
Over the past 15 years, the number of international students attending Dutch higher education institutions has grown faster than the number of domestic students. Last year, Dutch universities welcomed 115 000 foreign students – more than three times as many as in 2005, according to figures by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Now, more than a quarter of first-year students in Dutch universities come from abroad: mainly from Germany, other parts of Europe, and third countries such as India and China. In some universities, such as the University of Amsterdam (UvA), international students make up a third of the student body.
The growing number of international students at Dutch universities has been the focus of debate in recent years, due to issues of high 'drop out' numbers, management and accommodation.
Higher proportion of drop-outs
International students in the Netherlands are almost three times as likely as Dutch students to drop out during their first year of university, according to a study by the Ministry for Education.
The study shows that 17% of first-year students from outside the Netherlands do not complete their first year, compared with 6% of Dutch students. However, those who do complete the first year have a roughly equal chance of finishing their degree: for third-country national (TCN) students, this figure stands at 61%, compared with 60% of native Dutch students.
Management of students from third countries
In total, 85 500 international students are currently studying at the Netherlands’ 14 universities, with 28% coming from outside Europe. The Dutch universities association has been campaigning since 2018 for new rules to allow them to better manage the flow of international students.
Accommodation and other university space
In 2022, universities in the Netherlands have been advising foreign students not to come unless they have organised accommodation in advance: there are concerns around oversubscribed accommodation, overflowing lecture theatres and a lack of space in academic labs.
Education minister Robbert Dijkgraaf said that he will propose measures to better manage international student numbers in early 2023. These will include language courses and limits on the number of available spaces on courses that are not taught in Dutch.
UvA is the first university to introduce such a cap, limiting the number of international students accepted to its 2023 psychology and political sciences degree programmes. It has also limited the number of students accepted onto the courses it delivers in English, and introduced a language assessment test for those hoping to study in English.
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