More afraid of a venereal disease than of failing an exam:studying in the nineteenth century was one big party for rich young men.
In the nineteenth century, studying was only reserved for a small, privileged group. Around 1850 the number of students in the Netherlands was around fifteen hundred. In 2000 that was almost half a million! Most didn't have to worry about getting a good job in the past. This was practically guaranteed because of their origin.
The study time was more for growing up and making friends in the right circles. Learning something scientific was secondary. Student diaries from that time tell about endless tea drinking, walking, playing billiards and getting drunk at the club in the evening. In between, the students occasionally visited the theater or made a trip abroad. And sometimes they studied.
The university was still off limits to women. One diarist therefore sought his sexual pleasure from hookers or civilian girls. It says something about the concerns that this student knew, that he seemed more afraid of contracting a venereal disease than failing an exam.