The VU Fellowship
Programme (VUFP) offers talented prospective international students the unique
opportunity to pursue a Master’s degree at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Vrije
Universiteit Amsterdam has committed to providing approximately 1 million euro
towards attracting highly motivated and excellent students.
All VUFP
applications received by 1 February 2017 will be reviewed by the faculty of the
Master’s programme applied for. Fac
ulties then nominate applicants to the
central scholarship committee, which subsequently awards scholarships to the
most talented students. The award is based on the motivation letter, the
quality of previous education and the student’s academic performance therein. A
scholarship offer will be made to successful candidates.
Eligible
candidates
The VU Fellowship Programme
(VUFP) is a Merit scholarship programme for strongly motivated students with
excellent study results. Eligible candidates must be able to prove their
academic excellence, and they must be admitted to an English-taught Master’s
degree at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Students with the Dutch nationality
and/or a Dutch degree (given that the Dutch degree is used for admission) are
not eligible for admission. Students following a one-year Master’s programme
may not apply for the VUFP scholarship for a second year. Students already
enrolled in a two-year Master’s programme who have not been awarded the VUFP
scholarship in 2016/2017 are not eligible to apply for the VUFP scholarship
2017/2018. Only when a student was granted a scholarship from the beginning,
then the scholarship can be extended if he/she achieved 100% of the credits of
the first year. The Faculty VUFP committee will be asked to demonstrate to the
Central VUFP committee that these credits have indeed been achieved.
One VUFP scholarship will be reserved for an applicant who previously completed
a semester or full academic year abroad at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam via
the Semester in Amsterdam program
and is now applying for a full time Master’s programme at VU Amsterdam. The
application process for Semester in Amsterdam alumni is the same as applying
for a VUFP scholarship, but if you are applying as a Semester in Amsterdam
alumnus or alumna then you must also email semesterinamsterdam@vu.nl to inform
the staff that you applied via VUnet for a VUFP scholarship and indicate in
your motivation letter that you previously completed a semester or full
academic year at VU Amsterdam via the Semester in Amsterdam program. Students
who are not selected for the scholarship reserved for Semester in Amsterdam
alumni can still be considered for a normal VUFP scholarship.
Scholarships
amounts
The VUFP scholarship
is a tuition fee waiver. VUFP scholarship does not provide any additional
allowance towards study or living costs.
Application
procedure
1. Register
for Master’s programme
Students register
for a Master’s programme in Studielink and after that in the VUnet
portal. Here you can find more information on how to apply for
one of our English taught Master’s programmes. Please note that you must have
applied for the Master programme before you can apply for the VUFP scholarship.
Deadline: 1
February 2017.
2. Submit
VUFP application
Submit your VUFP
application in VUnet.
Deadline: 1
February 2017
For VUFP application
3 documents are required:
A. Proof of excellence/ GPA
Students who apply for a VU Fellowship Programme need to have a GPA of at least 80% of the highest
possible mark (calculated over full previous degree). For
example, if the highest possible mark is a 10, you need to have an average of
at least an 8.
Excellence in previous education is proven if the grade point average achieved
is at least
the equivalent of the Dutch grade of an 8.0 on the Dutch
grading scale 1 – 10. The VUFP Scholarship Committee will decide on the
local grade equivalents for the Dutch grade of an 8.0 using the grade
information included in the NUFFIC country modules.
B. Motivation Letter
We would like to know your motivation for the VU Fellowship Programme. Why do
you think you deserve to receive a VUFP scholarship?
Topics that are reviewed in the motivation letter are the following:
• Why do you want to
study this specific programme?
• What are your future perspectives?
• Why do you deserve the VUFP scholarship?
Do not hesitate to
mention other motivations as well, we like own initiative!
C. Curriculum
Vitae (CV)
We strongly recommend the use of the Europass format.
3. Decision
The Central VUFP
Committee decides which students will be offered a VUFP scholarship. The
Committee makes a merit based selection.
4. Results
All students will
receive an e-mail/ notification informing them of the Central
scholarships Committee’s decision concerning their application.
Expected date: 1
April 2017 (8 weeks after the deadline).
5.
Acceptance of VUFP or HSP offer
Selected
candidates accept/ decline the VUFP offer in VUnet.
Deadline: 15April
2017 (2 weeks after the results are published).
Current
VUFP scholars
VUFP scholars
enrolled in a two years Master’s programme do not need to re-apply for the VUFP
scholarship for the second year. The VUFP scholar will be nominated for a
second year provided that he or she has obtained at least 80% of all ECTS. VUFP
candidates will receive an e-mail from the Central Scholarships Committee on or
around 1 July 2017 confirming the extension of the VUFP scholarship. Students
who have not achieved sufficient study results will be informed that they will
not be offered the VUFP scholarship for the next academic year, unless there
are clear reasons why the results were lower than average.
Complaint
procedure
An interested party
that does not agree with the decision of the scholarship committee, may file a
written complaint to VUFP@vu.nl. Complaints
regarding the application procedure (not the results!) should be addressed
to the student ombudsman by e-mail and
must include:
• Your name and
full address.
• Details of the selection procedure that you do not agree with.
• The grounds for complaint: why are you unable to accept the selection
procedure?
• Date and signature.
For pressing
questions regarding the VUFP scholarship, please email: vufp@vu.nl.
