SENSE welcomes all language professionals working primarily in English in the Netherlands or with a connection to or interest in the Dutch market. Although most SENSE members live in the Netherlands, this is not a requirement for membership. Our membership rates are very affordable, and we offer students a discount. 

New members

Simply complete our membership form and pay immediately.

Returning members

If you wish to rejoin SENSE after a break, please contact the Secretary at membership@sense-online.nl.

Membership dues

Membership costs only €80.00 per calendar year.

• If you join between 1 January and 30 June, the cost is €80.00.
• If you join between 1 July and 31 October, the cost is only €40.00.
• If you join in November or December, then the cost is €80.00, which covers both the current year and the following year.

Student members

Membership dues for students are 50% of the regular membership fee, for the duration of their studies. In addition, student members can attend SENSE events at half price and can receive mentoring at a discounted rate. Student members must provide evidence that they are enrolled in an accredited training programme.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact the Secretary at membership@sense-online.nl.

What SENSE is

SENSE is a society for English-language professionals based in the Netherlands. We currently have about 280 members, including technical, style and copy editors, translators, proofreaders, copywriters, interpreters, journalists, teachers, researchers, academics and language/communication consultants. Most of our members either live in or have a professional connection to the Netherlands, but work primarily in English (either full-time or part-time, freelance or in-house).

What SENSE does

SENSE supports its members and the language profession in many ways. The Society:

• helps language professionals meet the special challenge of working in English in a non-anglophone setting.
• organizes a full calendar of workshops, webinars and social events for members and non-members alike.
• hosts an online Forum where members can ask questions and discuss issues.
• organizes get-togethers called Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to meet, discuss and learn about topics related to the group's interests.
• operates a mentoring programme in which more experienced members provide guidance to less experienced colleagues.
• provides a membership database where members can find colleagues and make useful contacts.
• provides members with useful information and resources in our online Library.
• maintains an active presence on Facebook (both public and private), LinkedIn (both public and private) and Twitter.
• engages in advocacy and promotion of standards on behalf of language professionals in the Netherlands
• encourages communication between societies and institutions involved in language.

History of SENSE

SENSE was founded in 1990 by a small group of English-speaking editors living in the Netherlands. Their objective was to form a society that could deal with the problems of language attrition and linguistic isolation faced by English-speaking language professionals living and working in a non-anglophone country. Since then, SENSE has also attracted many native speakers of Dutch, who bring valuable perspectives on working in the English language industry in the Netherlands.

Read this article to learn how it all began.

Publications

The following resources are available to the public:

• Guidelines for Proofreading Student Texts – helps formalize agreements between editors and students working on assignments.
• SENSE publishes an entertaining and informative blog.
• SENSE co-authored the Convenant Vertaalsector Nederland (a memorandum of understanding for the Dutch translation industry).