Degree from a non-Dutch university
This page outlines the step-by-step process for completing your application to a Master's programme at Utrecht University. Please read this information thoroughly before starting your application.
This programme is limited to a maximum of 150 admissions. Only students who meet the entry requirements will be considered for admission. If the number of candidates exceeds the number of available places, the Admissions Committee will select only the most eligible candidates. Please read the selection criteria and procedure carefully.
To participate in this Master’s programme you need:
- An academic Bachelor’s degree. Our International Students Admission’s office will verify whether a non-Dutch academic degree is equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree at a Dutch research university. All international Bachelor’s degrees are evaluated based on standards set by the NUFFIC. If your degree is assessed as less than equivalent to a 3-year Dutch research University degree, or as a bachelor from a university of applied sciences, you are most likely not eligible for admission.
- Specific academic knowledge and skills required to participate in this programme. You can find these requirements in this document. Please read this information carefully.
In general, this means that you need a Bachelor’s degree in psychology with a clinical orientation and you must have passed courses in classical test theory, psychopathology, psychological assessment, multivariate statistics and you have written a quantitative Bachelor’s thesis. Please note that if you lack knowledge and skills in one of these areas, you cannot be admitted.
Other Bachelor’s degrees than psychology, but with similar orientations, will also be assessed by the Admissions Committee on the basis of the requested academic knowledge and skills. However, previous experience has shown that it is difficult for students without a degree in psychology to meet the entry requirements for this Master’s programme. If your degree does not meet the criteria as specified above, you are most likely not eligible.
Please note: an online assessment may be a mandatory part of the evaluation of the methods and statistics criterion. For more information please consult the document above.
- Sufficient command of the English language (see below).
English language requirements
- IELTS, Academic Module (IELTS Online is not accepted). Minimum score 6.5 overall band, at least 6 for writing, speaking, listening and reading.
- TOEFL, iBT. Minimum score 93, at least 24 for reading, 22 for listening, 20 for speaking, 20 for writing. Institutional scores are not accepted. The TOEFL institution code for Utrecht University is 9062.
- Cambridge Certificate (not available to students from China)
- Cambridge English C1 Advanced (CAE). Minimum score: 176 total, 169 writing
- Cambridge English C2 Proficiency (CPE). Minimum score: 180 total, 169 writing
You are exempt from the English language requirement if:
- you obtained your previous degree from a Dutch Research University.
- you obtained your secondary school diploma or Bachelor's degree in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, UK, USA or South Africa
- you obtained an English-taught International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma or European Baccalaureate (EB) Diploma.
You can already start your application without having your English test results. Make sure that you include your test date in Osiris Online Application.
Unsure if you qualify for admission?
In order to properly assess whether you qualify for admission, it is important that we have the right information. It is therefore necessary that you apply through the regular admission procedure and submit the required documents. The Admissions Committee will look into your qualifications for admission.
Note: you may need to pay an application fee (of 100 Euro), otherwise the application will not be considered. Check the information on our Application Fee page.
The selection procedure consists of two steps.
Step 1:
The Admissions Committee evaluates your eligibility based on your knowledge and skills. Candidates who will meet this requirement before the start of the Master’s programme will proceed to step 2. Candidates will be notified of the Admissions Committee's decision.
Step 2:
Based on the documents you submitted, the Admissions Committee will rank all candidates based on:
- Their weighted average grade (at the time of the application).
- Their suitability to the programme based on the answers given in the suitability profile (see required documents). The questions concern motivation for clinical psychology at Utrecht University, personal professional development, the essence of being a scientist-practitioner, and future professional orientation. All questions will be scored on a combination of relevance, scientificity, clarity and persuasiveness.
Both criteria have the same weight.
The top 50 candidates will be selected for the programme. For all other candidates – except the bottom 50 –selection will be based on drawing. The top 150 candidates who are not selected, will be placed on a waiting list. The bottom 50 candidates will not participate in the drawing and will only be placed on a waiting list if they belong to the best 150 candidates who are not selected. The position on the waiting list will be based on the ranking. All candidates who are not selected and are not placed on the waiting list, will be rejected.
All candidates will be informed about the decision before 1 June. Selected candidates have two weeks to accept their place in the programme. Replacement from the waiting list is possible until 1 August.
Please make sure you have alternative plans (e.g. you have applied for another Master’s programme) in case you are not selected to the programme.
This Master's programme is selective and does not offer a pre-Master's programme for students who do not meet the entry requirements.
However, if you have most required knowledge and skills, but only lack more advanced knowledge concerning Assessment, you may be able to acquire this via a Summer School course. This is for the Admissions Committee to decide. It is not possible to acquire any other knowledge or skill this way.
Please always apply for the Master’s programme first. If the Admissions Committee determines that you do not meet the entry requirement concerning Assessment, they will decide if you are eligible to this Summer School course. If you are selected, participation in this course will be a condition for admission.
| Applications open | 1 October |
|---|---|
| Deadline for scholarship applicants | 1 February |
| Application deadline | 1 April* |
*Please note that we are now closed to all applications for the next academic year. We will begin accepting applications after 1 October.
Please note that we only have one starting moment, namely every September.
The following documents must be uploaded before the deadline:
A scan of your diploma or Proof of anticipated degree in English, Dutch, French, German or Spanish. If your documents are in another language, you also need to arrange official translations.
- Transcripts of Records (including courses taken, grades obtained and GPA) in English, Dutch, French, German or Spanish. If your documents are in another language, you also need to arrange official translations.
- Certified copies of your diploma and transcript (after admission).
An overview of courses yet to be completed (when you have not yet obtained your diploma)
Passport copy
A scan of your official English language test report or certificate
Checklist Entry Requirements and syllabi of all the courses you list on this Checklist. These syllabi must be written in English or Dutch. If they are not available in one of these languages, please upload the original syllabi and include a (self-written) clear and comprehensive English summary.
- A copy of your Bachelor’s thesis or similar research report. When you have not yet completed your thesis, submit a statement that states the proposed title, research question and methods.
Visit Studielink and complete the registration process. You can find all information on how to use Studielink here. After completing your Studielink application, you will receive login details for OSIRIS Online Application within 2 working days.
Apply via StudielinkAfter submitting your application to Studielink, you will receive an email with login details for OSIRIS Online Application. Here you can upload all required documents, check the status of your application and pay your application fee.
After you upload all documents in OSIRIS, International Student Admissions will verify them and send them to the Graduate School for evaluation.
The Admissions Committee of the Graduate School will check whether you have sent in all the required documents and your application is indeed complete. If so, you will receive notification that your file will be evaluated by the Admissions Committee. You can expect a decision within twenty working days after you receive this notification. In December this may take a little longer because of the Christmas Break.