Requirements
Application
Applications should be submitted to the School of Economics and Management/ HES to secure a place on the International Business and Management Studies programme.
Admission requirements
Secondary school graduates are eligible for admission if they have obtained one of the following diplomas:
Dutch diplomas
| Nature & Technology | Nature & Health | Economics & Society | Culture & Society | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| havo | Economics or M&O or 2nd modern foreign language | Economics or M&O or 2nd modern foreign language | No further requirements | Economics or M&O |
| vwo | Economics or M&O or 2nd modern foreign language | Economics or M&O or 2nd modern foreign language | No further requirements | No further requirements |
| mbo | Level 4 | Level 4 | Level 4 | Level 4 |
Old style diplomas
| Nature & Technology | Nature & Health | Economics & Society | Culture & Society | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| havo | Economics 1 | Economics 1 | No further requirements | No further requirements |
| vwo | Economics 1 | Economics 1 | No further requirements | No further requirements |
| mbo | Level 4 | Level 4 | Level 4 | Level 4 |
Foreign diplomas
To be admitted to the School of Economics and Management/ HES, you need to have completed secondary education on a level equivalent to the Dutch havo, vwo or mbo level 4 diploma. This means that you should have completed secondary education at university entrance level with at least a pass in business studies or accounting and mathematics. For example:
- GCSEs with two or more A-levels (UK)
- International Baccalaureate Diploma (International schools, UK and US)
- Abitur or Fachhochschulreife (Germany and Austria)
- Baccalauréat (France)
- American or Canadian High School Diploma, college preparatory
- Associate Degrees in the field of economic and business
- Bachelor and Master Degrees in economic and non-economic fields
- Other equivalent diplomas from accredited secondary education institutions
- Students with a relevant business management diploma in vocational education (four-year college diploma programmes, equivalent to the Dutch MBO) are also eligible.
All international diplomas and degrees must be authenticated prior to any application and will be assessed by the Hogeschool van Amsterdam and/ or Nuffic. Students aged 21 years and older by the start of the programme in September, who have not completed a diploma or degree programme as described, can apply for our 21+ entrance level test. You might be invited to take admission tests and present yourself to the admission committee.
Students with a Dutch mbo level 4, havo, vwo diploma and a score in English lower than 7 are also advised to take an IELTS test to determine whether their level of English is good enough to study in English.
The minimum overall score required is 6.0 on academic level (IELTS) or 550 paper-based/79 internet-based (TOEFL). The test should not be older than 2 years. The fee for the IELTS test is € 182,50 if taken in Amsterdam. All students must also attend a personal interview with the intake officer.
Language proficiency
As English is the language of the programme, we expect our students to have good English-language writing and speaking skills. Native speakers (students from the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia or New Zealand) and applicants who have successfully undertaken secondary or post-secondary courses at an accredited institution - for a minimum of two years - where English was the language of instruction, are not required to present any other proof of their English proficiency. Students with a Dutch mbo level 4, havo, vwo diploma and a score in English lower than 7 are also advised to take an IELTS test to determine whether their level of English is good enough to study in English. From all other non-native applicants we require academic proof of their English level, either by presenting:
- IELTS test score 6.0 or higher
- CISCE grade 1 - 6
- TOEFL 550 paper-based/ 213 computer-based and 79 internet-based test score.
The test must have been taken in the last two years. Applicants from mainland China are required to submit an academic IELTS test score or a TOEFL internet-based test score, due to visa requirements. More information about these tests can be found on www.ielts.org or
www.toefl.org. Our institution code for taking the TOEFL test is 1000.