
Are there differences between Dutch and US students?
Because the Dutch system guarantees students university places, students come to the TU with a sense of entitlement, which often creates a lack of drive. In the US, competition for university places is intense, students are twice as motivated, and attending university is a privilege. Here, attending university is treated as a right. The top 10% of Dutch students is the top 10% anywhere, but generally, the rest tend to be on the lazy side, and our faculties can seem like large production houses
Where’s your favorite place in Delft?
Café ‘Uit de Kunst’, on the Oude Delft , because of everything: the owners, food, dogs, clothes, coffee.
What’s mankind’s greatest challenge in the 21st century?
Finding a basis to recover social value and meaning in an age when time is so accelerated that there’s no time for change or reflection. And how do we look for meaning when we’ve lost all our gods?
What causes you the most anxiety?
Selfishness, the poverty of people’s perception, their lack of generosity and empathy for others… I’m troubled by this every day
What do you like most about Holland?
The Dutch polder landscape is the most beautiful landscape in the world, and the sublime beauty of Dutch skies is unchallenged.
What social/cultural activities do you miss in Holland?
There’s no dinner party culture here. In Holland, by the time you’re 25-years-old your social network is basically complete and closed. I miss long, socially engaging dinners with friends
What book would you take with you to a desert isle?
The collected works of Rilke, the German poet. In his eyes, the world is a difficult, delicate, treacherous place, but if one pauses, beauty and meaning can be found in the smallest detail.
Are the Dutch really so tolerant?
Sure, they’re tolerant if they can tax it! They’re tolerant of anything that has a revenue base. If there’s a penny to be made, it’s validated. Dutch tolerance is a myth.
Each month Page 4 asks a member of TU Delft’s foreign legion to share their thoughts with us. This week we meet, Deborah Hauptman, from the USA, who is an assistant professor of Architectural Theory.
This is an excellent European university. I had been at the TU as a guest lecturer, so I knew it was a good fit for me. Also, I’m able to teach in English here.
Are there differences between Dutch and US students?
Because the Dutch system guarantees students university places, students come to the TU with a sense of entitlement, which often creates a lack of drive. In the US, competition for university places is intense, students are twice as motivated, and attending university is a privilege. Here, attending university is treated as a right. The top 10% of Dutch students is the top 10% anywhere, but generally, the rest tend to be on the lazy side, and our faculties can seem like large production houses
Where’s your favorite place in Delft?
Café ‘Uit de Kunst’, on the Oude Delft , because of everything: the owners, food, dogs, clothes, coffee.
What’s mankind’s greatest challenge in the 21st century?
Finding a basis to recover social value and meaning in an age when time is so accelerated that there’s no time for change or reflection. And how do we look for meaning when we’ve lost all our gods?
What causes you the most anxiety?
Selfishness, the poverty of people’s perception, their lack of generosity and empathy for others… I’m troubled by this every day
What do you like most about Holland?
The Dutch polder landscape is the most beautiful landscape in the world, and the sublime beauty of Dutch skies is unchallenged.
What social/cultural activities do you miss in Holland?
There’s no dinner party culture here. In Holland, by the time you’re 25-years-old your social network is basically complete and closed. I miss long, socially engaging dinners with friends
What book would you take with you to a desert isle?
The collected works of Rilke, the German poet. In his eyes, the world is a difficult, delicate, treacherous place, but if one pauses, beauty and meaning can be found in the smallest detail.
Are the Dutch really so tolerant?
Sure, they’re tolerant if they can tax it! They’re tolerant of anything that has a revenue base. If there’s a penny to be made, it’s validated. Dutch tolerance is a myth.
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