Category: School life

With a new team of coordinators, an ambitious goal and a consistent effort, the Avenor Christmas Charity Fair was the event that, just days before Christmas, brought the Avenor community together to enjoy and give in the same time.

We are proud of the 7th edition of the Christmas Fair and the team of high school organisers who once again managed to pleasantly surprise us with their professionalism, involvement and care for those around them.

The Avenor Christmas Charity Fair is the way we carry on the Christmas spirit every year, with generosity and the joy of being together. This year’s edition took place on December 20 and was an event that, after a long time, brought together students, teachers, parents, alumni and also guests from outside the Avenor community.

The work behind the event

The whole event is 100% student led! The team of Fair organisers was formed this year by 60 high school students who are enthusiastic, involved, innovative and with a genuine desire to produce a change for the better.

The organising team, under the coordination of Clara and Maria, two 11th grade students, worked for almost a month to plan, execute, communicate and implement this project so that the Christmas Fair will take place according to the tradition – involving everyone, with attention to detail, with surprises and good cheer and last but not least, safe for all participants.

The organising team issued an open invitation to the entire community in order to bring as many guests as possible to the campus to enjoy and at the same time help the less fortunate.

“We receive, but we want to give. We want to help those who don’t have the same opportunities or resources as us, or don’t have the love and support they so desperately need.

Our Christmas Fair is a place to meet friends, have fun and eat goodies, but also make a difference!” – Clara and Maria, coordinators of the Avenor Christmas Charity Fair.

 

The charitable cause of the event

A charitable cause mobilised the entire community – the cause of the ”Ajungem Mari” Association – an organisation nationally acclaimed for their immeasurable contribution towards bettering the lives and education of children from orphanages or disfavoured environments.

The amount of 40,000 lei that comes from the proceeds and donations from the Fair will be directed to the “Ajungem Mari” Association.

The Fair Day

On the day of the Fair, the high school students delighted their younger colleagues with cotton candy, pancakes, popcorn, hot chocolate, hot dogs, photos with Santa, photo booths, skill games, jumping games and video games. Every student in the school toured the Fair to see what surprise awaits at the next stand. Whether they participated with their schoolmates, or were accompanied by their parents or friends, all Avenor students felt the joy of this day.

The atmosphere was assured by the best carolers – the teachers’ choir, students from the Good Vibes club and Sara’s Band.

Congratulations to the student organisers and thanks to the entire community for keeping the Christmas spirit alive together!

Three 10th grade students – Brianna, Iarina and Andrada – are the founders of a project entirely student-led, through which they invite Avenor students to put themselves in the position of Santa’s elves and to prepare gifts for children who are less fortunate enjoy the holidays as they deserve. In the message below from the three organizers, you can find all the details that can transform you, if you want, into real elves.

 

The ‘Santa’s Little Helpers’ project started last year when we were discussing our experiences as volunteers at „Salvati Copii“ Romania. Many times we don’t realize how privileged we are, especially on Christmas morning when we wake up in the morning with presents arranged under the tree. This is how we came up with the idea of ​​the project, from our desire to bring joy to the less fortunate children during the winter holidays.

 

Last year we managed to collect 90 gifts for the little ones, this year we aim to collect 140. The goal is big, so we need as many elves as possible who want to help us.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN “SANTA’S LITTLE HELPERS”

❄️Enter HERE and you will find the list of all the children who need our help. Choose who you want to give a gift to and write your full name, email address, phone number and class next to the child you chose.

❄️ Follow the gift suggestions from the chosen child (mentioned by him as he wishes) and try to include them in the package made by you. If no size is specified, then the child does not want the clothing.

❄️Pack the gift in a SEALED cardboard box! Don’t forget to decorate it in a packaging suitable for the Holidays.

❄️Put the label with the child’s name, age and the educational center for which you prepared the gift. Make sure this gift comes from SANTA and not you, so we don’t ruin the magic of Christmas for the little ones.

Since we want each child to enjoy similar gifts, we would be very happy if each was worth around 250 – 500 lei.

How many gifts can you give? Santa has no limits, so if you want to take on more children, we are more than happy for you to do so!

🛎️DEADLINE 12 December – Office, Secondary building.

 

 

On the eve of December 1 and the celebration of Romania’s National Day, it gives us great joy to present to our entire community a family of Avenorians who have re-elected Romania after 20 years spent outside the country. We thank them for their honest testimony, for the joy and hope they manage to convey through this message.

 

Happy Anniversary Romania!

We are a family of 5 – the parents – Lili and Ionut – and the children – Vlad (21 years old), Maria (19 years old) and Luca (12 years old).

I left Romania in 2000, a young couple with good prospects in Romania: Lili, a doctor in medicine, Ionuț, a computer engineer, at the invitation of a Japanese medical software company. We planned to go for 2 years, during which time we would explore wonderful Japan and exotic Asia.

We did not imagine that the 2 years would turn into 22 and an extraordinary life journey, to which, by divine grace, our 3 children joined us along the way and they are extraordinary and wonderful as well.

Maybe we would have stayed longer, although the plan was to return after 20 years, to be with our parents, but last year the second grandfather left us and we came to be the support to our kind grandmothers, both of them caught up in countryside life, with chickens and gardens.

We missed home, although we came to visit every year and stayed as long as we could, which was very good for us and the children.

We love Romania and Romanians and the longer we stayed in Japan (12 years) and then in Singapore (10 years), the more we came to appreciate them.

In the country many things have changed for the better during this time. Romanians are open-minded and open-hearted, laborious and enterprising. We felt the change from year to year, so we ended up finding at home everything that was abroad.

At one point I even realised that people at home live better than foreigners and they don’t even realise it or unfortunately don’t appreciate it. Probably with some leaders truly dedicated to the community and its holistic development, Romania could become heaven on earth from all points of view, a heaven that we would all enjoy to the fullest.

We hope to be able to contribute now that we’re back, with a lot of ideas and enthusiasm. We feel the same as Adrian Păunescu writes in this poem full of soul and teachings, “Întoarcerea țăranului”, sung by Ștefan Hrușcă:

“Ai colindat ce-ai colindat

Prin lumea veşnic friguroasă, 

Acum bine-ai venit în sat,

Mai cald e totuşi pe acasă…“

…especially since joining the warm and welcoming community of Avenor College!

We feel very lucky and are very excited about everything we found here.

We really like the teachers and Luca integrated very well in the class. He has made friends, he is very motivated and we are happy to see him growing day by day in height and intelligence!

Now we are preparing for the holidays, and I hope to gather in December at the school, as many as possible – parents, children, colleagues with Luca – for a workshop on traditional bread yeast, to learn to enjoy the beautiful, growing culture and thriving like the yeast that makes our bread healthy.

And inspired by this magical process, let’s put the same spirit of communication, contribution and collective flourishing into practice in our culture, for an even better life, every day. God help!

Thank you for everything!

Lili, Ionuț, Maria, Vlad and Luca

We invite you to read one of the most interesting articles written by Maria B. (11 Alfa) for Issue 10 of 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗛-𝗟𝗬-𝗡𝗘𝗪𝗦, the first Avenor mathematics magazine, initiated by Miss Mihaela Ancuța – Mathematics Teacher, and  coordinated by a team of students from middle school and high school.

Have you ever asked yourself why you can always find both McDonald’s and KFC on the same street? Why are there 5 coffee shops around the same corner, but none for the following 5 streets? How is that smart for the businesses? Game theory has the answer.

Game theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with the analysis of strategies for dealing with competitive situations where the outcome of a participant’s choice of action depends critically on the actions of other participants. So put shortly, the way in which people, businesses, governments, and more make decisions when they are interdependent.

Before John Nash developed Game Theory, an economic theory suggested that if everyone did what was best for themselves it would lead to the best possible outcome for society. Game theory refutes this idea and leads to a complete rethink of economics and a Nobel Prize for John Nash. There is actually a fantastic film about this called A Beautiful Mind starring Russel Crowe!

Let’s take the most popular scenario in which this idea comes into play: the Prisoner’s dilemma. Let’s consider two friends, Amy and Trefor, who were suspected of robbing a bank. They were taken for interrogation, into separate rooms and given two choices.

Either they confess and get 2 years in prison, or they deny and only get one year for different offenses in their past. That seems like a no-brainer, obviously both of them will choose to deny.

However, let’s see what happens when their decisions become interdependent. The interrogator adds a new condition: If Amy confesses and snitches on Trefor then she will be given immunity and serve no time in prison, whereas Trefor will serve 3 years if he continues to deny the crime. The same offer is given to Trefor. Considering they do not know what the other will answer, they both confess, avoiding the risk of 3 years in prison.

 

If Amy assumes Trefor is going to deny the crime, it is better for Amy to confess. If Amy assumes Trefor is going to confess then it is also better for her to confess. Therefore her best choice is always to confess. The same is true of Trefor and both people end up confessing even though it would have been better for them both to deny.

See how their plea changes completely when their decisions become interdependent?. Interesting isn’t it? But how does any of this apply to Economics?

Imagine the following scenario. You sell ice cream on a beach which has no other ice cream shops. Where would you place your cart to attract the most customers? At the center. But one day another ice cream cart appears on the beach. Luckily the owners agree to split the beach in half so both shops are set in the middle of the separated sections.

 

However, the next day, the competition decides to move right between the two territories, at the center of the beach as that will not only attract the customers on his half of the beach, but also a quarter of the ones on your territory.

The next day, you both set your ice cream carts back-to-back at the center of the beach and realize there is no other place either one can move to gain more customers. This way, neither of you can improve your position without losing customers-this is known as Nash Equilibrium. Nash equilibrium is the position in which nothing is gained if any of the players change their strategy if all other players maintain theirs. The first position of the ice cream carts, although better for the customers, as they had to walk much less, couldn’t last as it did not create a Nash equilibrium.

The same theory will apply to real life. Although many other aspects come into play, marketing strategies, quality of services, price differences and more, at the heart of their strategies, you will always find the principles of Game Theory.

 

My name is Gillian Carroll, I am the Senior Student Counsellor at Avenor. I am ably assisted by Louisa Dăscălescu – History Teacher, Luminița Susanu – Student Programmes Manager and Examination Officer and Boyana Dragomir – Student Support Coordinator. Together we are the careers counselling team here at Avenor and all our work lies in a student-centred framework.  Louisa and myself are both teachers who know the education system really well and have been helping students access universities for many years. Luminița and Boyana are support staff and our job would be impossible without their professionalism, organisational skills and wonderful personalities. 

It can be argued that the main focus of school education is to get pupils into the best universities with the best possible grades. Whilst this is a good focus, I would argue that Avenor goes much deeper than this. We want our students to be self-assured, ambitious and ‘future ready’ and this means that our focus is far more on each individual student; getting to know them really well and getting them know and be honest about themselves, developing bespoke pathways to increase their potential and confidence.  From this student-centred approach, we know students will get to the top universities and that they will have the best possible grades.

With the background information provided, I will now tell you what we do in High School.  Week by week, we work closely with the LOTC team from grades 9-12. The programme in LOTC is designed to focus on the Avenor learner profile and lies at the heart of what we stand for.  Students develop their community involvement and awareness, their confidence and willingness to become independent learners in projects beyond the core curriculum. There is also a strong focus on careers and profile matching so that students learn about and develop their strengths and talents.  Beyond LOTC, we publicise externally organised events like university fairs and summer schools. The primary work of the career’s team depends on the time of year.

Currently (October) our focus is on grade 12. We are interviewing all students regularly and monitoring their progress as they apply to universities. We are there for support, we are there for data like transcripts and predicted grades, we are there to write references, we are there to help with the application process. We are there to speak to parents if they have concerns. We are there for the students; guiding with the writing of personal statements and motivational letters and making sure they get access to the best possible support. For many students, this may involve access to an outside agency which specialises in university applications to certain countries. We aim to work with those agencies to make sure the support is coordinated and professional.

After the January mock examinations, most of the grade 12s will have completed their university applications so our focus turns to grade 11.  We start with helping them to write CVs and to objectively see their skills and talents and to collect evidence of the same. We assist, where needed in guiding them to choose relevant Internships.  Here I must add that the Internships provided at Avenor are ‘second to none’, they are impressive and definitely strike the right note with university application panels. 

The fruit of our labours is now four cohorts of Avenor graduates all finding places at universities of their choice on courses that match their talents and interests. As the school grows in size, we will continue to provide the same level of care for each individual student. Our team will undoubtedly grow also.

Whilst our focus is on grade 11 and 12, we are available for any student or parent in the school who wishes to talk with us. Please feel free to contact us at any time and we are happy to speak with you. If you want to know about university applications, gap years, possible alternatives to university, internships, anything at all related to careers, please get in touch, we will be delighted to hear from you.

All the rumours are true! On November 5, at Teatrul Țăndărică, 19 Avenor students organise  the first TEDxYouth@AvenorCollege. Tickets are available HERE.

TEDxYouth@AvenorCollege is the most awaited event in November because it bring in front of the public a group of experts, thinkers and doers across a wide range of fields to talk about failures and mistakes, reunited under the “CTRL + ALT + DEL. Reset and Start over.” conversation theme.

What is a TEDx event? 

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organised events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. These local, self-organised events are branded TEDx, where x means ”independently organised TED event”. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organised (subject to certain rules and regulations).

What was our inspiration?

It all started back in 2018, when Avenor was hosting the Avenor Mentorship Programme. Special guests, invited by students, would come over and give a talk to different groups of children inspiring them with their stories. The presentations as well as the followup Q&A sessions provided students with a lot of knowledge and ideas. Some of our speakers included Pavel Bartoș, Ana Consulea and Alex Găvan. 

The pandemic unfortunately forced the project into stand-by, but 4 years later, Avenor applied for a TEDx licence, and to our delight we were granted one. 

Why a TED event? 

TED events have the purpose to educate, raise awareness and inform our community as well as the global audience. We wish to tackle topics that are not often given a platform, and facilitate the project in an accessible way. 

Our motto this year is ‘Inform, Incentivise, Inspire’, and we wish to positively impact as many people as possible through this initiative, with the great support of our speakers and sponsors. 

Event details 

A TEDx event theme is a general subject that our activity will revolve around. This year’s theme is “CTRL + ALT + DEL. Reset and Start over.” This command simply restarts a PC. Given our current global context that forced most of us to adapt, and the very modern world we live in, we decided this theme would be perfect. 

On the road to success, there will always be obstacles along the way. Instead of hiding from failure, sometimes it’s best to embrace and maybe even cherish mistakes. CTRL + ALT + DEL suggests acknowledging these mishaps, and exploring ways of overcoming them. Finally, reaching the peak of the mountain stronger than ever.

One of our goals is to offer variety. Therefore, the audience will benefit from a broad range of speakers from varied backgrounds of interest. Here they are:

• Cristina Bâtlan – Founder and CEO Musette
• Elisabeta Moraru – Country Manager of Google Romania
• Ionuț Budișteanu – VisionBot Inventor
• Ciprian Lupu – Rally Driver
• Francisc Doboș – Parish Priest
• Oana Gheorghiu – Founder Asociația Dăruiește Viață
• Dana Papadima – Educational Director at Avenor College
• Christiana Budică –  Kickboxing World Champion 

TEDxYouth@AvenorCollege is a public event and you can find more details about the organising team, the event and the speakers on:

Our TED website      Instagram        Facebook

Dr. Daniela Vasile, Director of Learning and Teacher of Mathematics at Avenor College, talks in this interview about learning, but from a different perspective – the continuous learning of the teacher and the impact of this lifelong learning process on students and on school.

 

You have over 20 years experience in international education, you have a PhD in mathematics, you have extensive experience in teaching&learning, in many school systems around the world. Even so, you enrolled in the QTS course (Qualified Teacher Status), the first qualification for a teacher in the UK. What was your motivation?

In none of the schools where I worked before I needed this particular qualification and I do not need it here as well. However, in the Avenor teaching body we have a significant number of Brits and I decided that, due to respect for them, I want an UK qualification.

There were times in international education when qualifications were not too important – it was very important to cater for the students’ cognitive, emotional and social developments. Now these are equally important, but qualifications matter as well. Additionally, I really wanted some of my younger colleagues to follow my example – QTS will give everyone a time of reflection into their own practice to become better for themselves and, as a result, for us to become an even stronger organisation.

 

You are the Chair of Evaluation Teams for CIS (Council of International Schools) – you have inspected many schools around the world so far. How does this experience of working help you as Director of Learning?

Once or twice a year, depending on how busy my schedule is, I lead a team of 6-10 evaluators with the aim of evaluating a school on the following domains: Purpose and Direction, Governance, Leadership and Ownership, the Curriculum, Teaching and Assessing for Learning, The students’ Learning and Wellbeing, Staffing, Premises and Physical Accomodation, Community and Home Partnerships, Boarding (when there is one), practically, all areas that a school needs to cover.

First 3 days of such an evaluation visit reminds me of a giant puzzle, with all pieces mentioned that my team needs to put together to form a common understanding of the school’s strengths and needs with respect to the direction that they define for themselves. Next days are about zooming in in areas that are either outstanding or that require improvement.

The Chair’s role is to bring the team of evaluators that never worked together to coherence and to writing a report of evaluation that helps the school move forward in its development. I meet new colleagues (from the team and from the school evaluated).

Every time I bring back home ideas and more experience. It is recommended to look outside in order to get better inside and this is what it is all about.

 

At Avenor you have decided to sign up for Titularizare, an exam in the national education system. What was the reason behind this decision and how will you help the school, in the medium and long term, having this qualification?

One of the metrics that schools are assessed against with regards to the ARACIP accreditation is the number of teachers with the status of “titular”. I am grateful to be a member of the Avenor community, so it is my duty to give back to the organisation. With this in mind, I decided to sign up for “titularizare”.

It does not really help me at all, but helps the school and this makes me feel better. The process also helps me understand the challenges of my colleagues that are exposed to the same.

It is time-consuming, one needs to fill out lots of paperwork – not a joy.

The written examination is 4 hours long – I see this as an opportunity to remember how our students feel during the high-stake exams. I guess that I am just trying to find some positives.

If we must do something, let’s do it with grace even if we don’t like it.

 

Of the many courses you attended this year, which one did you find most interesting?

Each of the courses that I took were interesting and useful – this must be the case, when our Professional Learning programme is based on choice. It was my choice of what to do.

I am half-way through the UK National Qualification for Headship, an 18 months long course based on independent study, getting up-to-date with the latest research in education, group discussions and reflection on challenges of leading a school. It ends with an 8 days long assessment – we will be given a scenario of a school and we need to evaluate it and write suggestions and recommendations. In a way, the final assessment is similar to my work for CIS.

I learned a lot from a one week intensive course on Curriculum Leadership that I completed last summer.

Even though courses are nowadays online, they are structured in such a way that allows collaboration between participants from various schools. Learning together is always better!

 

What courses did the Avenor teachers attend this year?

Each Avenor teacher signed up for one of the four choices, offered as an one year long learning experience:

• Teaching Enhanced by Technology

• The Art and Craft of Teaching

• Teaching with Love and Logic

• A personalised pathway

Except for this, teachers signed up for various conferences and courses, some leading to qualifications, such as: definitivat, QTS, CRED courses, grade didactice, trainer, Google Certified Teacher.

This year, about ⅓ of the staff followed a course that finalised with a qualification – I am so proud of our teachers, who are modelling longlife learning. If we want students to be enthusiastic about and engaged with their learning, we need to model this for them.

Addittionaly, we had a team of leaders that went to London for the COBIS conference, one collegue went to BETT, the global community for education technology, some leaders joined The Inquiry Education Summit (Toddle) and many others taking part in various workshops.

We subscribed to three platforms: The National College, The National Safety Online and The PSHE Association, and teachers access workshops according to the subjects that they teach or according to the projects that they run.

 

What is the impact of teacher continuous learning on Avenor’s development as a school?

Firstly, every learning experience makes us better professionals. It is what I always tell my students – opportunities come and go, you need to keep your eyes wide open and grab them.

It is not easy, given the very busy schedule of a teacher and I was amazed and so happy this year to see how my colleagues embraced learning. Only think about the use of technology two years ago and now – what a steep learning curve it was!

We know that we are outstanding when our expertise transcends the walls of our school – one such example is our collaboration with Aspire teachers, an NGO that helps the state schools in Romania.

We are organising workshops for them and I want to thank here to all my colleagues involved. We have quite a number of Avenor teachers who are qualified to deliver adult training and we hope that opportunities to do that will only grow towards what is in our strategic plan as “Avenor Professional Centre”.

We learn from each other, we learn from research, from the books that we read and discuss, from courses, workshops, webinars – this learning is translated in the class, for students’ benefits.

Additionally, professional learning brings joy and energy that again translate in the enthusiasm with which we enter the class. Research says that one of the biggest motivators for students is the energy and enthusiasm that the teacher brings to class – it goes back to modelling it for them and with them.

“Next year will mark my 10th anniversary in the Avenor College community, an international bilingual school located near Băneasa Forest, where we interact with students from three key stages: Primary, Middle School and High School. What at the beginning was a big challenge for me, has turned into an efficient transitional educational programme from Primary to Middle School that is improving every year”. Georgiana Socoliu – Middle School Coordinator at Avenor College.

HOW IT STARTED

I am a history teacher and Middle School Coordinator, and in my first year at Avenor College I accepted the challenge to teach in the 4th grade. My teaching experience until that moment was exclusively in Middle School and High School and that is why I thought it would be difficult to teach for the students in the Primary.

With the help of my fellow teachers, I was able to get to know the students, interact with them, and have a great time. Thus, we started, practically, to work on a transition programme from Primary to Middle School, which we continue to try to improve from year to year.

THE PREMISES

The first step was to have a transition team with representatives from both key stages and as topics of analysis we focused on: similarities, routine, changes, schedule, differences, homeworks, concerns parents-students, the well-being of students.

We were really helped by our colleagues who were able to share their experience as parents, having children enrolled in Avenor, and then we were able to approach the transition with their feedback in mind but also taking into consideration the opinion of other parents in the community who were consulted.

Another element that is the basis of the transition programme every year is the feedback questionnaires that students fill in in the 5th grade, as well as the feedback they give to the teachers after the first semester. These represent great tools that help us evaluate and improve the whole process.

THE ELEMENTS OF THE TRANSITION PROCESS

The transition team has been setting a timeline since August, when we are preparing for the new school year, a calendar that specifies the activities and events that take place throughout the year, so that the transition between the two cycles is as organic as possible. Here are some examples:

• meetings with the parents of the 4th grade students for the presentation of the Middle School educational offer, a meeting attended by all the leaders of the school departments and the management team;
• meetings between 4th grade teachers, the class counselor, who knows the students very well and can provide information about each of them (academic progress, challenges he / she has encountered, emotional reactions, interaction with colleagues, parent-school collaboration ) and future form tutors.

Another element that ensures the transition of students is the equivalence of grades during the 4th grade. In this way, my colleagues from the Primary cycle ensure that in the 5th grade the students will already be familiar with the grading system in the Middle School.

Moreover, starting with the second semester, 4th grade students have the opportunity to participate in the classes of their Middle School classmates, by rotation or if the classes are online, they can all participate at the same time, the main goal being to get to know their classmates, from 5-8, but also to observe the atmosphere and the Middle School teachers way of working.

Also during this period, fellow teachers of mathematics, Romanian, history, geography, organise demonstrative classes with 4th grade students, an excellent opportunity to get to know each other and interact.

As part of the transition process was the last year’s activity of 4th graders who wrote individual letters entitled What Should Future Teachers Know About Me? in which everyone presented themselves – passions, skills, competitions he/she participated in, but which also included expectations from future Middle School teachers. These letters were presented by each student at the graduation ceremony of the fourth grade to which the parents were invited, as well as the teachers from the Primary and Middle School.

One of the most impactful activities organised in the process of transition is the meeting between the students from the two key stages. In these meetings, called Assembly, students in grades 5-8 recount their own experiences, the challenges they went through, how they adapted to the new routine, and how they prepare for exams, competitions, and what co-curricular activities they engage in over the years.

 

CONCLUSIONS

At Avenor, the transition process between key stages focuses on the student and his well-being, the goal being to eliminate tensions and fear of the unknown. We want the school performance of our students not to be influenced by the pressure of change and the continuous efforts of the educational team aim at a transition made holistically and efficiently.

 

Ana Caterina grew up at Avenor and we watched her with joy every year, evolving towards what she is today – an extraordinary young woman, confident in her strength, educated and willing to help, who inspires others through all her actions. Cate is a born leader who always assumes the coordination of complex projects, guiding teams naturally.

We are very happy to see that the first step in fulfilling her dream of saving the world continues with admission to the University of Amsterdam, PPLE section – a unique specialization through the exceptional combination of subjects, which gives future graduates access to a career in the highest level of influence and leadership in the world.

What are your reasons for applying to the University of Amsterdam and choosing Politics, Psychology, Law and Economics (PPLE)?

PPLE is a unique course and I believe that this interdisciplinary approach can give me the perfect foundation I need to pursue my dream.

The fact that I could choose Law as a major, while studying a blend of inspiring and useful subjects, resonated with me. I believe that not one major problem facing the world today can be addressed without drawing on the subjects of politics, psychology, law and economics.

I admit that my competitive nature has led me to faculties recognized asselective”, known”as hard to get” where I have the opportunity to meet teachers – mentors and ambitious students, who will constantly challenge me.

While preparing for university, when I found this section at UvA and started reading about it, I knew it was the perfect option for me.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” and what do you hope to find at UvA to reach your goal?

For many years, my answer to this question was, “I want to be a lawyer”. However, because I grew up and I talked to people around me who inspire me, I realized that I want to discover more during my university years.

I hope that UvA will help me find the ideal career for me and be the first gateway to my place in the world. I am sure that choosing this course that combines LAW with several subjects of interest to me will help me to better understand the world, it will help me have a fresh, and open-minded perspective on the world.

How is the admission process at UvA?

The admission process was a complex one because PPLE is a very selective course. There are ‘numerus fixus’ faculties in the Netherlands – this means that the number of places is limited by the government. But PPLE is a ‘selective’ courseselective’that accepts only 200 students each year, because it is the only program that offers interdisciplinary education and because it offers students the chance to participate in small, interactive seminars.

The admission process began with a portfolio with documents related to my academic performance, as well as a CV and a motivation letter. In the motivation letter I had to ‘tell my story’, to prove that I am suitable for this study program, that I can cope with its intensity, and to explain what determined me to follow this path.

After analyzing my portfolio, I reached the second stage, which consisted of a ‘Study Plan’ and a ‘Financial Plan’, followed by the admission exam. This ‘Study Plan’ was a good exercise for me because it made me realize what my daily life in Amsterdam will look like, being an indicator of how intense everything will be.

And the admission exam was a challenge. I had a week to analyze two academic articles and a course delivered by a UvA professor.. The exam consisted of questions related to the articles and the course, followed by an essay on site. The second stage is the most selective, which is why I was very nervous at the exam.

The third stage of the admission process was an interview with someone from the PPLE admissions office.

What do you think were your strengths in getting into UvA?

I really wanted to go to PPLE because I realized it was perfect for me. So, I was very determined and decided and I think this was the differentiator. I knew from the beginning that it was a complex process and that PPLE was selective, but I set out to do everything I could to succeed.

I think it is also important that I started preparing for each stage in time and took the process seriously. For example, knowing that the motivation letter is very important, as it reflects who I am, in the summer before the beginning of the 12th grade I took the time to think about what makes me who I am and where my motivation comes from. It took me about 3 months to complete my motivation letter because I considered every word carefully and tried to tell my story in an authentic way.

How do you think Avenor helped you in the admission to a prestigious university in Europe? Do you think that a student who follows the British curriculum has more advantages? If so, how?

Avenor has helped me a lot as a community. I’ve always had someone to turn to. When I wasn’t sure how to structure my essay, when I had a problem with the documents I had to send, when I couldn’t understand some aspects of the articles I was reading, when I was emotional before the interview and when I was waiting to find out if I was accepted, the people at Avenor – teachers, counselors, colleagues – were always by my side and helped me.

The fact that Avenor believed in me and supported me throughout the process helped me a lot, it gave me confidence to complete my application.

I am sure that a student following the British curriculum has several advantages due to its structure. Preparing for A-levels invites us to discover what we are good at, what are your interests and to discover your passions. Moreover, universities know how difficult these exams are, as well as the fact that passing them requires a set of skills such as critical thinking, organization and a deep understanding of difficult concepts. Therefore, a student who follows the British curriculum has an advantage because since high school you get familiar with the way of teaching at the university and especially with the critical thinking process that is encouraged in this system.

More than my teachers’ academic guidance, an experience which had a wonderful impact on me was when I coordinated the most important project led entirely by students – Avenor Christmas Charity Fair. I learned how to build a team, how to delegate tasks, how to manage the complex challenges raised by an event with hundreds of children. I remember the year in which we aspired to have the biggest choir created in a school in Bucharest and we brought together 500 children who sang carols. Or the year in which we organized the Christmas fair outside the school and we had invited parents and students not only from Avenor but from several international schools. These unique opportunities created by Avenor help us to develop, to find out from real life experiences how we can contribute to what is happening around us and why not, constantly learning something new about ourselves.

What advice do you have for a 9th grader who is considering applying to UvA in 12th grade to successfully pass the admissions process?

My advice is to discover yourself. Get involved in internships, carry out projects, participate and organize events!

Being involved in extracurricular activities will lead you towards discovering what you like, to meeting people who could have a positive impact on your life and will allow you to figure out what path you want to follow after graduating high school.

Also, don’t stress about where you will end up. I think life has a way of leading you to the place where you are supposed to be.

 

All the children we know go to school. Not to a school, but to a certain one, a school that parents usually chose carefully. The question a child often receives is “what school do you go to?”. Saying the school`s name, the child actually offers a much broader answer about who he is, what are his academic aspirations, what is the importance of education for his family.

The school uniform tacitly conveys all this information to people around us. All elite schools have a uniform that represents the values ​​of the institution and that is also a symbol of belonging to a certain community.

The uniform has always represented belonging, values, traditions, professionalism and desirable behavior, the uniform being, above all, a symbol, something beyond the material.

A pilot in uniform gives you confidence that he is ready to fly the plane safely, a doctor in uniform tells us that he is professional and ready to heal us, a policeman in uniform creates the expectation of providing protection and safety to those around him, a firefighter in uniform tells us that he is a life saver, a child in uniform becomes a student and tells his teacher and colleagues that he is ready to learn.

Symbolically, the Avenor uniform brings us together around common values, thus significantly contributing to the creation of our community identity, it is a hint of “Avenorian”, a symbol that indirectly says a lot about each of us.

Beyond the symbolism of the uniform, wearing it has many advantages.

The uniform is the symbol of our community and generates a sense of belonging. Dressed in uniform, students generate cohesion and build the community. Outside the school, dressed in uniform, we find it easier to spot each other, we are recognized and identified with the high standards of the school.

The uniform conveys discipline and professionalism. The uniform puts us in the position of “student” not only of “child” or “teenager” and the school is the place where we come to learn, to work, to get involved, to develop in order to reach our aspirations.

Wearing a uniform is considered to contribute significantly to improving the child’s behavior at school. Wearing the uniform, the child enters the role of a student who will try to fulfill it as best he can. It also reduces the chances of distraction at school, with students being more serious in class, which increases the chances of better academic performance.

Wearing a uniform helps increase students’ self-confidence. Wearing a uniform eliminates some of the reasons of anxiety – especially to teenagers – related to appearance and clothing choices, giving the child an extra chance to become more confident.

Wearing a uniform prepares students for life. Wearing a uniform prepares children for the formal scenarios we all face in life. Depending on where we go and who we meet, it is important to have the right attire for the occasion – this is how we show respect for that person or group we are interacting with but also for ourselves. In a professional environment, dressing appropriately is an expected behavior for any adult, a behavior that you learn in the family and practice it during school by wearing the uniform.

The uniform – a safety measure for students. It is much easier to recognize a student who has left campus if he or she has a uniform or to recognize an intruder on campus. Also, in off-campus activities, such as field trips or events, wearing a uniform helps us to recognize ourselves and not get lost.

Wearing a uniform reduces the risk of teasing each other. As in the case of adults, clothes, beyond their utilitarian role, are used by children to express themselves. Especially in adolescence, expressing yourself differently in terms of clothing than those around you can be a reason for animosity and division, behaviors that we want to minimize in school by wearing a uniform.

The uniform reduces issues like “what do I wear today?”.. That way, everyone has easier mornings – parents and children. Thanks to the uniform, you have less to do in the morning, eliminating the pressure of a choice. In addition, the uniform items are made of quality materials and are very comfortable. Moreover, wearing the uniform at school every day, children enjoy more weekends and holidays, when they can wear whatever they want.

The uniform significantly reduces the family’s annual budget for children’s clothing, especially for teenagers., especially for teenagers. With a higher initial investment at the beginning of the school year, the total annual cost of the family for the child’s clothes decreases significantly.

At Avenor College, wearing a uniform is mandatory.

The festive uniform (blazer, formal skirt / pants, shirt, tie) is part of the Avenor identity.. It is our way of presenting ourselves at official events and showing respect, trust and admiration for the Avenor team.

 

Sports equipment (sports jersey, pants / tights, jacket) is worn at sporting events and sports classes.

 

The shirt, the cardigan, the hoodie, the pants, the tights, the Avenor skirt are part of the casual uniform.. The casual uniform is about everyday life, when we need to be more relaxed in our movements, when we work and learn.

The uniform helps us to give clues to those around us about who we are. Sometimes it reminds us who we are. The uniform is a binder that helps students feel like members of the same community, to get closer, to recognize each other, to have a common goal and a strong message to pass on: we are Avenor!