*Huygens Scholarship Programme 2011 – * Terminated

The prestigious Huygens Scholarship Programme is open to excellent students from all countries. It is aimed at talented students who want to come to the Netherlands in the final phase of their bachelor’s studies or during their master’s studies.

The Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science has allocated seven million euros for excellent students coming to the Netherlands under the Huygens Scholarship Programme. There is no fixed number of available scholarships. The actual number is determined by the total cost of the variable components of the scholarships.

PhD applications can only be accepted from excellent students with the Icelandic, Macedonian, Chinese, Croatian or Turkish nationality. Furthermore, the minister has allocated part of the total budget for excellent students following programmes in Dutch language and literature, or Neerlandistiek.

The Huygens Scholarship Programme is highly competitive. To illustrate this: for the 2011 scholarship round it is expected that out of approximately 1,700 applications only 150 candidates will be awarded a scholarship.

Eligibility requirements

If you want to take part in the Huygens Scholarship Programme, you must meet the following requirements:

• You are an excellent student: you have obtained excellent results in all your previous studies and you are at least in the top 5% of students in your study or research programme. Please show this in your application file by including, for example, grade lists or reference letters. In case of equivalent qualification preference will be given to applications which show that you are among the top 5%.
• The Dutch study programme should be registered in CROHO, the Central Register of Higher Education Programmes. You can find this information in the Dutch nomination letter provided by the Dutch host institution.
• You should be in the final phase of your bachelor’s studies, or studying towards a master’s degree in the Netherlands, and your study must be used to earn a degree at the Dutch institution.
• Scholarships are only awarded for studies lasting at least 6 months, but no longer than 24 months. In case of equivalent qualification preference will be given to applications for 12 to 24 months.
• Your studies or research in the Netherlands must constitute a deepening and broadening of your previous studies.
• If you are already a graduate, you must have graduated less than one year ago.
• It is possible to do research or practical training, but it must form part of your studies (a programme on the CROHO list), i.e. you must receive study credits for it. In case of equivalent qualification preference will be given to applications for study programmes.
• At the start of the academic year (1 September) in which you study in the Netherlands, you must be no older than 35 years of age. In case of equivalent qualification preference will be given to a younger candidate.
• You must have already attended a programme of education (e.g. high school or above) in a country outside the Netherlands.

Application procedure

When you apply for admission to a programme in the Netherlands, you should indicate that your study performance is excellent and that you wish to be nominated for the prestigious Huygens Scholarship Programme by the Dutch institution you would like to study at.

Closing date

The complete application, both the digital application form and application documents on paper, must be received by Nuffic before 1 February. Applications which have not been submitted both digitally and on paper or which are incomplete will not be accepted.

Make sure you send your complete application to Nuffic well before the abovementioned deadline. Please note that your application must be sent to Nuffic by post or by courier. Finally, bear in mind that Nuffic is closed on Saturday 29 January on and Sunday 30 January. On these days no post will be delivered.

Early application deadlines

Some Dutch institutions work with early (admission) application deadlines for students wishing to apply for scholarships and therefore need an early notification. Please check the website of the institutions concerned.

Huygens nomination letter

The nomination letter is a form which institutions use to inform Nuffic about your unique qualities and your proposed programme of study. The nomination letter from the Dutch institution is a required document for a Huygens Scholarship application. Please note that the Dutch institution is not obliged to provide you with a nomination letter.

If the Dutch institution does not agree with your candidacy for a Huygens Scholarship, they will not provide you with a Huygens nomination letter. This means that you cannot apply for a Huygens scholarship. In that case, please visit www.grantfinder.nl to explore other ways to fund your studies or research activities in the Netherlands.

For more information – HSP Huygens Programme