Welcome to Character Studies!
Hello there! I’m Zeynep, a passionate researcher-to-be and the editor of this website, currently pursuing my master’s in ReMa: Individual Differences and Assessment (IDA) in Tilburg University. This website is exclusively run by IDA students and I’m excited to share our journey with you!
IDA is a close-knit community where brilliant peers and supervisors come together to strive for excellence. It’s a place where we challenge ourselves, support each other, and enjoy the journey along the way.
Character Studies is our journal of experience and your go-to place to discover what makes the IDA program at Tilburg University so special. Our community is filled with skilled, intelligent individuals and fueled by fascinating research that dives deep into what makes us unique: our personality, intelligence, motivation, and so much more.
But IDA is not just about academics, it’s about the experience. From research projects to informal gatherings, internal / international traineeships, social events, and day-to-day student life, we want to give you the full picture of what it’s like to be part of our vibrant community.
Whether you’re considering joining us or just curious about what we do, you’ll find blog posts that cover academic insights, our experiences, and our events. Get to know our students, professors, and alumni, and explore the exciting opportunities this program offers.
If you’re interested, feel free to browse through our posts, choose an area that sparks your curiosity, and don’t hesitate to reach out via our contact form. Stay connected by subscribing to our newsletter and following us on social media platforms, oh, and spread the word!
We’re happy to have you here and can’t wait to show you all that IDA has to offer!
Below you can read about the vision of the previous four editors of the Character Studies blog Melania Prandi, Marie Steinkampf, Zeynep Saruhanlioglu and Marta Dürrigl, without whom this wonderful website would not be the same today. They had a lot of fun working on the blog within the scope of IDA and are very glad to share their experiences.
Zeynep Ayhan is the editor of the CharacterStudies blog from 2025-2026.
When I first discovered Character Studies, it gave me a unique perspective on IDA: one that goes beyond curriculum of the program, diving into the real experiences of students and showcasing their actual work. Reading through the blog gave me a sense of what it’s like to be part of the IDA community, and it helped me envision my own journey here. I am grateful to editors who contributed before me, making this platform a welcoming and insightful place for prospective students. As the current editor, my aim is to continue showcasing the incredible work, achievements, and moments that define our time in IDA. From research insights to blogs about the topics that fascinate us, along with our personal thoughts and experiences, Character Studies is a reflection of who we are and what we strive for. I hope you find inspiration here, just as I did.
Melania Prandi was the editor of the CharacterStudies blog from 2024-2025.
While applying for the IDA programme, I stumbled upon this blog and became fascinated with all the programme had to offer. This small-scale programme felt like the perfect place to develop my interests and work closely with experts of the field. Reading the blog posts, abstracts of papers and what alumni were able to accomplish during and after IDA, convinced me that this was the programme for me. I took on this job to continue sharing our work and experiences, so that future students can explore all this programme has to offer. We all put a lot of effort and passion in what we do and it is my pleasure to share it on this website 🙂
Marie Steinkampf was editor of the CharacterStudies blog from 2023-2024.
After I applied and was admitted to the IDA program, I found the CharacterStudies website really helpful in getting an impression of the people I will get to know and might work with and what I can expect to learn in the upcoming two years. I especially liked feeling welcomed already before even having spoken to any of my fellow classmates or the teachers directly, just by reading through the blog posts, course information and looking up different profiles. This is what I also wanted any new students after me to feel like before they started the program and thus, I decided to take on the job of developing our blog. Hope you enjoy it!
Zeynep Saruhanlioglu was responsible for the blog from 2022-2023
As the editor of the ReMa: IDA social accounts, I tried to create an identity that reflects the collaborative, professional, and friendly culture we have. It was a pleasure to communicate with my colleagues, alumni, and the academic staff while creating content. Being more informed by and involved in the ins and outs of our program was an enjoyable and gratifying journey. I’m happy to have a role in the development of our online presence to familiarize everyone, who comes across our platforms, with ReMa: IDA.
Marta Dürrigl was responsible for the blog from 2021-2022
I took the job of editing the blog because I wanted to challenge myself in working on something new while also contributing to the IDA program in a different way. The beginning of it was rather challenging as before we could even start putting content on the website, the entire thing needed to be re-designed. I had so much fun creating different visions and meeting with Yvonne, trying to create the best possible design to showcase everything this program had to offer. I wanted this website to be a more personal way of getting to know the students and the teachers of the program and possibly for the new students to get a glimpse into everything we were working on. I wanted to showcase the wide range of interest all of us had, while simultaneously following the same program, to offer a perspective that as long as you have interest in research this program is a perfect choice. I loved getting to know the teachers and students through the individual profiles we posted and I truly believe, that even in the beginning of this new blog, it showcased the amazing atmosphere I felt throughout this programme. I am very happy to see how the blog has progressed and I am very glad and proud to have been a part of it.