Culture
After completing her secondary education she spent several years studying law at the University of Groningen and public administration at the University of Twente.
Ms Dijksma was a member of the House of Representatives of the States General for the Labour Party (PvdA) from 1994 to 2007. In 1991 she became general secretary of the Young Socialists, chairing the organisation from 1992 to 1994. From 1996 to 1999 she sat on the board of the Evert Vermeer Stichting, an organisation promoting international cooperation.
In 1991 and 1992, Ms Dijksma was one of the youth representatives in the Dutch government's delegation to the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. She has also been vice-president of the Socialist International Women, a member of the BNN media group, and a member of the supervisory boards of the Association for a New South Africa and the joint venture between Expertis Education Consultants and the Edith Stein Primary Teacher Training College/Twente Education Centre.
