Utrecht Excellence Scholarships

Eligible candidates: highly talented prospective students from non-EU countries
Amount of scholarship: 5 000 – 27 300 euro per year
Number of scholarships/year: approximately 55
Provided by: Utrecht University and alumni of Utrecht University

Aim of the programme

The Utrecht Excellence Scholarship offers a number of highly talented prospective students the opportunity to pursue a degree in a selected number of fields at Utrecht University:

International Bachelor’s programmes:

• Economics and Business Economics
• Liberal Arts & Sciences at University College Utrecht

International Master’s programmes offered by the following Graduate Schools:

• Graduate School of Geosciences
• Graduate School of Humanities
• Graduate School of Law, Economics and Governance
• Graduate School of Life Sciences
• Graduate School of Natural Sciences
• Graduate School of Social and Behavioural Sciences

Note that Master's programmes that are not state-funded (see programme description) are not eligible.

The scholarship programme is highly selective. Only candidates showing the highest achievement and promise may receive a scholarship.

Duration and number of scholarships

Selected students receive a scholarship for the duration of the degree programme, which is a maximum of two years for a Master's degree and three years for a Bachelor’s degree. Approximately 55 scholarships are awarded each year. The scholarship will only be renewed for the second (and third) year if the student is making satisfactory progress towards the degree.

Amount of scholarship

Selected students are awarded a scholarship between 5 000 and 27 300 euro per year. Students should be aware that the grant is not necessarily a full scholarship, and that it may be necessary to find additional funding to be able to finance study and stay completely. As one of the requirements for being granted a residence permit in the Netherlands, students from abroad must prove to the IND (immigration and naturalisation office) that they have sufficient financial means. Read more about the budget the University advises.

Eligibility criteria

The applicant must meet the eligibility criteria in order to be considered for this scholarship. The applicant should:

1. Not have the Dutch or an EU/EER nationality;
2. Hold a non-Dutch secondary school diploma;
3. Have been admitted to an International Master’s programme within one of the Graduate Schools mentioned above, the Bachelor’s programme in Economics and Business Economics or to University College Utrecht;
4. Hold a relevant Bachelor’s degree (for a Master’s programme) or secondary school diploma (for a Bachelor’s programme), or an equivalent thereof;
5. Be able to comply with the conditions to obtain a Dutch visa; 

Failure to meet one or more of these criteria automatically means the student is not eligible for this scholarship.

Selection criteria

Eligible candidates are selected for a scholarship on the basis of the following criteria:

1. Their academic excellence and promise in the proposed field of study;
2. The academic quality and results of the preceding education, as evidenced, for example, by grades, test scores, publications, letters of recommendation;
3. The quality and relevance of the motivation letter (academic content, intercultural and communication skills, personal motivation);
4. The quality and feasibility of the financial plan in the application;
5. The quality of the application itself (completeness, accuracy, consistency).

Application

It is not possible to apply for the Utrecht Excellence Scholarship. The Selection Committee of the programme will select eligible candidates on the basis of the selection criteria mentioned above. The selected candidates will be offered an Utrecht Excellence Scholarship in May.

Please note that students starting their programme in February are not eligible for the Utrecht Excellence Scholarships.

Funding

The funds for the scholarships come from the Utrecht Excellence Scholarship Fund, established by Utrecht University and from contributions by Utrecht University alumni.

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