Exceptional (family) circumstances

Your study progress may be disrupted by exceptional (family) circumstances, whereupon you take longer to graduate than is officially permitted and your student grant is withdrawn. In such cases, it is possible to apply for additional financial support under the FOS Grants arrangements. This will enable you to stay at university a little longer.
The term 'exceptional (family) circumstances' covers a wide range of situations and is therefore very difficult to define. If you are uncertain whether you qualify for additional financial support, you should contact a Student Counsellor.

Applying for a FOS grant

You should inform your Study Advisor that it is possible that you will be unable to complete the course within the allotted period due to exceptional (family) circumstances. (At this stage you need not actually have fallen behind.) You may then be referred to a Student Counsellor who will apply for a FOS grant on your behalf.

Conditions
To qualify for a FOS grant, you must be in receipt of a performance grant (with or without a supplementary grant). You must also have notified the Student Counsellor of the exceptional circumstances leading to the disruption of your coursework within two months.

Personal problems

Everyone experiences personal problems from time to time, and students are no exception. Such problems might include fear of failure, stress, lack of motivation, extreme examination nerves, lack of self-confidence, grief following a bereavement, loneliness, depression, difficulty in making friends or a general feeling of dissatisfaction with your life. Any one of these problems can place your study progress at risk. Help is at hand in the form of the Student Psychologists. You can ask to make an introductory appointment, during which you and the psychologist will work together in identifying exactly where the problems lie and how best they can be resolved. To request an appointment, call Fieke Bouterse (secretary to the Student Psychologists) on +31 20 598 5010.