UvA buildings | The Amsterdam University College, a futuristic stronghold on Science Park
Students at Amsterdam University College don’t have to spend hours on the train to their classes. They live and study on the same campus. Is that a dream or more like a nightmare? In part one of a series about the AUC: social cohesion, security guards, and solar panels on the roof.
It was pouring rain one evening in February 2011. That’s when the first pile of the new Amsterdam University College was driven into the ground at Science Park. The complex looks like a futuristic, brown bastion.
In 2013, it won the Amsterdam Architecture Prize. Its appearance is defined by solar panels and grass on the roof. “The AUC is proud of working toward a sustainable future,” the institution writes on its site.
Shared Spaces
AUC’s building includes 5,800 square feet of classrooms, a library, a restaurant, and a living room (Common Room). There are also project rooms, meeting rooms, and workstations in the building, which is clearly designed for social contact. The soft brown colors covering the inside of the building contribute to the ‘living room feel’ of the AUC. The sun shines into the building through skylights, making it pleasant to be inside.
On a weekday, students sit in the open spaces together talking and studying on the benches and tables. But the openness of the building does make it very noisy; as soon as only one group is talking, it can be heard at the opposite end of the building.
Through the large windows, you look out over the Science Park, of which the AUC is a part. Sustainability plays a major role. For example, in the summer, residual heat is stored 150 meters underground. In the winter, that heat is used to heat the AUC building. There are also 116 solar panels on the roof.
Coziness
The living quarters of AUC students are also in the Science Park, next to the AUC’s academic buildings. The emphasis on sociability, community, and contact is also central to the dorms. After all, everyone who studies at the AUC also lives on campus. “The residential aspect is an important part of AUC,” it says. “It makes those three years of studying a true cross-cultural and social experience.”
Some rooms are independent, in addition to the shared rooms. “That way you get to know your fellow students well right away. Depending on your housing type, you share your room with a minimum of one and a maximum of three others. All are of the same sex,” according to the site of the housing corporation Duwo.
In the past, communal living hasn’t always gone well. There were quite a few complaints about parties.
Just last December, for example, Duwo sent a message to all residents that the rules will be enforced more strictly. The purpose of the living spaces is not partying, writes the housing corporation; students should keep the balconies and common areas clean. It’s not the first time that the parties at the AUC are the subject of discussion: 10 years ago, for example, things got so out of hand that housing corporation Duwo sent security guards to the housing complexes late at night.
But it probably won’t be the last time, either. The “intercultural and social experience,” now that the lockdowns seem to be a thing of the past and summer is on its way, will continue both on and off campus. And with that comes the occasional party.
