International Crimes, Conflict and Criminology

Check if you meet the admission requirements and apply.

• Merit based admission

  Admission to this interdisciplinary Master’s programme is based on a relevant degree, and on merit and your fit with the programme. 

  Merit is demonstrated by academic excellence, as evidenced by your overall grade average, admission essay, academic English proficiency and recommendations. You should have a min. GPA of 7.3 according to the Dutch grading system. Please note that VU Amsterdam will convert international grades and decide on the international grade equivalents for the Dutch grade of a 7.3.

  Fit with this interdisciplinary programme is demonstrated by your motivation, CV, relevant experience (e.g. internship and (voluntary) work) and substantiated interest in conflict related crimes, political violence, international crimes and/or international criminal justice.

  These criteria are of equal importance. A somewhat lower score in one area may be compensated by a strong score in another.

• I have a Dutch university level (WO) bachelor’s degree (VU bachelor's degree, VU premaster or bachelor's degree at another university)

  Admission

  You can apply with a Bachelor's degree in Law (LLB), Criminology, Social Sciences, Political Science or Psychology or any other related subject.

  If you do not meet the abovementioned requirement you may still apply, your application will be assessed on:

  • talent and motivation
  • proficiency in research methods and techniques

  VU premaster

  The faculty does not offer a pre-master for this master. Instead, students who require a premaster to qualify for this master can take a premaster in the field of their bachelor degree (Law, Criminology, Social or Political sciences, Psychology or other relevant field for the ICC master).

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

  Admission

  You can apply on the basis of one of the HBO degrees listed below in combination with a relevant premaster:

  • HBO-Rechten plus VU SchakelzoneRecht (in Dutch)
  • HBO-Rechten plus doorstroomprogramma HvA-VU (in Dutch) at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences
  • HBO in Law, Criminology, Social or Political sciences or Psychology plus relevant premaster

  
  Your application will be assessed on:

  • talent and motivation
  • proficiency in research methods and techniques

• Application with a Dutch degree

  Application

  First check whether you meet the admission requirements.
  You can apply from 1 October. The application deadline is 1 June.

  Use this application procedure for Dutch degrees but please upload the documents as mentioned below and not the documents mentioned on the general application procedure webpage. The other website can be used for general information about the application procedure but mentions a different set of documents. 
  For this Master’s programme you must upload the following documents (PDF) on your VU Dashboard: 

  • letter of motivation, explaining why you wish to join the programme (maximum 1500 words)
  • short essay as proof of academic writing in English: introduce and answer the following research question (maximum 1000 words including references):
    What are the differences between international crimes and (transnational) organized crime?
  • curriculum vitae
  • certified transcript of grades obtained so far
  • 2 letters of recommendation from academic referees (if possible including the ranking position of the applicant); we prefer digital copies uploaded on your VU Dashboard, but referees may also mail their references directly to admission.law@vu.nl

  Only complete dossiers will be considered. We may ask for additional information on your academic record if this is deemed necessary to come to a decision.

  Decision schedule

  Application dossier complete by 21 March	decision by 31 March
  Application dossier complete by 1 June	decision by 15 June

• I have an international degree

  Admission

  Applicants with an academic Bachelor's degree in Law (LLB), Criminology, Social Sciences, Political Science or Psychology or any other related subject can apply.

  If you do not meet the abovementioned requirement you may still apply, your application will be assessed on:

  • talent and motivation
  • proficiency in research methods and techniques.

  If you have a degree from a University of Applied Sciences, you need a completed and relevant premaster to apply. The faculty does not offer a pre-master for this master.

  We use the UK Naric comparison system and the Nuffic comparison and validation programmes to assess your application. Especially students from non-EEA countries should factor in the possibility that a relevant Bachelor’s degree may not be sufficient for acceptance to this Master of Science programme.

  Proof of sufficient proficiency in English

  VU Amsterdam requires all international applicants to take an English test and to submit their score as part of the application. Exceptions are made for students who have completed their secondary or academic education in the Netherlands, UK, Ireland, Canada, USA, New Zealand or Australia or who have obtained an international Baccalaureate or European Baccalaureate diploma or have earned a Bachelor's or Master's degree in an accredited English-taught programme in the EU.

  You must have passed the test no longer than two years before you start the ICC programme, the following minimum scores apply for this master:

  • IELTS: minimum total score ≥ 7.0, minimum score per test section: 6.5
  • TOEFL iBT: minimum total score ≥ 100, minimum score per test section: 22 
  • TOEFL Paper-delivered Test: minimum total score 68, minimum score per test section: 22 
  • C1 Advanced (CAE): minimum score B 
  • C2 Proficiency (CPE): minimum score C

  The proof of English proficiency can be submitted after the application deadline, but must have been received by the faculty before the start of the programme. Without an English proficiency test score which meets the specifications mentioned above, or a waiver, you cannot start the programme.

• Application with an international degree

  Application

  Please note: you will need to upload all required documents in one PDF file, using this Application Form Template.

  You can apply from 1 October. The application deadlines are:

  15 December (with complete dossier) for international students applying for one of the VU scholarships

  1 April for degree holders from non-EU/EEA countries

  1 June for degree holders from EU/EAA countries

  Important: all international students applying for university accommodation and non-EU/EEA students who need a visa or resident permit are strongly advised to apply well before 1 April. To get a decision in time, your application dossier must be complete by 21 March.

  Please prepare the required documents and arrange the payment of the application fee, a non-refundable €100 application fee applies. You can find an explanation of each document on the application page. All documents should be provided in English. 

  Only complete dossiers will be considered. We may ask for additional information on your academic record if this is deemed necessary to come to a decision.

  You can upload your English test scores in the Application Form Template or, after conditional admission, send your test results by email to masters.law@vu.nl. The test results must have been received before the start of the programme.

  Decision schedule

  For students applying for a VU Scholarship only: Application dossier complete by 15 December	decision by 15 January
  Application dossier complete by 21 March	decision by 31 March
  Application dossier complete by 1 June	decision by 15 June

• Corona Virus: additional information admission

  This measure only applies to students who are pursuing a Bachelor's degree in an EEA country.

  If you will have nearly completed your Bachelor's degree on 31 August 2022, then you may be able to start the Master's degree programme on 1 September 2022 if you meet the conditions of the corona measure. You will be required to complete your Bachelor's degree during the 2022-2023 academic year.

  Completing your Bachelor abroad while starting a Master at Vrije Universiteit is very difficult, we do not recommend it. We advise you to complete the Bachelor first and apply again next year.

  Conditions you must meet by 31 August 2022 to be eligible for the measure:
  - you have been selected for the programme; and
  - the missing credits are corona related; and
  - you meet the language requirements by 31 August 2022; and

  for a law or other relevant academic degree : 

  - you have obtained at least 162 ec (or 90%) of the curriculum of your Bachelor's degree.

  for a HBO-Rechten degree plus VU SchakelzoneRecht:

  - you have obtained at least 55 ec of the ‘Schakeltraject’ including the thesis (schakelscriptie)

  Additionally the following stipulations apply:
  - the provisional admission is only valid for academic year 2022-2023;
  - you have obtained your visa/resident permit no later than 31 August 2022;
  - before you can start the Master thesis, you must demonstrate to the thesis coordinator that you have successfully completed your Bachelor thesis;
  - the Master's degree can only be obtained after you have formally completed your Bachelor's degree;
  - if you do not complete your Bachelor's degree by 31 Augustus 2023, you cannot continue with the Master's programme until you do; completed courses will remain valid for 4 years. 

  Submit a request :
  If you meet the conditions mentioned above, you can submit a request to be exceptionally admitted to the Master's programme. Send the request no later than 1 August 2022 via this form. We require a scan of your official transcript(s) as proof that you meet the conditions.

  If you qualify during August, you have until 31 August 2022 to prove this, until then we will keep your request under advisement.

  If you cannot meet the conditions by 31 August 2022, there is no point submitting a request.

  Please note: if you were exceptionally admitted for academic year 2021-2022 (i.e. without a completed Bachelor’s degree), then you cannot apply for this measure again for academic year 2022-2023.