Tanja suffers from a chronic disease and knows what it means to depend on others for help during your studies, which is why she too wants to help people. Including herself and Emma, Lighthouse consists of some ten students. “Our goal is to help people find their way through the maze of counselors at TU/e; study advisors, deans, student psychologists, exam committees, et cetera. We tell you when to contact whom. We also want to increase awareness among both students and teachers about the fact that some students need help,” they say. They were told that at least ten percent of TU/e students need some kind of additional counselling. “This is the first Intro during which these students receive – a tiny bit of – attention. We hope that awareness of this part of the program will increase next year.”

Games enthusiasts

Thanks to Lighthouse, nineteen students had fun playing games at student associations Zephyr and Knights of the Kitchen Table last Tuesday evening. “They played for hours,” Emma says. And on this Thursday too, the sense of joy is palpable. Preferring a low stimulus evening doesn’t mean you can’t be enthusiastic.

Take Margalena, for example. The first-year Built Environment student from Greece who rents a room in residential tower Luna spent the last half hour playing Splendor with three boys she met just an hour ago. “I’m not a party person,” she explains, “but I never pass up on the opportunity to spend an evening with fellow game enthusiasts. I believe that an evening like this results in more meaningful relationships than when you’re swaying in a crowded pub.”

Fellow game enthusiast and prospective Computer Science student Shashwat – from India, but currently living in a room at the Boschdijk – agrees with her. “I’m really enjoying myself this evening. I feel that we could become friends. And I’m glad that I can play these expensive games here, without having to buy them.” His French roommate – registered at Electrical Engineering – hastens to fetch two new games. “Citadels or Azul, which one should we play?”

Follow up

Lighthouse hopes to launch a platform within a few weeks where students with specific counseling requests can meet online and chat anonymously with people who suffer from similar problems. “After all, people who feel out of sorts don’t have the same requests for help as people with mental health problems or dyslexia.”