‘During my second year in Groningen, I knew I wanted to become a neonatologist. It's fascinating how, in many cases, you can have a positive impact on a life that starts in intensive care. I find the technical part one of the great things about the profession. There are quite a few procedures involved. I am not a typical outpatient doctor who sits behind a desk and sees a different patient every 20 minutes.
It took me twenty years, with a couple of breaks, to achieve my dream. I have been a paediatric neonatologist since January. And I am looking for a job.
My husband is a diplomat and he has been working at the Netherlands’ Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels since last summer. I was in the final phase of the subspecialization I was studying at the UMC in Amsterdam. I could go to the UZ in Brussels to complete the last four months of the course. But they didn’t need any new staff. There are five other hospitals in Brussels with a neonatal intensive care unit, all French-speaking. I am now – while pregnant with our third – trying to brush up on my French.
Until now, I have been following my husband. We have been together since high school. I accompanied him to India when he went to work at the embassy in New Delhi for two years where I did volunteer work for Unicef. As a doctor, you always hold temporary positions during your training and specialization. Pieterjan has a permanent job. So it makes sense for me to accompany him and not the other way around.
Despite having different careers, we always find our way together. I spent a year in America. He was happy for me. He went to Sweden for a year, I was happy for him. I am counting on finding a job in Brussels and I have absolute faith in this. If I don’t, we will have to leave here. That’s what we agreed on. Back to the Netherlands or some other place in the world where there are vacancies and I don’t have to learn another language. I don’t want to have worked towards something for 20 years and then be unable to put it into practice.’

‘I was a youth doctor at GGD Fryslân for seven years. In 2018, I wasn’t able to work due to a burnout. I started reintegrating during the Covid-19 pandemic, which was a strange time to resume work. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to medicine yet, so I worked for the Environment and Health department for a while. Towards the end of 2021, my partner, who is a biology lecturer and researcher, was offered a job in Enschede. For me, this was the perfect time to switch things around. 
It was an honour to be a doctor. But it was never my dream. I wanted to study French. But during high school, my mother got sick and passed away. At that time, I did not have the confidence to choose a degree with uncertain career prospects. I come from a family of doctors and dentists, which is why I decided to study medicine.
When I stopped being a doctor, nothing was off limits. It could have gone any which way. After career coaching, I decided to try the bookstore. They needed someone at Broekhuis in Enschede. I was given a zero-hours contract, which was fine, since I mainly wanted to get my foot in the door. I was very lucky to get the job as they get several applications every week. Given my background, I was certainly not an obvious candidate.
After a year and a half, my boyfriend changed jobs again, and I had to pack my bags once more. I was very sorry to have to say goodbye to Broekhuis, but thankfully, they got me a spot at a bookstore in Den Bosch. I handle large orders and I'm also on sales. I specialize in non-fiction. In time, I will also start doing some purchasing.
I enjoy working with people who love books. And I also like being active, being in motion. I can’t sit still and stare at a computer screen for hours. I either can’t do it anymore or
I never could.
28 hours a week leaves plenty of time to do some reading myself. I was brought up with it. My mum used to read a lot. It took a backseat while I was studying, but now I read all the time again.

ELISE VERHAGEN (39)

DEGREE PROGRAMME > Medicine including PhD 2004 - 2012 IS NOW > neonatologist in between jobs HOUSEHOLD > lives with Pieterjan Rozenberg (39), UG alumnus BA International Relations and International Organization 2006 and MA European Law 2008, Viktor (3), Hanna (2), third on the way HOME > on compound – site former brewery – in Brussels INCOME > currently 0, before that € 7212 gross per month

SERA VAN NOORT (38)

DEGREE PROGRAMME > Medicine 2004-2011 IS NOW > bookseller at Adr. Heinen in ’s-Hertogenbosch HOUSEHOLD > lives with Jeroen Alkema (35), UG alumnus BA Biology 2013 and MA Behavioural and Neuroscience 2015 HOME > terraced house Rosmalen INCOME > € 3150 gross per month based on 28 hours

One medical alumnus recently moved to Brussels where she is brushing up her French in preparation for a new job as a neonatologist.
Another alumnus preferred to study French but became a doctor
against her will. She now works in a book shop.