Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

VU University Amsterdam, also known as the VU, offers over 160 Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes at an academic level, many of which are taught in English. It is well-known worldwide as a research university and has about 23,000 students and 2,500 academic staff.

The name of the VU, Vrije Universiteit, means ‘free university’ and symbolises the institution’s history and heritage. It has always prided itself on maintaining the freedom to create its own higher education programmes, as well as to determine its teaching methods and research areas.

Located in the capital of the Netherlands, the VU’s students are able to take advantage of living in a vibrant city. Full of cafes, shops, parks, entertainment places, sports and learning facilities, and more, Amsterdam offers access to the perfect student life.

The VU is easily accessible by public transport, with a number of tram and metro stops connecting the school with the city centre and beyond. It only takes eight minutes to get to the campus by train from Schiphol Airport and Amsterdam Zuid Station is within walking distance, located 5 minutes away from the university.

13 faculties which can be divided into life sciences and non-life sciences, make up VU University Amsterdam. The life sciences faculties include Dentistry, Earth and Life Sciences, Human Movement Sciences, and Medicine and are closely connected with the VU University Medical Center. The non-life sciences include the faculties of Arts, Law, Economics and Business Administration, Philosophy, Psychology and Education, Sciences, Social Sciences, Theology, and the Centre for Educational Training, Assessment and Research.

The VU also has 14 interdisciplinary research institutes which facilitate the exchange of knowledge between researchers across different fields.

Almost all of the VU’s programmes are taught on campus in a modern university complex that is located in the business district of Amsterdam (Amsterdam Zuid). This is a huge advantage for students as they can easily get access to all of the university’s facilities while familiarising themselves with the disciplines related to their study. As a result, the education provided at the VU is very interdisciplinary which allows students to deepen and broaden their academic development and reveal their full potential.

As a research university, the VU emphasises the link between education and a high standard of research. Students participate in study programmes with a well-defined structure where the teaching is organised and interaction between students takes place in small groups. They are also encouraged to personalise their study and have access to teaching staff and study advisors throughout their programme to help guide them in their own unique direction.

The VU identifies social involvement as a key aspect of its education. It asks its students to look beyond themselves and their study in order to focus on researching and resolving issues that are important to society as a whole. Much of the work done at the VU is therefore rooted in interdisciplinary research.

VU University Amsterdam’s results in some of the most reputed international higher education rankings confirm the institution’s high quality of education and research. The university received its highest scores in the Social Sciences, Clinical Medicine, Pharmacy, Life Sciences, Economics, and Business programmes.

• In 2015, the VU was ranked 64th worldwide and 3rd nationally in the Leiden Ranking, maintaining its previous year’s results.
• The 2015 ARWU (Shanghai Ranking) placed VU University Amsterdam in 4th position in the Netherlands and ranked it 98th worldwide (˄2 places since 2014).
• The university has also ranked in top 200 in the THE (154th) and QS (176th) Rankings.