Honours Programme SBE

Faculty part of the Honours Programme at SBE

• Structure and planning

  2 SBE HP courses	12 EC
  2 VU HP interfaculty courses	12 EC
  1 HP elective or Research-Assistantship	6 EC

  The SBE Honours Programme consists of 30 EC. These credits are usually completed during the second and third year of your SBE bachelor. In the SBE Honours programme, students need to complete 12 EC in faculty (SBE Honours) courses and 12 EC in interfaculty Honours courses. You can choose how you wish to complete the remaining 6 EC as you have the option to complete another faculty course, an interfaculty course or a Research Assistantship.

  The course descriptions of the SBE faculty courses can be found in the study guide of the SBE Bachelors under the head ‘’Honours programme’’.

• Faculty Honours courses and projects

  • Behavioral Game Theory (E_HP2_BGT), period 2
  • The Economics of Globalization: A Transaction Costs Perspective (E_HP1_EGTC), period 4
  • Contemporary Challenges in Corporate Strategy (E_HP1_CPCS), period 4
  • Bubbles and Crashes (E_HP1_BC), period 5
  • Research Assistantship (E_HP2_RASS), year round in 3^rd year

  During the Research Assistantship, you perform a tutored research project. It is possible to combine the Research Assistantship with your bachelor thesis. The Research Assistantship is organized at faculty level and has to be approved by the SBE Honours Programme coordinator.

  Courses, descriptions and the time of the year can be found in the study guide of your bachelor. You will find the Honours courses under the ‘’Programme’’ tab. 

• Registering for Honours courses and projects

  If you have been accepted into the Honours Programme, you can register for SBE Honours courses on your personal dashboard. You can find the courses by filling in the course name or course code under the tab ‘’all courses’’ instead of the tab ‘’proposed courses’’.

  The Research Assistantship has a custom registration process that is explained in the study guide of the course.

  If you have questions regarding the SBE Honours programme, you can contact honoursprogramma.sbe@vu.nl directly.

  For interdisciplinary HP courses, we refer to the central VU honours programme webpage for details on enrollment. There you can also find information on how to participate in the second-half of your first year.

• Diploma and grading

  All successfully completed Honours courses appear as extracurricular courses on your bachelor diploma. You receive an honours mentioning on your diploma if you complete the Honours Programme as well as your bachelor programme within three years, with a grade average of at least 7.5 for your regular bachelor courses.

• Information events

  SBE bachelor students will be informed of any organized events regarding the Honours Programme via email or Canvas.

• FAQ

  • Q: What happens to the Honours courses I passed if I decide to stop or if I fail to meet the GPA requirement?

  A: Passing courses is no waste of effort. All Honours courses will appear as extracurricular courses supplementing your diploma, also in case you complete five Honours courses with a GPA below 7.5. Please inform the Honours coordinators if you wish to no longer participate in the Honours Programme.

  • Q: Does the GPA of at least 7.5 apply to my bachelor or my bachelor plus Honours courses?

  A: The GPA of 7.5 applies only to your bachelor grades.

  • Q: I fear that the extra exams of Honours courses during exam weeks will lower my grades.

  A: Honours Courses usually do not involve exams, but assignments, essays, presentations etc. Most deadlines are outside the regular exam periods as well. You can contact the SBE study advisors to discuss your study schedule.

  • Q: I fear that the Honours Programme will lower my grades to obtain Cum Laude.

  A: There is hardly evidence for this fear. Many Honours students obtain Cum Laude and Honours. You can contact the SBE study advisors to discuss your study schedule.

  • Q: Can I combine Honours and act as a board member of study associations?

  A: You can ask the SBE exam committee for an exception from the three-year rule if you decide to act as a board member of Aureus and Kraket.

  • Q: When and how can I arrange the Research Assistantship?

  A: The Research Assistantship (RA) is an optional 3^rd year course that is not linked to a specific semester. The Research assistantship does not take a whole academic year, but instead can be completed throughout the year. An 6 EC RA can be translated into a fulltime month, or two part-time months, or combined as an extension of your thesis. More information about the RA-ship can be found with the rest of the Honours Programme courses in the study guide.

  For more FAQ regarding the interfaculty courses, please see the general VU Honours FAQ webpage.

• Application SBE Honours Programme

  You can apply for the SBE Honours Programme via the VU Honours website (deadline 1 May).

  Your application has to include the following material:

  • a letter of motivation directed to the coordinator of the SBE Honours Programme Dr. Harold Houba
  • your resume
  • list of bachelor grades and the grade average of all courses passed so far

  Your letter of motivation should be written in English, should be no more than 1.5 pages (A4) and should contain the following information:

  • motivation for participation in the Honours Programme
  • what Honours courses of the VU Honours Programme arouse your interests
  • what you hope to achieve by participating in the Honours Programme
  • why you think you have it to complete the Honours Programme successfully. In this respect, take also into account any other plans you might have beside your studies, such as studying abroad for a while or participation in the board of a student society, etc.

  On basis of the material received, the selection board will conditionally admit the best students. The faculty aims at the top 5-10% of students. Final selection takes place when all grades for all first-year courses have been published, which is typically the end of August.