In 2012, several Indonesian PhD students came to Leiden University to do promotional research, funded by the so-called Leiden-DIKTI scholarship. The students are part of a big operation of the Indonesian governement to upgrade their academical framework. Literally thousands of students travel abroad to write their dissertations there.

Wija Wijayanto and Arum Perwitasari both were Indonesian PhD students at Leiden University, funded by the Leiden-DIKTI Graduate Scholarship Programme. With the help of this scholarship, literally thousands of students travel abroad to write their dissertations. During their research period, Arum and Wija got to discover what it is like to live in Leiden. Here they are, sharing their personal experiences.