An array of the familiar and also certainly less familiar student teams are presenting themselves in an organized chaos of flyers, banners and enthusiastic stories. Interest seems high, but somewhere it falters. It is as if everyone shows interest but when the time comes to really get involved, people remain silent. It is the abundance of options that can make it difficult for students to make the right choice.

It gets me thinking. The choice is overwhelming: everyone is begging for new recruits. There are career-oriented events where each field of study offers its own parade of opportunities, student consultants are eager to give you a taste of the flashy lifsetyle of the Zuidas consultant, and student teams are throwing themselves into technology and innovation.

There are also the countless associations, all with their own boards and committees, that can boost your social life and network. But it's hard not to view the abundance of promotion and promise with a touch of cynicism. It's not just the amount of options that makes it difficult; extracurricular activities also take time. Time that perhaps one should be using to study.

Study pressure is already high, that doesn't need to be said anymore. Unfortunately, it seems to be further exacerbated by the threat of - I can't leave it unmentioned in this story - the long-term study penalty. I honestly admit that I have often prioritized extracurricular activities myself. Don't get me wrong; I have absolutely no negative feelings about it. It has shaped me, taught me to look further and it has made me immensely richer in experiences. I would recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity to get hooked on something. Still, I too often think it would have been nice if I had gotten a few more credits.

Anyway, I am curious about my friends' opinions. We share the amazement at the hustle and bustle in Atlas and look back on our decisions to seek out that same hustle and bustle. This is also why we got to know each other so well. We discuss the decisions we made back then, the occasions when we had to choose between studying and participating in everything there was to do outside the lecture hall.

Slowly the break draws to a close, and so do the crowds around the student teams' booths. The previously enthusiastic people seep away toward the lecture halls, while interest in the student teams seems fleeting. We get up and walk with the flow. “Well,” says one of my friends with a grin, ”at least they do choose their studies.” We laugh. There is so much possible outside of studying, but for now we focus on the books again.