Partial funding · Study in Netherlands
VU Fellowship Programme
Merit-based tuition fee waiver reducing the fee towards the Dutch statutory rate; can be combined with the NL Scholarship
- Funder
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
- Level
- Postgraduate
- Coverage
- Partial
About this scholarship
VU Amsterdam commits around a million euros a year to the VUFP, a merit-based tuition fee waiver for talented non-EU/EEA students joining an English-taught master's.
It can be stacked with the NL Scholarship, which contributes towards living costs, and that combination is what makes Amsterdam workable for many self-funded students.
🗓️ Deadline
Apply for the fellowship after conditional admission, with the final application deadline usually 1 February
Award cycles shift year to year. Confirm the current deadline on the official site before you plan around it.
Eligibility
- Non-EU/EEA passport holder, not eligible for the lower statutory tuition fee
- Conditionally or unconditionally admitted to a full-time English-taught VU master's
- Academic excellence, roughly equivalent to a Dutch grade point average of 8
- Not holding Dutch nationality
- Applying for the first year of the master's programme
How to apply
- Apply for your VU master's programme, ideally by the 1 December advisory deadline
- Wait for conditional admission — the fellowship form only opens afterwards
- Submit the VUFP application before the 1 February deadline
- Apply for the NL Scholarship in the same window if you are eligible
- Ask your Tutopiya counsellor to check the grade equivalence for your transcript
Other scholarships for Netherlands
Browse all Netherlands scholarshipsAmsterdam Merit Scholarship
University of Amsterdam
A partial tuition award; values and numbers are set by each faculty or graduate school
Eric Bleumink Fellowship
University of Groningen
Full tuition, international travel, subsistence, books and health insurance
Holland Scholarship
Dutch Ministry of Education and participating universities
€5,000 in the first year of study
VU Fellowship Programme: your questions, answered
What does the VU Fellowship Programme cover?
Merit-based tuition fee waiver reducing the fee towards the Dutch statutory rate; can be combined with the NL Scholarship. VU Amsterdam commits around a million euros a year to the VUFP, a merit-based tuition fee waiver for talented non-EU/EEA students joining an English-taught master's.
Who is eligible for the VU Fellowship Programme?
Core requirements are: Non-EU/EEA passport holder, not eligible for the lower statutory tuition fee; Conditionally or unconditionally admitted to a full-time English-taught VU master's; Academic excellence, roughly equivalent to a Dutch grade point average of 8; Not holding Dutch nationality; Applying for the first year of the master's programme. Eligibility rules are set by the funder and can change each cycle, so confirm on the official site before applying.
When is the VU Fellowship Programme deadline?
Apply for the fellowship after conditional admission, with the final application deadline usually 1 February. Because award cycles shift year to year, always check the official programme website for the current date.
What does the placement service cost?
A flat SGD 50, billed as two monthly instalments of SGD 25. That covers everything: counselling, university matching, application support and guidance right up to your offer. There are no hidden extras, no agent fees and no commission on your tuition, because our counselling is funded by our university partners, the SGD 50 only covers administration. Separately, you pay the university’s own tuition or semester fees directly to the university after you accept your offer.
What exactly do you help with?
Everything from start to finish: understanding your options, shortlisting the right programme, preparing your application and personal statement, submitting to the university, and guiding you through the offer, enrolment and visa paperwork, all with a dedicated counsellor.
Which universities can you place me into?
We place students into a range of UK and international universities, and we shortlist the best-fit options for your grades, budget and goals rather than pushing a single school. On some pages we run dedicated SGD 50 placement drives for a specific partner university, and we are always adding more partners. Tell us your goals and your counsellor will map out your options.