Requirements

If you read this we hope you know that the curriculum of the Institute of Psychology is characterized by Problem Based Learning (PBL). This kind of educational system requires students to take an active role in for example the tutorial meeting groups.

One important thing we demand from the exchange students that come to visit us is that they have sufficient knowledge of the English language and are able to speak it almost fluently. In the past we've noticed that it is very hard to pass your tests if you do not master English well enough. Besides that, during the discussion of the tutorial meeting groups, a student has to explain what he has read in the articles to the others students in his group. If this student doesn’t have the English skills to do this, he will not be able to deliver any contributions to the group. And in a case where there is only 1 exchange student in the group, 10 Dutch students have to speak English – which is also not their native language. If the exchange student doesn't have a contribution to the group, the Dutch students might wonder why they have to go to all the trouble of speaking English. Also some students will feel excluded when they are not able to follow the discussion.

Applicants whose native language is not English are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). You need a minimum score of 600. If you take a TOEFL-internet you need a minimum score of 100, for the computer-based version of TOEFL the score has to be at least 250. If you decide to take the IELTS the score on this test has to be at least 7. More information about the TOEFL can be found on: www.toefl.org

Another important requirement we have is that the exchange students must have followed psychology courses at his or her home university as well. If the knowledge of psychology is insufficient again the student will not be able to give a contribution to group discussions. But our experience with previous exchange students has also taught us that the student will fail the course if the preliminary knowledge is not enough. Because our courses have a workload of 30 hours of self study a week there is no time left to study theories, subjects or views that are considered preliminary knowledge during the course.

And last but not least, in many of the courses students have to find there own literature. We expect that students can find their way in the different psychology databases like PsychInfo.

Application

The application deadline for the spring semester (starting in January) is November 1.

The application deadline for the fall semester (starting in September) is June 1.

More information about the application as well as the application forms can be found on the following page: www.eur.nl