Entrepreneurship

Check if you meet the programme requirements and sign up

• I have a Dutch university level (WO) Bachelor’s degree (VU Bachelor’s degree, VU pre-master's or Bachelor’s degree at another university)

  Admission requirements 
  With a Bachelor's degree in (International) Business Administration, Economics and Business Economics or Econometrics and Operations Research from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam you are directly admissible. 

  Services for international (EBE, EOR, IBA) students / Residence permit:
  If you are planning to continue your studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam after your SBE Bachelor, please contact the Central Admission’s Support Team of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam for further information and specific questions about the offered services for international students like extending your residence permit. You will need to apply for extension of your residence permit if you continue your studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

• I have a business, economics or econometrics degree from a Dutch research university

  Students with a Bachelor's degree from a Dutch research university in (International) Business Administration, Economics and Business Economics or Econometrics and Operations Research will be directly admitted after they complete the application process in VU.nl. For this a formal transcript of your Bachelor’s grades, a resume (CV) and a motivation letter is required.

• I have a Dutch University Level (WO) bachelor’s degree that is not a business, economics or econometrics degree

  Admission requirements
  
  You are expected to have:

  • An academic working standard, including experience in academic writing. Course requirements: at least 6 ECTS in academic writing courses (e.g. a Bachelor’s thesis) at the 3rd year Bachelor’s level.
  • Sound knowledge of research methodology, including sufficient analytical and statistical skills. Course requirements: at least 12 ECTS in research skills (qualitative and quantitative) at 3rd year Bachelor's level.
  • Experience with entrepreneurship, demonstrated with completed courses in Entrepreneurship (at least 6 credits on 3rd-year Bachelor’s level) and/or entrepreneurial experience as (co-)founder or (co-)owner (at least 6 months, in the past 3 years).

  The admission board will assess your application and will notify you on its decision by mail.

• I have a Dutch higher vocational education (HBO) Bachelor’s degree

  You will gain direct admission after completing the pre-master's programme; this is a full-time programme with courses on at least three days per week.

  Pre-master's programme

  The pre-master's programme is a deficiency programme that provides the necessary knowledge and prepares you for this master's programme. It is a 30 EC program that takes place in the second semester, from February through July. These courses involve both content as well as academic skills and knowledge, and research methods.

  Course details in the study guide

  Admission requirements

  In order to be admitted to the pre-master’s programme you must have:

  - a bachelor’s degree from a business or economics faculty from an NVAO accredited institute of Higher Education

  AND

  - a GPA of 7.5 or higher, calculated over the last three years.
  
  If you do not meet these admission requirements you can remedy / eliminate these deficiencies by submitting a recent GMAT with a score of 550 or higher, or an equivalent GRE test. 

  GMAT

  If you don’t meet the admission requirements of GPA and faculty, you can be admitted to the pre-master's programme by submitting a ‘Graduate Management Admission Test’ (GMAT) with a combined score of at least 550 for the parts Verbal and Quantitative.

  Also note the following:

  - The score may not be older than five years, counted from the date you start with the pre-master's

  - The Integrated Reasoning and Analytical Writing Assessment score do not count for admission

  Please fill in the test that 'Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam' may receive your score. The official score will be sent by GMAT to VU. Please note that it may take up to 20 calendar days for the VU to receive your GMAT score, so plan GMAT on time.

  You can also submit a ‘Graduate Record Examinations’ (GRE) score for the parts Verbal and Quantitative to satisfy the GMAT score requirement. To convert your GRE score to its GMAT equivalent, use the GRE Comparison Tool!

  Costs pre-master's

  Go to this page for more information about tuition fee rates for pre-master's.

  Deadlines and application

  The programme starts each year in February, you must have completed your application before 31 January.

  Apply now

• Application procedure with a Dutch Degree

  Application procedure
  To enroll in the programme submit your enrolment application via Studielink. 
  
  Step 1:
  Apply for the programme via Studielink before 1 June.
  
  Step 2:
  After application in Studielink you will receive a VUnet-ID and password unless you already have a VUnet-ID. Please complete your application on your VU Dashboard by answering additional questions and uploading the following documents (except for students (I)BA, EBE or EOR of VU Amsterdam):
  
  •    a formal transcript of your bachelor grades.

  •    A motivation letter in which you explain why you would be a good fit for the Joint Master Entrepreneurship and why the Master Entrepreneurship would be a good fit for you.

   •    A recent resume (CV).
  
  Please note: we can only process your application when you uploaded all required documents. 
  
  Step 3:
  The admission committee will assess if you meet the admission criteria and will inform you about the decision via email.

• I have an international degree

  Admission requirements
  
  Every country has its own educational system. In order to gain admission to a Master’s programme at VU Amsterdam your previous education needs to be equivalent to at least a Dutch academic Bachelor’s degree obtained at a research university (3 years WO). VU Amsterdam uses Nuffic (the Dutch organization for internationalization in education) as a primary guideline to determine the level.

  Programme specific admission requirements:

  • 6 ECTS in academic writing courses (e.g. a Bachelor’s thesis) at the 3rd year Bachelor’s level
  • 12 ECTS in research methods courses (qualitative and quantitative) at 3rd year Bachelor's level.
  • 6 ECTS in entrepreneurship courses at 3rd year Bachelor’s level and/or entrepreneurial experience as (co-)founder or (co-)owner (at least 6 months, in the past three years).

  How to demonstrate that you meet the requirements above

  You are required to indicate in your course description (see Application Form Template) how you meet the programme specific admission requirements.

  Whether you meet the admission requirements, is determined by the Admission Board based on your complete application.

  English Language Requirements

  If you are applying for one of our English-taught Master's degree programmes you will have to demonstrate sufficient English language proficiency by submitting English test results.

  Although complete applications are preferred, you can begin your application before you have completed the test and then submit your passing score once you have been conditionally admitted.

  You can find which test types and scores are accepted, the deadlines for submitting test results and all other relevant information on our application page under the Language Proficiency Requirements tab.

• Application procedure with an international degree

  Application documents

  To apply you are required to provide the following documents:

  • Scan of your passport or national ID card (ID for EEA students only) valid at the start date of the programme
  • Master Application File please download the correct file from this page. In this file you can see which documents are required to apply for your programme.
  • Proof of English language proficiency (if already obtained): upload your proof of English language proficiency or English language test results. Please find the English language requirements here.

  After having prepared the required documents, please follow the online application procedure. 

  Application fee & deadlines

  All students seeking admission to an international Master’s programme with an international degree are required to pay a non-refundable €100 application fee. Only after you have paid this fee will we be able to start the evaluation of your application file. If you are applying for more than one programme, you will only need to pay the application fee once. Your application fee payment is valid for two years.
  
  Information on how to apply with an international university degree and deadlines can be found here. 

  Grants and scholarships

  As an international student planning to study at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, you can apply for a variety of grants and bursaries. Detailed information about scholarships and deadlines can be found on www.vu.nl/scholarships or www.grantfinder.nl.

  International Student and Alumni Ambassadors 

  Our International Student and Alumni Ambassadors are happy to tell you all about their experiences with studying at VU Amsterdam and living in Amsterdam.

  • Our Student Ambassadors are current students at VU Amsterdam that represent a wide variety of programmes and countries.
  • Our International Alumni Ambassadors are VU Amsterdam graduates who are currently either working in the Netherlands or abroad, or doing a PhD or (second) Master's.

  You will find the full overview of our Ambassadors here: vu.nl/ambassadors. There you can chat with them directly.

• Pre-master's programme for international students

  Applying for the pre-master's programme directly is not possible. All international students are required to apply for the Master's programme of their choice first. If you do not meet the admission requirements directly, the Admission Board might refer you to the pre-master's programme. After completing the pre-master's programme you are directly eligible for the Master's programme.
  
  The pre-master's programme is a deficiency programme that provides the necessary knowledge and skills to prepare you for this Master's programme. It is a programme of 30 ECTS that is offered in the second semester, from February through July. Content details of the offered pre-master's can be found here.
  
  Admission requirements for the pre-master's programme

  • You have a Bachelor's degree from a non-Dutch university or from a non-Dutch university of applied science (which is equal to at least a Dutch HBO degree).
  • The Admission Board might request to hand in GMAT. This will be stated in the invitation to apply for the pre-master's programme you will receive from the Admission Board after you applied for the Master's programme. Do you want to know more about the GMAT? See GMAT ® - More about - Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (vu.nl)
     

  Deadlines and application
  The programme starts 1 February. Because of visa application deadlines, non-EU citizens must have submitted their application before 1 November. EU citizens or students with a valid residence permit for the Netherlands have until January 31^st to complete their application. However, to make sure everything is arranged before the enrolment deadline it is advised to submit your application well before this date.

  • 1 November 2023: Non-EU/ non-EAA students who need visa/residence permit. November 1 is the deadline to apply. Once you are conditionally admitted you have till December 1 to hand in a valid English Language test and GMAT (if applicable)
  • 31 January 2024: EU/EAA students

  Note: When applying, you can find the pre-master's programme in Studielink after selecting Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and by entering ‘pre-master's’ in the search bar.