Munich-Based Olesya Andreeva Thanks Advisor Alexander Bauer for Successful Thesis
Wittenborg graduate profile
Olesya Andreeva is a graduate of Wittenborg’s MBM programme at New European College (NEC) in Munich, Germany. Recently, she delivered an oral defence of her thesis in front of her lecturers, and obtained an MBM with a specialisation in Digital Marketing & Communication. Born in Moscow, her family moved to Munich, Germany where she still lives.
For most of her pre-university education, she attended Munich International School. “I gathered a very multicultural understanding of the world,” Andreeva notes. “I realised that I enjoy small, multicultural classrooms, so I applied to universities of business in Munich.” She took up a programme at Munich Business School but later transferred to Globe Business College Munich, where she finished her bachelor's degree in 2021. She was directed to NEC after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. “My main plan was to get a job, but with the economic position, it was tough. I opted to pursue my master’s instead,” she explains. “I reflected on the courses I enjoyed the most throughout my bachelor’s and realised that I had a lot of fun with branding and strategy. I remembered NEC (the Munich campus of Wittenborg) as I had considered it for my bachelor’s, so I thought to apply. I liked that it was also a rather short course of only 1.5 years and offered many of the courses I had an interest in.”
“Pursuing a master’s has been an experience like no other, with numerous path-altering experiences in light of countless unknown variables. As most impactful experience I would describe our project weeks in the second semester, during which I was able to network and meet exceptional individuals, allowing me to discuss life experiences and gather advice.”
Friend of Wittenborg Family Initiates Concert for Ukraine
A show of support for a shared future
https://www.wittenborg.eu/friend-wittenborg-family-initiates-concert-ukraine.htm
On Saturday 25 February, the Concert for Ukraine was held at the Julianakerk in Apeldoorn. The event was a tribute to the victims of the year-long, devastating war in Ukraine, as well as a show of support for a shared future. Initiated by friend of the Wittenborg family Simon Boon on behalf of the Gelre Association International, it was a touching and moving experience that brought people together through the universal language of music.
With a total of €3,514.50 collected in donations, the concert was deemed a great success. It was clear that the soul of the event moved and touched everyone who attended. This event was an opportunity for people to come together and create a better foundation for a sustainable future.
“In a world where destruction and evil run rampant, it is essential to stand together with respect, interest and attention,” says Simon Boon. “Music, art and culture are powerful tools in this fight. Courage, resistance, hope, partnership and friendship are what will ultimately win.”
Strategic Network Apeldoorn Discusses City Branding
WUAS helping promote Apeldoorn as a green and royal city
https://www.wittenborg.eu/strategic-network-apeldoorn-discusses-city-branding.htm
On 15 February, a group of representatives from Strategic Network Apeldoorn, including CEO of Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences Maggie Feng, came to the Apenheul to discuss the city branding of Apeldoorn. The purpose of the meeting was to visualize the city of Apeldoorn in the year 2025 and how the board plans to achieve it. Apeldoorn has great potential to become an interesting and thriving city. Despite Apeldoorn being the 11th largest city in the country and praised for its green character, the board concluded that Apeldoorn could do with some marketing to make the city more interesting for tourists and industries.
Wittenborg's Florian Oosterberg Attends ICEF in Japan & South Korea
Engaging the Japanese & South Korean education markets
https://www.wittenborg.eu/wittenborgs-florian-oosterberg-attends-icef-japan-south-korea.htm
Wittenborg family member and Student Registrar Florian Oosterberg recently got the chance to represent Wittenborg at ICEF’s (International Consultants for Education and Fairs) annual conferences in Tokyo, Japan and Seoul, South Korea. At the conferences, she was able to connect with key industry professionals within the Korean and Japanese higher education markets and touched base with other contacts from around the world. “I was there to represent Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences in order to make new connections with education consultants,” she explains. There was a “good, relaxed atmosphere, both among institutions as well as with education consultants,” recounts Oosterberg. “Both were equally nice,” she says of ICEF's Japan and Korean conferences.
Wittenborg CEO, EU Project Manager Attend Women’s Day Breakfast
Women forging ahead
https://www.wittenborg.eu/wittenborg-ceo-eu-project-manager-attend-womens-day-breakfast.htm
International Women’s Day 2023 saw Wittenborg CEO Maggie Feng and EU Project Manager Aydan Ismayilova invited to the huis of Provincie Gelderland for a celebratory breakfast. The event served as a platform to discuss the empowerment of women, as well as obstacles faced by women in the professional world. The breakfast also provided an opportunity for local women leaders, including Feng, to share their experiences and perspectives. Feng, who is also a member of the SER Topvrouwen organisation, along with other local women leaders, shared insights on gender equality in the workplace and overcoming obstacles for women in leadership roles.
Pauline Verheijen-Dop and Tim Mescon Join Wittenborg’s Academic Advisory Board
Wittenborg family gets bigger
Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences is adding two new members, Pauline Verheijen-Dop and Timothy Mescon, to its Academic Advisory Board. The board is a consultative body for the school, providing guidance on academic affairs, research, and teaching, ensuring that each programme is relevant and of top quality.
Royal Lights Festival Apeldoorn a great location to vote for the upcoming elections
Vote during the first edition of Royal Light Festival
https://www.wittenborg.eu/royal-lights-festival-apeldoorn-great-location-vote-upcoming-elections.htm
This year marks the first edition of the Royal Light Festival Apeldoorn. On15 to 19 March from 7pm, the city of Apeldoorn will be decorated with beautiful lights through the streets. The Royal Light Festival is a new free festival to promote art and the history of Apeldoorn. What makes the first edition extra special is that the start of the festival falls on the same day as the start of the Provincial and Water Board elections in the Netherlands. The Royal Light Festival provides a beautiful location to cast your vote: de Grote Kerk.
The Provincial States elections are held every four years in the Netherlands to elect the members of the Provincial Councils, the legislative assemblies of the Dutch provinces. In the case of Apeldoorn, the council of the province of Gelderland will be elected. They make decisions on matters such as infrastructure, spatial planning and the environment. They also vote for the members of the Senate (de Eerste Kamer) who control the bills passed by parliament (de Tweede Kamer), so indirectly votes are also for the Senate.
Wittenborg Research Centre Hosts Circular Economy Workshop Celebrating Dutch Circular Economy Week
Promoting Circular Innovation in the Furniture Industry
On 8 February, Wittenborg Research Centre hosted a Circular Economy Workshop at the Brinklaan campus in Apeldoorn, which was open to students, staff, alumni and interested members of the public. This workshop emphasised circular innovation in the furniture industry, a subject area addressed by the Erasmus+ funded project INFURI, in which Wittenborg participates as project coordinator and partner with eight other project partners from nine different countries across Europe.
A Productive Discussion on Mental Health and Programme Improvement during WUAS Student & Staff Representation Conference Day
Student and staff representatives discuss how Wittenborg can be improved for both students and staff
On 21 February, the Student and Staff Conference Day kicked off at Wittenborg's Spoorstraat location. This parallel discussion, led by two faculty representatives, had a wide range of topics on the table, from how to make Wittenborg's space more open for collective gatherings and conviviality to mental health. The aim of the conference day was back-to-back discussions with the student representatives on what could be better for both students and staff.
During the morning, staff met to discuss the structure and working environment in the workplace. Topics ranged from choosing the next SDG theme to creating a more inviting environment for students and staff to meet within Wittenborg. The meeting was led by staff representative Dadi Chang. It was a hybrid meeting, meaning faculty and staff members abroad or at home and student representatives from Amsterdam could also participate in the discussion.
Guest Lecturer Wants to Create Memories with Miniworld
Guest Lecturer Wants to Create Memories with Miniworld
https://www.wittenborg.eu/guest-lecturer-wants-create-memories-miniworld.htm
CEO Marc van Buren's inspiring story of how he built his own successful company
When entrepreneur and CEO Marc van Buren decided to quit his well-paid job at the Ministry of Defence in 2004 to start building a miniature world called Miniworld in the centre of Rotterdam, it was a life-changing moment for him. After his mother died, three days after 9/11 in 2001, he decided he wanted to follow his dream and his passion. "One of her last words was that she said I shouldn't wait to follow my dreams, because it was already too late for her," says van Buren. "It was that moment when I started rethinking my life and wondering if I really wanted to work in Defence until my late 60s." It was the beginning of what would become the largest indoor miniature world in the Netherlands. WUAS interviewed Marc van Buren just after he finished his inspiring lecture to the Wittenborg students at the Spoorstraat building.
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