What do you have to do to apply?

• Choose a university

  VU Amsterdam has over 200 partner universities. Do you want to study as far from home as possible, or do you want to stay close to the Netherlands? Either way, there are many options! On our VU Study Abroad Map you will find all our partner universities. When you apply for an exchange semester you will eventually need to make a list of your top 5 preferred universities. The following points are important:

  • Select your own study programme on our VU Study Abroad Map; many agreements that we have with our partner universities are categorized by study programmes or faculties. 
  • Some universities have a minimum average grade requirement. This is clearly mentioned on the Study Abroad Map. If you do not meet the average grade requirement, you can unfortunately not be selected for this university.
  • Some universities also have specific language requirements that you need to fulfil (check the VU Study Abroad Map).
  • If you want to take part in the exchange during the first semester of the academic year, but you still need to complete exams in June and July, it is not possible to choose a university where the semester begins in July (for example South Africa, Oceania and some countries in Latin America). 

• Choose courses

  You've taken a closer look at the universities that are available for students of your study programme on the VU Study Abroad Map. Now it's time to check the courses that are offered.

  • Foreign universities generally do not offer minors: it is up to you to put together a selection of courses.
  • You can find a link to the courses of each university on the VU Study Abroad Map under 'Disciplines'. 
  • You will generally need to take courses within your own field of study while you are abroad, even though the Examination Board might also allow you to take courses from other disciplines.
  • The Examination Board of your faculty has certain requirements for the courses that you follow abroad. For example, the Examination Board usually requires you to follow at least 12 ECTS on third year level. In the process of applying for exchange, you will receive more information about these requirements.
  • Partner universities also carefully check whether you meet the pre-requisites of the courses.
  • If you wish to pursue a specific Master’s programme after you have obtained your Bachelor’s degree, you should also look closely at all entry requirements for the relevant Master’s programme. Sometimes specific Bachelor’s courses are required to be admitted to a specific Master's programme and it is often not possible to find the exact same (replacement) courses abroad.
  • If the courses for next academic year are not yet available, we advise you to base your choice on the courses from this academic year.
  • Check in which language the courses are offered, since not all courses are taught in English. Take a close look at the language requirements on the VU Study Abroad Map.

• Application deadlines

  If you want to take part in an exchange semester in the 2027/2028 academic year (first or second semester), you can apply in our first or second round. 

  First round
  The application period will open on Tuesday December 1, 2026 and the deadline for the first round will be mid-January. The exact date will follow. 

  Second round
  Did you not get selected in the first round? Or have you not applied at all in the first round? Then you can apply in the second round of applications. The deadline for the second round will be mid-February. The exact date will follow. 

• Application

  If you haven't applied yet in the first round, or if you haven't been selected, you can apply for an exchange in the second application round, through our application module. Go to your dashboard on VU.nl and log in with your VUnetID. Go to "Apps and pages" and click on the app "Application exchange and Registration internship/freemover/summer school abroad"

  In addition to checking the list of remaining available places, you will also have to make sure that the partner university is available when you choose your own study programme on our Study Abroad Map . 

  If you wish to apply again, you will have to submit a new application for your new top 5 (or less) of universities. Keep in mind that only if you haven't applied yet in the first round, or if you didn't get selected for any of your chosen destinations, you can apply in the second round. Otherwise your application will not be considered. Please follow the steps explained in the How To Apply Manual. You will be asked to fill in in your application:

  • Your personal details
  • A top 5 of universities where you would like to go to for your exchange. Choose wisely your selection because if you are selected for one of the destinations, we expect you to go. 
  • At least 3 courses per partner university that you would like to follow during your exchange

  After handing in the application form, you will be asked to agree with our Terms and Conditions in order to finalise your application. 

• How does the selection process work?

  The International Office will assess all applications after the deadline. The students will be placed according to the procedure described below, involving the students' desired top 5 universities.

  For all partner universities there is a maximum number of places available. You can find the total number of places for each partner university on the VU Study Abroad Map. If you are making a smart, diverse choice regarding your top 5, meaning choosing universities in different locations and not just popular cities, there is a high chance that we will be able to select you in the first application round. During the Study Abroad Weeks we offer a “How to choose your top 5” workshop, to help you with making the right choices for your top 5 universities.

  The selection takes place through the following procedure:

  Selection procedure
  Every student that is applying for an exchange semester receives a total score that is based on two components:

  • Your own grade average (GPA) at VU – We will use the GPA from the Study monitor in your vu.nl dashboard* (50%)
  • A randomly generated number between 6,00 and 10,00 (50%)

  The total score you receive is therefore equally based on your GPA at VU and a random number. This procedure ensures inclusivity and objectivity, while still giving students the opportunity to influence their total score. This selection procedure has been approved by the university student council.

  *We will check your GPA in the third week of January, when most results from period 2 have been registered on vu.nl.

  Example

  As an example, you might have a GPA of 6.8 and receive a random number of 7.22. Your total score will therefore be 14.02. Note that your GPA will have one decimal, while the random number will have two decimals to ensure unique scores.

  Placement process

  On the basis of this total score, we will create a list with all students, sorted from the highest total score to the lowest total score. We will then start with the student that is at the top of the list (with the highest total score) and will look at their top 5 university choices. After we have placed the first student, we will look at the second student and so on.

  When placing students at universities, we always try to place students on their first choice. If this is not possible anymore, we will look at your second, third, fourth or fifth choice. During this procedure, we will also check GPA requirements that some partner universities have, as well as whether you seem to meet possible language requirements.

  Please pay attention to the following:

  • You will be notified if you have been selected for one of your top five universities.
  • You will then have three days to accept your place, otherwise it will be offered to another student.
  • If you have not been selected in the first round, there is a small chance that you will be offered the place of a student who declined their placement in the first round. Otherwise, you can apply again for available universities in the second round. You will be notified via email.

  Cancelling or making changes after you have been selected:

  • If you have been selected for a university in your top 5 and you decline your place, you cannot apply for the second round.
  • Once you have been selected, you are expected to take part in the exchange. Otherwise, you will be taking up a place that another student could make use of.
  • After you have accepted your place, it is not possible to change your destination.
  • In exceptional cases, it may be necessary to cancel your exchange semester, for example due to extraordinary personal circumstances or your study planning. In this case, please contact the Outgoing Exchange Team.  

• Privacy statement

  Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam finds privacy important. If you apply at VU International Office for an exchange during your study programme, you have to accept our privacy statement. Read more about how we deal with your personal data and how your privacy is safeguarded if you are going to study at a partner university abroad via VU Amsterdam.

Outgoing Student Exchange Team