Amsterdam Excellence Scholarship 2015

Requirements for eligibility

Candidates wishing to apply for an AES scholarship must meet the following requirements:

• Hold a non-EU/EEA passport and not be eligible for support under studiefinanciering, the Dutch system of study grants and loans (for more information, consult the DUO website). The scholarship office should be notified as soon as possible of any change in nationality, type of residence permit, and/or possiblestudiefinanciering support throughout the academic year.
• Be (provisionally) admitted to an English-taught Master’s degree programme at the University of Amsterdam which is registered in the Central Register of Higher Education Programmes (CROHO). You can apply for the Master's programme and the AES scholarship simultaneously. Your Master's application will be assessed before the AES deadline. In your application, clearly indicate that you are applying for the AES scholarship. 
  For more information about general application requirements, please consult the individual programme descriptions atwww.uva.nl/education for Master’s study programmes taught in English.
• Be (provisionally) admitted to a Master's programme at the UvA for the first time. An AES will not be awarded to candidates who are admitted for a second Master's programme at the UvA.
• Be able to comply with Dutch visa regulations as indicated by the Dutch Immigration Service (IND).
• Be enrolled at the UvA as a full-time student for the academic year and the programme for which the scholarship is awarded. Scholarship continuation is not guaranteed when a candidate changes his or her Master’s programme.
• The candidate should not receive another scholarship for the same period of study as the AES. Notify the UvA if you have been awarded and accepted another scholarship.

Selection criteria

Eligible candidates are selected for a scholarship on the basis of their academic excellence and promise in the proposed field, as evidenced by:

• the candidate’s academic record. Students from any discipline belonging to the top 10% of graduates from their class can apply;

• the academic quality of the educational institute where the undergraduate (or graduate) programme has been obtained;

• a letter of recommendation by a dean, teacher or academic supervisor;
• the quality of the letter of motivation (maximum 500 words) in which the candidate explains the reasons for choosing the specific Master’s programme (broader context, relevance for future career);
• a description of extracurricular activities such as participation in student committees, international experience, sports or music at a high level or volunteer work;
• proof of English proficiency (IELS/TOEFL) :TOEFL (internet-based) -  overall score of 100 (with a minimum score of 22 in each of the different components), IELTS (academic) - overall score of 7.0 (with a minimum score of 7.0 in each of the four components);
• the quality of the application as a whole (completeness, accuracy, consistency).

Conditions for continuation of the AES

AES recipients must maintain good academic standing:

• The scholarship will only be continued if the AES student is making satisfactory progress towards the degree, i.e. completing the courses of the first semester of the first year on time and with a grade point average of 8 (out of 10).
• At the end of the academic year, all of the required credits should have been earned with a grade point average of 8 (out of 10).
• If the AES recipient decides to cease studying, the AES payments already received must be reimbursed in full.

Students who receive the AES for a two-year Master’s programme will be evaluated after one year of study. The scholarship will only be continued for the second year if the AES student has completed all courses of the first year on time and with a grade point average of 8.0.

It is expected that AES recipients will:

• participate in activities with AES sponsors
• join extracurricular activities and become part of a select community, including the AES alumni network
• form a strong international network during their period of study, which will be stimulated by an interesting tailor-made extracurricular programme.

Their special relationship with the UvA will continue to be fostered once they have graduated. The UvA’s Alumni Office is actively involved in setting up international alumni chapters, and AES alumni are ideal candidates to play an active role in these. In so doing, they will maintain a special link with the UvA and pave the way for new AES students.

AES scholarships may be terminated if the recipient unreasonably refuses to participate in such activities.

Applications for the Amsterdam Excellence Scholarship (AES) are made through the admissions office of the faculties and graduate schools. As long as you meet all the requirements, you can apply for the AES at the same time as you register for your programme.

Application deadline

Applications will be accepted until 15 January 2015.

Faculties and graduate schools offering AES

Click on the links below for detailed information about the application procedure.

• Amsterdam Law School

• Economics and Business