Daniela Huppenkothen (alumna) 

"My professors at the university in Bremen recommended the Anton Pannekoek Institute to me as being a world-class institute in the field of astronomy. That is why I decided to do my Master's here in Amsterdam. My experiences were more than positive. The atmosphere in the institute is very friendly. Professors take good care of their students, and on the other hand are open to suggestions and criticism. That is something I really appreciated. They not only try to give you pure knowledge, but also a sense of that it is like to be a researcher. Doors are always open and as a student you become part of the institute and part of the research community."

"Anything in high energy physics has my interest: black holes, nova stars and stellar evolution. My Master's thesis dealt with both high energy and low energy astrophysics. I tried to link the two. These are two communities that normally do not work together which makes it interesting to see where and how they come together."

"The institute, which is housed in the Faculty of Science, has good facilities for students. We have a Master's student office with 10-12 work spaces where you can work together with fellow students. It's a good place to jointly evaluate projects and work out the collected data."

"Amsterdam is a true capital with all the cultural things going on, like concerts and theatre. Compared to my hometown Bremen it is a lot livelier. The centre however is small enough to bike around. The first days of biking were quite stressing though - in comparison to the Germans, the Dutch are very relaxed when it comes to rules. I am now a PhD student at the Anton Pannekoek Institute, so I will be in the Netherlands for at least a few more years."