NL Scholarship

The NL Scholarship is financed by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and Dutch research universities and universities of applied sciences. The scholarship is intended for international students from outside the European Economic Area (EEA = the EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) who wish to study for a master’s degree in the Netherlands.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for an NL Scholarship, you must meet the following criteria: 

  • You must not hold an EU/EEA passport and not be eligible for support under the Dutch study grant and loan system.
  • You must never have been enrolled at an educational institution in the Netherlands (if you only took part in an exchange programme in the Netherlands, this does not make you ineligible).
  • You must have applied for an international master’s programme at Utrecht University with a start date of 1 September 2025. Not all programmes participate. Please check the ‘Tuition fees and financial support’ information on the page of the master's programme you are interested in to see if the NL Scholarship is mentioned as a scholarship opportunity.

​​​​​​Scholarship amount

The available scholarship amounts are €5,000, €10,000 and €15,000. You will receive this in the first year of your studies, even if you are enrolled in a two year programme.

Number of scholarships

Approximately 20 scholarships are available for the 2025-2026 academic year. 

Deadline

Prospective students who wish to be considered for the scholarship must apply before February 1st 23:59 CET. The application portal will close at this time. Selection will only start after the deadline. We aim to publish the results by mid-April.

Selection criteria

Your application will be assessed based on the following criteria:

  • Academic background as demonstrated in your application for the master’s programme.
  • Your motivation, which should explain the relevance of your time in the Netherlands and at Utrecht University to your future goals. 
  • The quality and feasibility of your financial plan. You must demonstrate that you can cover the remaining costs by filling out the  Statement of Financial Resources (pdf, 71 kB).

How to Apply

After submitting an application (or applications) for an NL-eligible master’s programme before the stated deadline, non-EU/EEA students will have the option of submitting an application for the NL Scholarship from 1 November 2024. 

You will see the NL application(s) in your OSIRIS Online Application account dashboard. Click view/edit for the NL linked to the programme (related process) you wish to apply for, answer the questions and upload the requested documents.