TOP-week

The Tilburg Orientation Program, or TOP, is the annual introduction event for fresh students at one of the Tilburg institutions for higher education, including Tilburg University and the Fontys and Avans Universities of Applied Sciences. Up until 2012, when internationalization had not yet reached quite such dizzying heights, the introduction event was known as TIK Week, a name it bore for 31 years. Appreciation for this event is consistently high.

In 2018, well over 3,200 prospective students took part in the program, the highest number ever. TOP Week is organized by students, with hundreds of volunteers putting together a five-day program for first-year students to get to know each other, their programs and the town. It usually takes place in the last week of August.

Two tops a yaer

Tried and tested program components are the introduction party, games day in Leij Park, tours of cultural, culinary and sports institutions, a party in pop venue 013, the Beer Cantus and ‒ a more recent addition ‒ the City Game. Day-to-day TOP management is provided by four committees: Registration, Acquisition & Finance, Communication & Media, and Events. A clutch of sponsors, including the Tilburg council, help to fund the program. In addition to TOP Week, there is now TOP Winter Week, taking place in January and aiming to introduce new international students to the University, the town and the country.

Cantus during TOP Week