Requirements and application
The Erasmus Scholarship (Erasmus+) programme is an EU programme aimed at promoting international student mobility through funding for education, youth and sports. As a student, you can receive one Erasmus Scholarship for each phase of your studies.
Conditions
- You must be enrolled as a full-time, tuition fee-paying student at VU Amsterdam in the academic year in which you go on exchange.
- You must have completed the first year of your studies and have obtained 90 ECTS credits before commencing your academic stay abroad.
- There must be an exchange agreement between VU Amsterdam and the foreign university. The latter is known as the ‘partner university’. You can find an overview of all VU Amsterdam's European partner universities on the VU Study Abroad Map.
- You must be selected to go on an exchange by the VU International Office.
- You will take care of the correct completion of all the needed forms in time, including all required signatures.
| Minimum stay | Three months |
| Maximum stay | Twelve months per cycle (Bachelor, Master or Phd)* |
| Destination | Partner university within the European Union and/or EEA (plus Serbia and Turkey, excluding Switzerland** and UK) |
| Selection and forms | VU International Office will inform the students that are eligible for this scholarship and send them the application forms |
| Application deadline | If you go on an Erasmus+ exchange in the first semester, you need to apply for the scholarship on vu.nl and upload the signed learning agreement and grant agreement before November 1st and the file must be complete before May 1st. If you go during the 2nd semester, you need to upload the agreements preferably before March 1st. |
| Scholarship amount | The allowance depends on the country and ranges from €9 to €13 per day |
| Finances and administration | erasmus@vu.nl |
*If you have received an Erasmus grant before, then these months will also be counted.
**Switzerland is not a partner in the Erasmus+ Programme, but it does have a similar programme for students coming to and departing from Switzerland.
Selection
Selected students will be informed by email and will receive application documents by email.
More information
Check the Manual Erasmus+ scholarship for instructions, the timeline, how to apply for an Erasmus+ scholarship at VU.nl and FAQs.
The grant will be paid in two instalments:
- 70% of your scholarship in September/October (if you handed in all of the documents before mid-August) for the 1st semester.
- You will receive the remaining 30% of the scholarship after your return, one month after you have handed in all documents.
Scholarship amount
The scholarship amount will depend on your destination country. Countries are divided into three categories based on cost of living.
Below you can see the different country groups and the amount you will receive:
| | Host country | Amount per month | Amount per day |
| Group 1 - Programme countries with higher living costs | Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, France, Italy, Ireland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Norway, Sweden | €390 | €13 |
| Group 2 - Programme countries with medium living costs | Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain | €330 | €11 |
| Group 3 - Programme countries with lower living costs | Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Turkey | €330 | €11 |
You will receive a scholarship from the starting day of your exchange (including introduction) until and including your last exams.
| Travel distances | Green travel amount | Non-green travel amount |
| Between 10 and 99 KM: | 56 EUR per participant | 28 EUR per participant |
| Between 100 and 499 KM: | 285 EUR per participant | 211 EUR per participant |
| Between 500 and 1999 KM: | 417 EUR per participant | 309 EUR per participant |
| Between 2000 and 2999 KM: | 535 EUR per participant | 395 EUR per participant |
The Erasmus+ travel distance calculator represents the distance between the place of origin (VU Amsterdam) and the venue (host university), whereas the amount covers the contribution to the travel costs both to and from the venue. For the Erasmus+ students that travelled ‘green’ to their host university there is the green travel amount. That means you travelled for example by train, bus or shared car (carpooling).
In order to be eligible for the Green Travel amount you have to fill out the ‘Statement Green Travel’.
Extra funding on top of the Erasmus+ Grant
Erasmus+ Fewer Opportunities Top-Up
In line with the national guidelines we are able to offer the Erasmus+ Fewer Opportunities Top-Up to Erasmus+ students. This top-up is for students who belong to one or more of the groups below and the amount is €250 per month, on top of the existing Erasmus+ scholarship:
- Students with Economic barriers with a DUO supplementary grant
In order to be eligible for this extra top-up you need to comply with the conditions of the Erasmus+ scholarship and have an official statement from DUO with the confirmation of being awarded the supplementary grant. On your Grant Agreement you can apply for the extra funding. In case you are unable to provide such a statement, please send an e-mail to erasmus@vu.nl.
- Students with Disabilities or Health problems
You can also apply for the Top-Up in case you have a disability or health problems. This amount is also €250 per month, on top of the existing Erasmus+ scholarship but can’t be combined with the ‘DUO’-top-up grant. In order to be eligible for this extra top-up you need to comply with the conditions of the Erasmus+ scholarship and have an official statement from a health care provider or organisation. In case you are unable to provide such a statement, please send an email to erasmus@vu.nl.
Erasmus+ Inclusion Support
Besides the Erasmus+ Fewer Opportunities Top-Up, students with a functional disability or health problems may also be eligible for the additional Erasmus+ Inclusion Support. This is meant for students who are expecting high additional costs of studying abroad that the Fewer Opportunities Top-Up won't fully cover. Some examples are wheelchair-accessible accommodation or high additional medical costs during the semester abroad.
To apply for this additional Erasmus+ grant, you will find some of the documents you need for your application below:
- a medical statement from a doctor
- a detailed budget for the required provisions, insofar as these expenses are not covered by another source
- correspondence showing that the host institution is aware of your intention to study there and is willing and able to meet your needs
Do you have a functional disability and wish to apply for this additional Erasmus+ grant? Please contact the Outgoing Exchange Team after selection so we can help guide you through the process. If you have any doubts about your eligibility for this scholarship, please reach out to us as well.
Students are allowed to combine the Erasmus+ Fewer Opportunities Top-up with the Erasmus+ Inclusion Support scholarship.
We would like to encourage all students with additional support needs to apply for a study abroad and hope this additional funding will help you. In case you are still in doubt regarding your application for a study abroad, pleasedo not hestiate to contact the Outgoing Exchange Team
At the end of May, Erasmus+ students will receive further instructions from the Erasmus+ office on how to apply for the Erasmus+ grant and the additional top-up.
Online Linguistic Support
To support you, Erasmus+ has implemented the Online Linguistic Support (OLS). As a mobility participant, you have the opportunity to assess and improve your skills in the foreign language you will use to study, as well as the local language(s). This means you can learn two languages in OLS. This will help you when you need to conduct your studies in one language, but you live in a community which speaks a different language. Take the chance to improve your skills! There is even an opportunity for live coaching via forum, tutoring sessions and MOOCs.
Find out more about the online linguistic support and course.