Trying to figure out scholarship options for studying in the Netherlands is one of those research spirals that starts with one search and ends two hours later with fifteen open tabs and no clearer picture of what you actually qualify for.
This guide cuts through that. How Dutch scholarships work, which ones exist, who qualifies, and how to apply, organised by type and by where you’re coming from.
Yes, real options exist. The Holland Scholarship gives non-EEA students a one-time 5,000 euros. The Orange Tulip Scholarship is country-specific and often pays out considerably more. University-specific scholarships exist at most Dutch institutions and are sometimes the most valuable of the lot. Where you’re from and what level you’re studying both affect what you can access. Start looking at least 6 to 9 months before you want to be there. Scholarship deadlines almost always land before admission deadlines and that catches people out constantly.
📊 Scholarship overview at a glance
| Scholarship | Amount | Who qualifies | Level | Deadline relative to admission |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holland Scholarship | 5,000 euros (once) | Non-EEA students | Bachelor, Master | Usually earlier |
| Orange Tulip Scholarship | Varies, often higher | Students from partner countries | Bachelor, Master | Earlier, check per country |
| Erasmus+ | Monthly stipend (300-600) | EU and partner country students on exchange | Exchange semester | Through home university |
| University excellence scholarships | Varies widely | Depends on institution | Mainly Master | Often months before admission |
| Netherlands Fellowship Programmes | Full or partial | Professionals from developing countries | Master, PhD | Check Nuffic |
Most people don’t realise this until it’s too late: the scholarship deadline comes before the admission deadline. Often months before. That’s what costs people funding they would have qualified for.
🔍 How do Dutch scholarships actually work?
Dutch scholarships don’t come from one place. The government runs some, universities run their own separately, private foundations have theirs, and then on top of that the Netherlands has bilateral agreements with specific countries that open up country-specific funding. What’s available to a student from Indonesia won’t be the same as what’s available from Brazil. What exists at master’s level doesn’t necessarily exist at bachelor’s. It’s fragmented, which is what makes it confusing, but it also means there’s often more available than a single search turns up.
💡Nuffic is the Dutch government body for education internationalisation and their website is the most reliable map of what actually exists. Start there.
📜 The main scholarships in detail
🇳🇱 Holland Scholarship
The most widely known option. It’s 5,000 euros paid once at the start of your studies, aimed at students from outside the European Economic Area studying at bachelor’s or master’s level. You don’t apply through a government portal. It goes through your specific university’s scholarship page, which also means the university has to be part of the programme to begin with. Not all Dutch institutions are. The 5,000 won’t cover full tuition for most programmes but it’s a meaningful amount. Just confirm your university actually participates before you start counting on it.
🌷 Orange Tulip Scholarship
This one works through partnerships between the Netherlands and specific countries. If your country is on the list it’s often worth more than the Holland Scholarship. How much it covers depends on your country and field: some get partial tuition, others get full packages. Where you apply also varies. For some countries it’s through the Dutch embassy or consulate back home, for others directly through the university. The partner list gets updated, so nuffic.nl is the only version worth trusting. If your country qualifies, this should be your first priority.
🇪🇺 Erasmus+
Erasmus+ is different from everything else here. It’s not for students enrolling in a full Dutch degree programme. It’s for EU and partner country students doing a semester or year abroad as part of their studies back home. The monthly stipend is typically 300 to 600 euros depending on your home and host country, and you apply through your home university’s international office, not through any Dutch institution. If you’re doing an exchange rather than a full degree, this is the main financial support option. If you’re enrolling in a full Dutch programme, it doesn’t apply to you.
🏫 University-specific scholarships
These often get less attention than the Holland Scholarship, which is a mistake. Most Dutch universities run their own funding programmes, separate from anything the government offers, and the amounts are often considerably higher. TU Delft and Utrecht both have Excellence Scholarships that cover tuition and living costs for master’s students, which goes well beyond the one-time 5,000 you’d get from the Holland Scholarship. UvA has tuition reductions. Leiden has its own programme. None of these show up in a single central search, which is partly why people miss them.
| University | Example scholarship | Covers |
|---|---|---|
| TU Delft | Excellence Scholarship | Tuition and living costs (master’s) |
| University of Amsterdam | UvA Scholarship | Tuition fee reduction |
| Utrecht University | Utrecht Excellence Scholarship | Tuition plus living allowance |
| Leiden University | Leiden Excellence Scholarship | Tuition reduction |
| Eindhoven University of Technology | Various per programme | Depends on programme |
Every Dutch university has a scholarship page. Go directly to your target institution’s financial support or scholarship section rather than trying to find a central list somewhere. That’s the only place where the current, accurate information for your situation actually lives.
🌍 Scholarships by region and country
Where you’re from matters quite a bit here, because some of the more valuable funding comes from bilateral agreements between the Netherlands and specific countries rather than from any general programme.
If you’re coming from somewhere in Asia, the Orange Tulip Scholarship is the first thing to check. It has solid coverage across China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and several other countries. The current list is on nuffic.nl and it does change, so verify directly rather than relying on anything you found more than a few months ago.
Students from Africa have a few different avenues worth exploring. Some Dutch universities have direct institutional partnerships with African institutions that come with funding attached, separate from anything government-run. The Orange Tulip Scholarship covers select African countries too. And for people in certain professional fields, the Netherlands Fellowship Programmes through Nuffic are worth a look, particularly for master’s and PhD candidates.
Latin America has decent Orange Tulip coverage, with Brazil being the most notable country on the list, but others qualify too. Beyond that, several Dutch universities have built direct partnerships with Latin American institutions over the years and those occasionally come with financial support that you wouldn’t find through the standard search routes.
If you’re coming from the US or Canada, the Holland Scholarship is the primary route. University-specific scholarships still apply. Erasmus+ doesn’t, since that’s for EU and partner country students on exchange programmes rather than full degree enrolment.
EU and EEA students often assume nothing is available to them because the Holland Scholarship excludes EEA nationals, but that’s only part of the picture. Many Dutch government-funded scholarships do exclude EEA students, largely because EU students pay the lower statutory tuition rate rather than the full institutional fee. But university-level scholarships don’t follow the same rule, and Erasmus+ covers EU students doing a semester exchange. Check your specific institution before assuming the exclusion is blanket.
🛠️ How to actually go about this
Start with the university and programme, not the scholarship. Once you know where you’re applying:
1. Find your scholarships. Check your target institution’s scholarship page for what they offer by nationality and level. Then check nuffic.nl alongside it for any country-level funding. The two cover different things and don’t overlap.
2. Get your deadlines down immediately. Scholarship windows close before admission deadlines, often by months. Write both dates down from the start. A lot of people only check after submitting the degree application and find the scholarship window already closed.
3. Apply separately for each one. Each scholarship goes through its own channel. There’s no single form that covers everything. Have your documents ready in advance: transcripts, CV, language certificates, and recommendation letters for anything that asks for them.
4. Write a motivation letter that actually says something. Committees go through a lot of these. A generic one is obvious immediately. Be specific about this programme, this university, and why it matters for where you’re going. Something that could have been sent anywhere reads like it was sent everywhere.
If the decision date passes with no reply, follow up. It’s a normal thing to do.
⚠️ Where people lose scholarships they could have had
Most people who miss out on funding didn’t fail to qualify. Here’s where it usually goes wrong:
- Missing the deadline. The scholarship window is not the same as the admission deadline. It closes earlier, sometimes in January or February for a September start. By the time most people check, it’s already gone.
- Stopping at the Holland Scholarship. It’s the first one that comes up in any search, but the Orange Tulip often pays out more and university scholarships at TU Delft or Utrecht can be worth considerably more than a one-off 5,000 euros.
- EU students assuming nothing applies. The Holland Scholarship excludes EEA nationals, and so do several other government programmes. But universities run their own scholarships with their own rules. Check your university’s scholarship page before writing yourself off.
- Not checking if your university is in the programme. Not every Dutch university participates in the Holland Scholarship. Some simply aren’t part of it. Confirm yours is before you factor it into your plans.
💬 Questions people actually ask (FAQ)
What is the Holland Scholarship and how do I apply?
It’s a one-off 5,000 euros for non-EEA students, paid once at the start of your studies. You apply through your university’s own scholarship page, not some central government portal. Before you get too attached to the idea, check that your university actually participates, because not all of them do.
Are there Dutch scholarships specifically for master’s students?
Yes, and the better ones are mostly at master’s level. The university excellence scholarships at TU Delft, Utrecht and UvA are almost exclusively for master’s students and they pay out more than the Holland Scholarship. If you’re doing a master’s, those are worth looking at first.
How do I get a scholarship in the Netherlands?
Start at your target university’s scholarship page, then check nuffic.nl for any country-specific programmes. They cover different types of funding so you need both. The thing most people get wrong: the scholarship deadline closes before the admission deadline, sometimes by months. Get that date before anything else.
Does the Holland Scholarship cover living costs?
No. It’s 5,000 euros flat, nothing more. Some university excellence scholarships do bundle in living costs on top of tuition support, but that varies a lot by award. Read the actual terms of whatever you’re applying for rather than assuming they all work the same.
Can EU students get scholarships in the Netherlands?
It depends. The Holland Scholarship is for non-EEA students only, and a fair number of government-funded programmes follow the same rule. But university scholarships aren’t automatically off limits for EU students, each institution sets its own criteria. If you’re doing a semester exchange rather than a full degree, Erasmus+ is also still an option. Actually check your university’s scholarship page before writing yourself off.
What is the Orange Tulip Scholarship?
A country-specific scholarship funded through agreements between the Netherlands and certain partner countries. If your country is on the list it often pays out more than the Holland Scholarship, sometimes considerably more. The eligible country list gets updated, so go to nuffic.nl for the current version.
When should I start applying?
Much earlier than most people expect. Six to nine months before your start date is a realistic minimum. Some deadlines fall in January or February for a September intake. If you’re reading this while thinking about studying in the Netherlands next year, the time to start looking is now, not after you’ve sorted out the admission side.
🏁 What to do next
nuffic.nl gives you a picture of what exists at the government and country level. Your target university’s scholarship page covers what they offer on top of that. Open both, note every deadline you find, and work backwards from there. Most people who miss out on funding they qualify for did so because they only tracked the admission deadline, not the scholarship one.
Housing in the Netherlands has its own timeline running alongside all of this. If you’re arriving as an international student, the rental market moves fast and listings worth having don’t sit around. Renthunter monitors over a thousand rental sources across the Netherlands and sends an alert the moment something new appears, so the housing search can run in the background while you focus on applications and paperwork.
