Language support for students

Group courses

Basic Dutch on Campus (evening course)
Number of sessions: 2 modules of 16 classes
Duration: 8 weeks per module, 2x a week a lesson   
For whom: all international students
Do you want to learn enough Dutch alongside your studies to feel at home in student life? In this evening course, you will learn the basics, such as introducing yourself and having a chat with fellow students and teachers in the first module. In the second module you will also learn speaking, writing, reading and listening around other topics.

Dutch towards B2: Dutch for work and study (evening course)
Number of sessions: 6 modules of 16 classes
Duration: 8 weeks per module, 2x a week class
For whom: international students, PhD's, VU staff, expats
Would you like to learn Dutch in group classes at the VU, with 5 to 7 hours of self-study per week? In this evening course you will learn to speak, write, read and listen to level B2 (CEFR) in 6 modules of 8 weeks. You choose how many modules you want to take.           

Dutch towards A2: Dutch for work and study - Sprint (evening course)
Number of sessions: 16 x 2,5 hours
Duration: 8 weeks per module, 2x a week class
For whom: international students, PhD's, VU staff, expats 
Is your mother tongue German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian or Afrikaans? Then you can do the accelerated programme of the evening course "Dutch for Work and Study". You will  learn Dutch within 8 weeks, starting from beginner's level to CEFR level A2, or from A2 to B1.  

Professional Dutch (evening course)
Number of sessions: 2 modules of 16 classes 
Duration: 16 weeks per module, 1x a week class
For whom: international students, PhD's, VU staff, expats 
A good command of the language boosts self-confidence, contributes to smooth collaboration and enables you to express yourself with precision in conversations and discussions. The evening courses ‘Professional Dutch 1 and 2’ are designed for advanced students: people who already have a fairly good command of the Dutch language, but want to take certain (academic) skills to a higher level.

Dutch to A2: Everyday Dutch (on Saturdays)
Number of sessions: 2 modules of 8 classess
Duration: 8 weeks per module, 1x a week class
For whom: international students, PhD's, VU staff, expats 
This is a practical language course for Dutch in everyday life. Within 4 months you will learn the basics of the Dutch language (CEFR level A2). Everyday Dutch is an e-learning course where you only have one lesson per week. You practice a lot at home and online.

Individual coaching

Coaching Understanding Dutch in participation councils (coaching trajectory)
Number of sessions: 5-12 coaching sessions of 1-1.5 hours
Duration:  this is a customized tutorial; after the intake we agree on a trajectory.
For whom:  international VU students and staff
Do you have an active role in employee participation? Would you like to improve your ability to understand your Dutch-speaking colleagues and comprehend Dutch-language documents? This coaching trajectory will help you do just that. You will receive personal feedback on the exercises in the self-study modules (customized). You can also register as a group. We recommend combining this tutorial with a group course Dutch for work and study, level 3 or 4. Level: B1 upwards.

Group courses

Academic Dutch Plus
Number of sessions: 1 diagnostic test, 3 classes and 4 online practice modules
Duration: 6 weeks, 1 meeting per 2 weeks 
For whom: Dutch and international VU students
Are you in a Dutch degree programme  at VU and do you want to improve your writing skills? The Academic Dutch Plus course can help you. In addition to an intake test and group meetings, you will be offered a customized online programme. 

E-learning Spelling
Number of sessions: own pace
Duration: this module is available for 3 months
Do you ever doubt the correct spelling when you write? Save time: take the online spelling course and learn to write well in Dutch. First, take the spelling test to determine how well versed you are in Dutch spelling and learn all the pitfalls. In the E-learning Spelling you will learn about the most important Dutch spelling topics in a pleasant and accessible way. Think about verb spelling (gebeurd/gebeurt), English verbs, upper and lower case, 'together or apart' and abbreviations.

The ALP Writing Centre also offers help specifically for  writing theses and papers (in Dutch and English).

Group courses

Pronunciation
Duration: 3 hours per week
Are you following a master's programme in English and does part of it require you to present in English? In this course, the instructor discusses the 10 most common English pronunciation problems and how they affect the intelligibility and appreciation of your accent.

Advanced Writing for Master Students
Duration: 3 hours per week
This [Level 400] course is designed for students who are already confident in their academic English writing skills but are looking for further improvement. We will look at how to make your own writing style more interesting.

TOEFL ITP Preparation Course
Number of sessions: 5 x 2,5 hours
Duration: 5 weeks
Are you going to take the TOEFL ITP for the first time? Do you want to prepare for the test as best you can? Or have you taken the test before and would now like to practice before taking it again? Then the TOEFL ITP training course is the ideal option for you. The course consists of five 2.5-hour lessons.

The ALP Writing Centre also offers help specifically for  writing theses and papers (in Dutch and English). 

The ALP Writing Centre organises activities to support bachelor’s and master’s students who are writing essays or a thesis, in English or Dutch.

Workshops
We organise short workshops (1 hour and 45 minutes) focused on specific topics relevant for writing texts in English and Dutch. They take place on campus, in groups of up to 15 participants.

About academic writing in English

Top 10 grammar and language issues
Duration: roughly 2 hours of self-study (online) 
For whom: students taking an English-language programme
Would you like to deliver an error-free text? In this workshop, the instructors discuss the mistakes often made by students in English texts. This won’t be an overview of English grammar, but instead explanations of the ten most common mistakes. Afterwards you can practice with the topics, so you won't make those mistakes in your own text.

How to sound like an academic
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes 
For whom: students taking an English-language programme
When writing in a second language such as English, finding the right tone and style is often difficult. In academic writing, a formal and objective writing style immediately makes a good first impression on your readers. In this workshop, you will learn how to write in an academic style and explore the choices you have.

How to create a clear and logical structure for your tekst
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes 
For whom: students taking an English-language programme
In this workshop, you will learn how to properly structure your text, focusing on sentence structure, word choice, and more.. We will work with techniques that ensure readers easily understand flow and structure so they can focus on the content. You will be given a checklist to improve your own writing.

About academic writing in Dutch

Lastige taalkwesties in het Nederlands
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes
For whom: students taking a Dutch-language programme
This workshop concisely tackles challenging issues in Dutch sentence structure and idioms. You'll learn how to correct problematic contractions, "tante betjes," (stylistic errors) and other confusing sentences.

Hoe schrijf ik in een academische stijl?
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes
For whom: students taking a Dutch-language programme
Are you unsure about the academic writing style required for your thesis? Is your supervisor telling you that your writing is too subjective or informal? This online workshop will help you get started, allowing you to work on your own text right away.

Hoe zorg ik voor een duidelijke structuur in mijn tekst?
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes
For whom: students taking a Dutch-language programme
How do you establish a coherent ‘story’ in your work or thesis? To ensure readability, it’s important for your readers to find the text coherent and to understand its overall message, especially when transitioning between sections. In other words, you want to create a clear connection throughout your text.

Zelfstandig verbeteren van je academische schrijfvaardigheid
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes
For whom: students taking a Dutch-language programme
Do you want to start improving and reviewing your Dutch academic texts, such as your thesis? In this workshop, you will learn how to do just that.

About the writing process (in Dutch and/or English)

Writing process: how to start and stop writing
Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes 
For whom: Dutch and international VU students
Are you working on your thesis and getting stuck? A writing block is a common problem for thesis writers, but you don't have to get stuck! This workshop will give you the tools to tackle your writing tasks in Dutch or English more effectively.

Thesis coaching
Duration: 20 minutes 
Duration: 1 meeting
For whom: Dutch and international VU students
Writing a thesis or dissertation is a challenging task. If you ‘get stuck’ or cannot see the way ahead, it can be useful to talk to an experienced writing coach. The focus in the coaching sessions is not on the content of the thesis, but on the writing tasks or specific language problems in Dutch or in English.