Dear members of Teresias,
I hope you are all doing well and that you’ve had a good start of the academic year! Teiresias is there to extend a helping hand whenever you’re not feeling well, for example due to a difficult situation at home, due to unpleasant situations in class or in the study association itself. A vertrouwenscontactpersoon (VCP, or confidential contact person) can lend a sympathetic ear, think with you and/or offer extra insights into your case or problem.
What makes the VCP different to the study advisor or tutor is the fact that the latter are focussed on helping you with your study progress, whereas the VCP focuses on the student. There can also be a high personal threshold to approach, for example, a tutor. The VCP, on the other hand, is just a (former) fellow student. This year I, Joyce Voorrips, am Teresias’ VCP. You can Whatsapp me individually or send an email to vertrouwenspersoon.teiresias.uu@gmail.com for a meeting (in person in Utrecht or online via Teams).
I am linked to the University Utrecht, but am outside of the board of Teiresias and I operate independently of tutors and professors. Everything you discuss with me is confidential and will not be shared with third parties. Individual conversations are not shared with others (unless explicit permission is granted) and the data you share in emails or texts is deleted immediately after the conversation is finished.

If you run into problems during the school year, or find yourself in an awkward situation and would like to talk to someone about it, do not hesitate to approach me and request a chat via vertrouwenspersoon.teiresias.uu@gmail.com or via WhatsApp.
Note: I will gladly be there for you, but I am also not a psychiatrist. For long-term or large-scale problems I will refer and if needed help you reach out to professionals (for example the student psychologist).

Best wishes,
Joyce

About me

Hi My name is Joyce, I’m 25 years old, and I am a BA Celtic Languages and Culture alumna. In 2024 I finished the RMA Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance studies, where I mostly focused my researches on medieval Irish and Welsh texts. After the RMA I took a gap year to decide what to do with my life, in which I spent six months travelling through Southeast-Asia. During the bachelor I studied in Cork (Ireland) for half a year, so I know what it is like to study abroad and to organize this. Of course, you can always come to me with other questions as well!