Rients Verschoor, alumnus Modern History and International Relations

Alumnus Rients Verschoor began working as a trainee at the Municipality of Groningen after his Research Master in Modern History & International Relations. He talks about his work and how his studies and time at the University of Groningen contributed to his current position.

Verschoor works in the Corporate Staff department, which supports the municipal administration with the formation of policies and with the management of the municipal organization. His tasks consists of developing area-oriented work. In more concrete terms, it means that he is involved in organizing learning activities, work visits and designing a tutorial based on the principles of the learning organization. In addition, he provides an advisory role to management. Verschoor particularly appreciates that he is given a lot of freedom to fulfill his tasks in his job. "It really testifies to the trust they put in me," he says.

Describe an average working day
"Oh, it can vary a lot. At first I was interviewing a lot of my colleagues, but at the moment I'm analyzing and writing. In between, there are still many projects I am contributing to: for example coordinating research for a democratic experiment in Groningen (the Coöperatieve Wijkraad), setting up a kind of trainee program for 55+ people and organizing a trainee day for trainees from Noorderlink. "

Verschoor was uncertain for a long time about whether he would enroll in an educational master or a research master. “ What ultimately was the deciding factor was the just the strong feeling I had", he says. In retrospect, he would choose the same Master again: “I loved it".

In what ways does your current position connect to this program?
“I attended the course in Learning History & Organizations by Dirk Jan Wolffram and Rik Peters in 2015, among other things. During that course, I wrote a learning history for the municipality of Groningen in the context of the continued development of area-oriented work - which I continue to build on. The connection is therefore very close", says Verschoor. He has been able use the knowledge and skills he has gained in his study with his current work.

"During the Bachelor and Research Master I specialized in Italian fascism, rhetoric and learning history. The latter two particularly come in handy with my current job, because I work from rhetorical and learning historical principles. For example, I am concerned with the definition of concepts that are rarely questioned. This results in my colleagues proceeding differently with their own tasks, on the basis of different assumptions. I analyze the big picture over time: where does the organization come from, what kind of baggage do they carry, where are potentially unseen faults? "

Like most students, Verschoor was also active outside his studies. For three years he was chairman of the Staf & Promotie of GroningenLife!. Even now he continues to participate in activities outside his job. He is chairman of TalentWeb Groningen, a “think and do tank” of young professionals. "That interest in Groningen, and all the people I have met, undoubtedly helped me obtain my current position."

What are your ambitions?
"Ultimately, I want to start my own business. My goal is to apply learning history as a method for organizational development to put the historical profession on the map as a useful subject. I think history heavily undervalued, in that respect. "