Applicants are invited to apply for the Maastricht University Holland-High Potential Scholarship. The Maastricht University (UM) Scholarship program offers 24 full scholarships of €30.000 (including tuition fee waiver and a monthly stipend) each academic year for highly talented students from outside the European Union (EU) who have been admitted to a Master’s program at UM.

This Scholarship to study in Europe consists of both the High Potential Scholarship (funded by the Maastricht University Scholarship Fund), and the Holland Scholarship, which is financed by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science in conjunction with Dutch universities and universities of applied sciences. It is aimed at international students from outside the EU/EEA who wish to follow a full degree program in the Netherlands.

Founded in 1976, Maastricht University (UM) is the most international university in the Netherlands and uses Dutch and English as languages of instruction. However, most of the master’s and doctoral programs are in English. The university has more than 18,000 students and 4,400 employees and offers high-quality research and study programs. UM has quickly built up a solid reputation that makes it one of the best young universities in the world.

Programme Details

• Host Institution: Maastricht University, Netherlands.
• Field of Study: Participating Master’s programs (Full list below).
• Number of awards: 24.
• Duration: 13 months for a one-year Master’s program, 25 months for a two-year Master’s programme.
• Target group: Open to citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA.

Maastricht University Holland-High Potential Scholarship Benefits

This Europe scholarship program provides selected candidates with the following benefits:

• Living expenses €12,350 (13 months) or €23,750 (25 months)
• Health & liability insurance €700
• Visa application costs €210
• Tuition fees
• Pre-Academic Training costs.

The above amounts are subject to change for the academic year 2024-2025.

Holland-High Potential scholarship’s Eligible Programs

Below is the list of Master’s programs that are eligible for the UM-Holland High Potential Scholarship 2024-2025:

Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences

1. MA Arts and Culture: Arts and Heritage: Policy, Management and Education
2. MA Arts and Culture: Contemporary Literature and Arts: Cultural Interventions and Social Justice
3. MA Arts and Culture: Modern Political Culture: Ideas and Discourses in Context
4. MA European Studies on Society, Science and Technology
5. MA European Studies: European Public Policy, Institutions and Governance
6. MA European Studies: International Relations
7. MA European Studies: Global Policy and Governance Challenges
8. Research Master Cultures of Arts, Science and Technology
9. Research Master European Studies

Faculty of Law

1. LLM European Law School: spec. European Law & Market Integration
2. LLM European Law School: spec. European Public Law & Governance
3. LLM European Law School: spec. General programme
4. LLM Forensics, Criminology and Law
5. LLM Globalisation and Law: spec. Corporate and Commercial Law
6. LLM Globalisation and Law: spec. General programme
7. LLM Globalisation and Law: spec. Human Rights
8. LLM Globalisation and Law: spec. International Trade and Investment Law
9. LLM International and European Tax Law: spec. International and European Tax Law
10. LLM International and European Tax Law: spec. Customs and International Supply Chain Taxation
11. LLM International and European Tax Law: spec. Tax and Technology
12. LLM Advanced Master in Intellectual Property Law and Knowledge Management
13. MSc Advanced Master in Intellectual Property Law and Knowledge Management

Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences

1. MSc Biomedical Sciences
2. MSc Epidemiology
3. MSc Global Health
4. MSc Governance and Leadership in European Public Health
5. MSc Health Education and Promotion
6. MSc Healthcare Policy, Innovation and Management
7. MSc Human Movement Sciences: spec. Health and Rehabilitation
8. MSc Human Movement Sciences: spec. Sports and Nutrition
9. MSc Work, Health and Career
10. Health Food Innovation Management

Faculty of Science and Engineering

• MSc Systems Biology
• MSc Imaging and engineering

Faculty of Psychology & Neuroscience

1. MSc Forensic Psychology
2. MSc Psychology: spec. Cognitive Neuroscience
3. Research Master Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience: spec. Cognitive Neuroscience

School of Business and Economics

1. MSc Learning and Development in Organizations
2. MSc Economics and Strategy in Emerging Markets
3. MSc Digital Business and Economics
4. MSc Public Policy and Human Development, etc. Please click here to see all programs.

Maastricht University Holland-High Potential Scholarship Eligibility

To apply for this scholarship, applicants must satisfy the following eligibility criteria:

• hold nationality in a country outside the EU/EEA, Switzerland or Surinam and meet the requirements for obtaining an entry visa and residence permit for the Netherlands.
• do not hold a double nationality from an EU/EEA country.
• You have applied for admission to a participating full-time master programme at Maastricht University (participating programmes) for the 2024-2025 academic year.
• meet the specific admission requirements of the UM Master’s program to which you have applied.
• have never participated in a degree-seeking higher education program in the Netherlands. Students who have completed exchange programs in the Netherlands are welcome to apply.
• are not older than 35 years of age on 1 September 2024.
• have obtained excellent results during your prior education programs, as demonstrated by your latest grade transcript or certified by academic excellence. If several applicants are equally qualified, UM will give preference to applicants whose academic transcript or certified letter of academic excellence demonstrates that they are among the top 5% of the 2024-2025 scholarship program applicants.

Similar opportunities

1. ENS International Selection Scholarship for All;
2. Université de Montréal International Student Scholarship;
3. Bourses d’Études KAUST pour Étudiants de Master et Doctorat.

How to Apply for the Maastricht University Holland-High Potential Scholarship

Eligible applicants who would like to be considered for this university scholarship to study in the Netherlands are required to follow steps below:

Step 1 :

Register for one of the participating Master’s programmes at Maastricht University. For further details on how to register for a Master’s program at UM, please see your prospective program’s webpage.

Once you have submitted your application via Studielink, you will receive a student ID number for Maastricht University. You will need a student number in order to complete and submit the Scholarship Application Form (see Step 2 below). However, you must be conditionally approved for admission to your master programme in order to be awarded a scholarship

Step 2 :

Please click on the apply button below to have access to the scholarship application form. You need to log in to the online platform with your UM account. Upload required documents, and submit your application.

If you have applied for multiple UM study programs, the UM International Services Desk will ensure that your complete scholarship application is considered for all eligible programs for which you have a conditionally approved or approved admissions status.

if your study programme requires the payment of a handling fee as part of your program’s admissions procedure, the UM International Services Desk does not cover handling fees. You are responsible for paying any handling fee your programme may require by 1 February 2024. To check whether your programme requires the payment of a handling fee, please check your program’s webpage under the menu tab ‘Admission requirements’

Required Documents

1. Curriculum Vitae: Your CV should be up-to-date, contain relevant information about your education and (job) experience, and should not be longer than two A4 pages.
2. Letter of motivation: Please use the template for the motivation letter. This template will focus on your motivation for the scholarship.
3. Proof of academic excellence: You may upload one of the following documents in order to prove your academic excellence:
   • Your university transcript that explicitly states your grade point average or class ranking (i.e. first-class honors) for your entire study program; or,
   • A letter signed by your institution’s Head of Department or Registrar stating that you are one of the top 20 students in the graduating year of your study program. Please ensure that the letter contains the contact details of your Head of Department or Registrar.
4. Personal statement of financial needs: Please explain why you would benefit from being awarded a scholarship and describe your personal circumstances such as financial difficulty, sole parent/caretaking responsibilities, medical condition, disability, refugee status, etc.
5. A reference letter: There is a reference letter guideline. Please forward them to your referee, as they will help your referee to write a good reference letter on your behalf. Please note that referees must be (former) professors, lecturers, or employers, and not family members. Recommendation letters should be dated and written no earlier than February 2023
6. The contact details of one referee: Please note that the university might check the authenticity of your referee by contacting your referee. Therefore, ensure that you take the following steps when choosing a referee and submitting their details:
   • Relationship to applicant: indicate your referee’s connection to you. Is this your professor, thesis supervisor, or employer? Please remember that family members may not function as referees.
   • Work telephone number of your referee: be sure to include the applicable country calling code.
   • Work or institutional email address of your referee: Letters referencing only a personal email address will be rejected.

The deadline to apply is February 1, 2024. To know more about the Maastricht University Holland-High Potential Scholarship, please visit the university’s website. To be the first to see latest opportunities, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.