Amsterdam Merit Scholarships

Amsterdam Merit Scholarships (AMS)

The Univeristy of Amsterdam aims to attract the world's brightest students to its international classrooms. As from September 2007, outstanding students from outside the European Economic Area can apply for an Amsterdam Merit Scholarship.

The Amsterdam Merit Scholarships (AMS) have specifically been designed by the Universiteit van Amsterdam to offer talented and hard-working non-EU/EEA students the opportunity to pursue a degree in one of the academic fields covered by the UvA. The AMS programme is highly selective: only applicants with excellent study results and motivation may receive a scholarship.

Eligibility

Applicants to one of the English-taught, selective Master's programmes of the Graduate School of Social Sciences (GSSS) must meet the eligibility criteria in order to be considered for the AMS scholarship. The applicant should:

hold non-EEA nationality or nationalities only
not be entitled to receive a Dutch study grant or loan ("Studiefinanciering")
not be eligible to pay the reduced tuition fee rate for EEA students at the UvA
not receive a full coverage scholarship for the same period of study as the AMS scholarship
have submitted a complete application to one of the English-taught, selective Master’s programmes of the GSSS
have been (or will be) admitted to one of the English-taught, selective Master’s programmes of the GSSS
be enrolled at the time of receipt of the scholarship as a full time student in one of the English-taught, selective Master's programmes offered by the GSSS
be able to comply with the conditions to obtain a Dutch visa (if applicable)
demonstrate a financial need

Failure to meet one or more of these criteria automatically means that the student is not eligible for an AMS scholarship.

Selection criteria

We have a limited number of scholarships. The best eligible candidates are selected for a scholarship on the basis of the following criteria:

Their academic excellence and promise in the proposed field, as evidenced by their academic records, letters of recommendation, written work and/or publications and their proposed research questions;
The quality of their letter of motivation.

Equally qualified candidates will be ranked by country of origin* , and extracurricular activities.

* Candidates from countries on the DAC list of ODA recipients , from non-EU signatories of the Bologna treaty and from Market and Innovation countries (Russia, Brazil, Mexico, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam) will have preference.

How to apply?

Applicants wishing to apply for an AMS scholarship should include their application for the scholarship in their application file for the Master's programme of their choice. Your application for the scholarship should contain the following documents:

Motivation letter for the scholarship
A comprehensive financial plan that shows expected income from all sources and all costs, to provide insight in the additional funds needed from a scholarship in order to finance participation in the Master's programme.
A research proposal, detailing your areas of interest and what you wish to research during your time at the GSSS.

When to apply?

Applications for an AMS scholarship should be submitted before 1 April when enrolling in September. For students wishing to start their studies in February, the deadline is 1 August.

Selection

Only students who have been admitted to one of the English-taught, selective Master's programmes of the GSSS can be awarded a scholarship. Students are selected on the basis of academic merit. Selection will take place in May and again in October. Applicants will be informed before the end of May or October.

The scholarship

The scholarship consists of € 6,000, € 9,000 or € 12,000, but awards are based on the comprehensive financial plan, which should demonstrate the extent of the need for additional funding. Please note that the scholarship cannot be used as a (partial) tuition waiver. The applicant must still pay the full amount of tuition due. Scholarship holders will receive their grant in monthly instalments.

Conditions

Amsterdam Merit Scholarships are only awarded to applicants who have been admitted to one of the English-taught, selective Master's programmes of the GSSS upon enrolment. A scholarship granted for one academic year cannot be transferred to another academic year. Students who are granted an Amsterdam Merit Scholarship are required to assent to the conditions applying to the scholarship in writing before the scholarship will be remitted.

Questions

If you have any questions please email Ms. Sarah Kobus at S.M.Kobus@uva.nl

HSP Huygens 2009

The prestigious HSP Huygens Programme is open to excellent students (top 5 - 10 %) from all countries of the world. 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 for Education, Culture and Science has made four million euros available for excellent students coming to the Netherlands under the HSP Huygens Programme. There is no fixed number of available scholarships, but the actual number is determined by the total cost of the variable components of the scholarships.
For more information, please visit the NUFFIC website

For nomination letters, please email Ms. Sarah Kobus at S.M.Kobus@uva.nl .

To obtain a nomination letter, you should first send in your official application to one of our programmes. You can find information on admission and application here. Please send in your complete application at least two months before the deadline of the Huygens scholarship, so no later than December.

Scholarships for Student Representatives - Bestuursbeurzen

GSSS students that are members of a programme committee (opleidingscommissie) or another official student representative body (not including SAP, which has its own arrangements), such as the Facultaire Studentenraad can apply for a bestuursbeurs (scholarship for student representatives).

The amount of the scholarship for a one-year period as a student representative is equal to two months of student funding by the IBG (mostly Dutch students) or about EUR 500 for students with no right to Dutch student funding. It will be less if the period was shorter than a year. The scholarship will be paid in one instalment after the end of the period of student representation.

Students need to apply for this scholarship with Student Services directly. If you need help filling out the form, please consulte the registrar. The conditions for receiving the bestuursbeurs are as follows:

The conditions for receiving the bestuursbeurs are as follows:

Applicants need to be registered as full-time students
Applicants need to be a member of an official body of student representation and need to have proof of that (a letter by the relevant body stating the membership)
Applicants need to apply for the scholarship within three months after the end of their period of representation work through the official form (which is in Dutch, please ask a programme manager or the Registrar to assist you if needed)
Applicants need an overview from the IBG stating the amount of their student funding or, if they do not receive student funding from IBG, need to specify this in an accompanying letter
Applicants need to enclose an official overview of their study results (available from the Registrar)

Application Forms

Application forms are available on the UvA website (click 'Aanvraagformulier bestuursbeurs universitaire bestuursorganen') and at Student Services at Binnengasthuisstraat 9. Please submit this form with all necessary enclosures to Student Services/Student Counsellors.

Fieldwork grants

GSSS Fieldwork Grant

GSSS students who, as part of their curriculum, conduct an obligatory field research and are currently enrolled in one of the following (research) master’s:

Social Sciences (Research Master)
International Development Studies
Children’s Rights, orientation International Development Studies and Anthropology
Medical Anthropology and Sociology

can receive a fieldwork subsidy of € 600 if the following GSSS requirements are met:

the fieldwork consists of in-depth anthropologically oriented qualitative research
the fieldwork proposal is approved by the academic advisor and the first thesis supervisor (IDS, CR and MAS) or by the programme director and individual tutor (RMSS)
the fieldwork is conducted outside the Netherlands
the fieldwork proposal contains a clear and realistic indication of the costs and budgeting
the research costs exceeds €600,-.
the thesis proposal form, thesis agreement and thesis proposal have been submitted to the GSSS registrar's office before the start of the actual fieldwork.

Students who conduct their fieldwork in the Netherlands receive a maximum of €400, corresponding with, and depending on their budget.

STUNT Scholarship

All GSSS students who conduct their fieldwork in the first or second semester of the academic year 2009-2010 and who are currently enrolled in one of the following (research) masters:

Social Sciences (Research Master)
International Development Studies
Children's Rights, orientation International Development Studies and Anthropology
Medical Anthropology and Sociology

can apply for a STUNT scholarship - in addition to the GSSS fieldwork grant of € 600. The maximum amount of STUNT scholarship awarded is € 500. The conditions for receiving the STUNT scholarship are as follows:

The STUNT application form, together with the thesis proposal form, thesis agreement and thesis proposal, must be submitted to the registrar's office before leaving on fieldwork
The thesis proposal form and thesis agreement have been signed by the academic advisor and the first thesis supervisor (or programme director and individual tutor) to indicate their approval of the proposal and the enclosed budget
Only fully filled-in forms will be processed
The primary data-gathering must take place outside the Netherlands
Total fieldwork costs exceed € 600
Total fieldwork costs are clearly indicated in the budget as part of the research proposal
Students can only receive the STUNT scholarship once during their studies at the UvA
Applicants must be enrolled at the University of Amsterdam during their stay abroad
Student has been drawn in the lottery (if too many candidates).

STUNT applications will only be processed by the Registrar's Office if all the conditions stated above have been met.

The GSSS only nominates candidates for this scholarship to the central UvA International Office, which is in charge of the scholarship. The Registrar's Office will forward your application to the International Office of the UvA, which will process your request and send you more information if your application is accepted.

Application forms for the STUNT Scholarship (English and Dutch) are available at the Registrar's Office and can also be downloaded here:

Application Form STUNT Scholarship 2009/2010 - Dutch
Application Form STUNT Scholarship 2009/2010 - English

Visiting and courier mail address	Postal address
Graduate School of Social Sciences ISHSS Registrar's Office Prins Hendrikkade 189-B 1011 TD Amsterdam The Netherlands	Graduate School of Social Sciences ISHSSRegistrar's Office P.O. Box 26 1000 AA Amsterdam The Netherlands
Open during office hours First floor, room 1.05	Telephone: +31 20 525 3526 Email: registrar-ishss@uva.nl For appointments, please contact the Registrar by email.

Alumni fund

You might be eligible for a grant from the Alumni association's Amsterdam University Fund. Their website is currently only available in Dutch, you can find it here . Contact your programme manager for more information.

Other Scholarships

The GSSS does not offer or administer other scholarships than the ones mentioned here above. There are however many funds and foundations that may be available to our students from particular countries. Students are advised to consult:

The main scholarship pages of the University of Amsterdam:http://www.uva.nl/scholarships
The study abroad office of their home or previous university
The Dutch Embassy in their country of residence
The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC) - including the useful link Grantfinder .
The GSSS/ISHSS scholarship Wiki.