These days, you may know Sarah Vandeursen as a television and documentary maker, artist, lover of Flemish dry-cured sausages, or perhaps still as Conny Komen of the band Kenji Minogue. What is less well known is that her story at Ghent University began in Political and Social Sciences. Eventually, she found her way to social work, earning a master’s degree in 2007. Back at the Blandijn, Sarah looks back on a student life full of detours, creativity and rebellion.
Did you live in student housing?
"Absolutely. I wanted to leave Bruges and get to know Ghent. It was love at first sight. Living in student accommodation gave me the freedom to chart my own course in life. At first, I shared a place with my twin brother. Strangely enough, moving to Ghent was what finally made us get along really well. After a turbulent first year at university, my parents sent me to a student residence. Later, I moved to the Oude Beestenmarkt area.
During my studies, I learned how to bend the rules creatively. I've always had a instinctive aversion to authority and systems. It also took me a while to find my place within the university system."
What kind of student were you: party animal or study nerd?
"Definitely more of a party animal. During my first year in Political and Social Sciences, I skipped a lot of classes, and my results reflected that. It was only later that I became more motivated and really wanted to write a good thesis and somehow survive the statistics course.
That said, I was still the kind of person who only started studying in May. I work best under pressure, right up against a deadline. I defeated my nemesis, statistics, using my own unique method: answering the multiple-choice questions completely at random. My reasoning was that, statistically speaking, I had as good a chance as any of getting them right. I ended up scoring 9.5 out of 20 and passed thanks to the and passed after the examination board deliberated my results."
Which course has stayed with you the most?
“Historical criticism, surprisingly enough. I actually worked quite hard for that one. Maybe it helped that the class was scheduled at a reasonable hour,” she laughs.
“During my master’s in social work, I was also fascinated by sociology and psychology. I’ve always been drawn to the social side of things. That was already true when I was studying Political and Social Sciences. Politics mostly just makes me angry. I can’t stand injustice.”
Were you already pursuing creative projects as a student?
"Music was always part of my life. I played records as DJ Baard at the Kinky Star, for example. But the real turning point came after graduation. On my twenty-seventh birthday, a radio show spiralled completely out of control and I found myself on stage for the first time. I was terrified, but I knew immediately: this is what I want to do.
"Studying is not only about what you do. It's also about who you are and what kind of life is right for you."
That's how I ended up at Urgent.fm, where I created Radio Vandeursen, an absurdist programme for gifted people. I still remember how, week after week and without success, we tried to get TV and radio presenter Michel Follet on the phone."
Did your education help shape your career?
"Absolutely. To me, art is also a form of social work. Art brings people together and sparks conversations. That sense of social commitment I developed during my studies is still very much a part of me today, just expressed in a different way.
If I ever lost my status as an artist, I could definitely see myself working in the social sector again."
Would you do it all over again?
"Without a doubt. Academically speaking, I may have wasted my first year at university, but I needed that time to figure out who I was. That's why I get so frustrated with today's obsession with efficiency and performance metrics. Students are given less and less room to explore, to struggle and to pick themselves back up. Yet those experiences are exactly what shaped me.
So give yourself time. Studying is not only about what you do. It's also about who you are and what kind of life is right for you."
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