Studying in the Netherlands — English-Taught Master's Programmes

Studying in the Netherlands, in short

More English-taught master's programmes than any other non-English-speaking country in Europe. Across 28 student cities and 69 universities, we hold receipted admission facts on 1,617 English-taught master’s in the Netherlands we’ve verified so far. Cheapest international fee on record is €1,000/yr — the floor across Netherlands programmes in our current corridor. EU/EEA students often pay less; see individual programme pages for their residency tier. The rest of this page breaks that coverage down: which fields cluster where, what a month of rent and living really costs, and which universities carry the highest QS or THE global rank on record.

1,617 programmes on record across 69 universities

What the Netherlands is strong in

English-taught master’s per field vs the average European country. A ratio above 1.0 means Netherlands runs more programmes in the field than the average European country holds.

Education

84 here · EU average 5.5

15.3×

Social Sciences

234 here · EU average 18.7

12.5×

Arts & Humanities

282 here · EU average 36.5

7.7×

Health & Medicine

115 here · EU average 23.6

4.9×

Business & Law

345 here · EU average 76.1

4.5×

Natural Sciences

162 here · EU average 36.4

4.5×

Strongest against the field: education at 15.3× the European average per country.

Where the programmes cluster

Top 6 fieldsof study, by number of English-taught master’s programmes in the Netherlands.

Business & Law

345 programmes

Arts & Humanities

282 programmes

Social Sciences

234 programmes

Natural Sciences

162 programmes

Health & Medicine

115 programmes

Engineering

90 programmes

What a month in the Netherlands costs

Median across 17 student cities we hold receipted rent + living data for.

Median student city (Breda): €872 rent + €1,000 living = €1,872 / month.

How this country compares

1,617English-taught master’s · 22.9% of SparkPath’s European corridor (7,053 programmes total).

€25,633 median+1664%vs European master's median (€1,453)

What it actually takes to study here

The four things every international applicant to the Netherlands needs to understand before applying.

Student visa

Non-EU students need a residence permit (VVR), arranged by the university on your behalf. EU students only need to register with the local municipality.

Post-study work

Orientation Year (zoekjaar) visa — 12 months to find skilled work after graduation. No employer sponsorship needed during this period.

Tuition

Statutory fee around €2,500/yr for EU students; institutional fees for non-EU students typically range €14,000–26,000/yr depending on the field.

Scholarships

Holland Scholarship (€5,000) for non-EU/EEA master's students, Erasmus+ for intra-EU mobility, plus university-specific merit funds — see the programme's Scholarships section for what applies here.