From 1 October, you can start your application for the academic year 2026-2027 in Studielink. The application deadline is 15 April for non-EEA students and 15 May for EEA students. Only applications started in Studielink and submitted in the Application Portal of Erasmus University Rotterdam will be considered. After you have submitted your application in the Application Portal, the admissions committee will assess your application. You will be informed about the outcome of your application by email.
Below you will find the application procedure. If you have any questions about your application, then please reach out to the ESHCC admissions office.
Application
- Bachelor's diploma - if already available
If you have not yet obtained your bachelor's diploma, then you may already apply. However, in that case any offer of admission made to you will be conditional upon obtaining your diploma. The deadline to submit your diploma is 1 August. - Translation of your bachelor's diploma in English
If the original is not in Dutch, English, German, French, Italian, or Spanish. We only accept official translations. - Most recent transcript of records
The transcript of records must list all grades received during your studies. - Translation of your transcript of records in English
If the original is not in Dutch, English, German, French, Italian, or Spanish. We only accept official translations. - Proof of English proficiency
Preferably an IELTS Academic or a TOEFL iBT (you need to take the test in a test centre; we don't accept the IELTS Online, the TOEFL Home Edition, and similar online tests). If you have not yet obtained proof of English proficiency, then you may already apply. However, in that case any offer of admission made to you will be conditional upon submitting proof of English proficiency. We recommend that you schedule your test as soon as possible. - Curriculum vitae in English
- Essay or paper written in English
You are free to choose the subject of the essay or the paper. You may submit an essay or a paper that you have written during your bachelor programme. The purpose is to give the admissions committee an impression of your academic writing and analytical skills. The required length of the essay or the paper is five to ten pages. Don't forget to include a reference list. - Motivation letter in English
Maximum two pages.
| Application | Deadline |
| Non-EEA students | 15 April |
| EEA students | 15 May |
Considering the time needed to arrange a visa and/or a residence permit, students from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) need to submit their application by 15 April.
You will be informed about the outcome of your application by 1 July at the latest. We have a rolling admissions process, which means that we assess applications as they come in. This also means that when you apply early you may receive the outcome of your application early.
Applications will be assessed from January at the earliest.
Step 1: Studielink
From 1 October, you can start your application in Studielink, the Dutch national registration system for higher education. Please complete all the required steps.
Step 2: Application Portal
Once you have completed all the required steps in Studielink, you will be asked by email to complete your application in the Application Portal and you will receive your login details for the Application Portal.
Please note: automatically generated emails may end up in your spam or junk folder, so please check this folder. If you do not receive your login details for the Application Portal, then please reach out to the IT Service Desk of Erasmus University Rotterdam: it.servicedesk@eur.nl.
In the Application Portal, you need to answer a number of questions and upload your documents. You need to submit your application in the Application Portal no later than 15 April (non-EEA students) or 15 May (EEA students).
Please note: we cannot and will not consider applications that have been submitted in the Application Portal after the deadline.
The admissions committee will assess your application. You can check the status of your application in the Application Portal at any time. You will be informed about the outcome of your application by email. The outcome can be one of the following:
Approved
You are unconditionally admitted to the programme. Please indicate within three weeks in the Application Portal whether or not you accept the offer of admission.
Conditionally approved
You are conditionally admitted to the programme; the offer of admission mentions the condition(s) of your admission. Please indicate within three weeks in the Application Portal whether or not you accept the offer of admission.
If you have been conditionally admitted, then you need to submit the required additional documents. These could be:
- Certified copies of your diploma and your transcript of records: by 1 August
- Proof of English proficiency:
- Non-EEA students: by 1 May (considering the time needed to arrange a visa and/or a residence permit)
- EEA students: by 1 August
Once we have approved the documents, the status of your application will change to 'Approved'.
Declined
You are not admitted to the programme. You will be informed about the reason(s) for rejection.
Your enrollment as a student at Erasmus University Rotterdam will only be finalised after you have arranged the payment of your tuition fees. From early April, you can arrange the payment of your tuition fees in Studielink. If you have any questions about payment of tuition fees, then please have a look at our website or reach out to the Erasmus Student Service Centre.
Non-EEA students need to meet all immigration requirements. If you are admitted to the programme, then our immigration officers will reach out to you. You can already have a look at our immigration website as well.
The final date for finalising your enrollment is 31 August, but please do not wait until the last minute.
Once your enrollment has been finalised, you can download a proof of enrollment in Osiris:
- Log into Osiris with your ERNA account details.
- Click your profile picture in the top right and click My details.
- Click Enrolment study programme.
- Click Declaration of enrolment.
We recommend that you arrive in Rotterdam well in time for your first classes. The Eurekaweek and the ESHCC introduction week are planned for mid-August and are a nice way to settle in before your classes start.
Frequently Asked Questions about applying
Of course, you can also check the detailed admission criteria on the programme’s website.
Yes, you can apply and we will consider your application. However, any offer made to you will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. Please plan your test as soon as possible. Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results. If you are admitted, please send us your language test results no later than the deadline mentioned in your admissions offer. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!
If you have not yet taken any English test, we recommend that you take TOEFL -iBT or IELTS academic.
Check the programme’s entry requirements to see which scores you need to obtain in the language test. A Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE - grade B or A) or a Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) will also be accepted.
Please note:
- Test results of the First Certificate in English (FCE) and the TOEIC-test are not accepted!
- Please plan your test as soon as possible. Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results.
- If you are admitted, please send us your language test results no later than the deadline mentioned in your admissions offer. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!
No, we do not. Therefore, you need to submit a digital copy of your English language test report.
For native speakers and graduates of recognised academic programmes taught entirely in English, the obligation to take a language test may be dropped after considering their academic performance.
In the Admission Portal you need to upload an official document stating the language of instruction of your Bachelor’s degree programme.
Studielink is the Dutch national registration system for higher education programmes. We can only register you as a student at our university if you enrol through this system.
Subsequently, you need to finalise your application in the Admission Portal of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR).
Please note: once you have enrolled in Studielink, you will receive an email with your login details for the EUR Admission Portal.
In the EUR Admission Portal you need to answer some additional questions and upload the required documents.
After checking your entries, you need to submit your application. Please note: only applications with the status ‘submitted’ will be processed.
Please contact our ICT service desk at servicedesk@ict.eur.nl and ask them to provide your login details as soon as possible. Please be aware that automatically generated emails may end up in your spam or junk folder. Therefore, please check these folders!
Go to the login page of the Portal and click on ‘forgot username’ and/or ‘forgot password’ (upper right corner of the screen). Subsequently, follow the instructions. If that does not work, please contact Erasmus Student Service Centre.
Yes, you do. However, you will improve your chances if you apply in the first or second round.
Please note: candidates from outside the European Economic Area (non-EEA), are required to apply earlier than EEA-candidates. This is to ensure that non-EEA candidates will have sufficient time left to apply for a visa if they are admitted to the programme.
Within 8 weeks after the deadline* we will let you know by email whether or not you have been accepted to the programme.
*see schedule with deadlines and response times on the programme’s website
- Please email your document to masteradmission@eshcc.eur.nl if you are applying for History and Arts and Culture Studies;
- Please email your document to mediastudies@eshcc.eur.nl for Media Studies.
Some universities do not issue diplomas until late summer or even early autumn - even if technically you have already graduated. If this applies to your university, please ask them to issue an official graduation statement, confirming you have indeed met all requirements needed for graduation. This document should be submitted to Master Admission (see programme’s website) no later than 10 August. It should be a certified document, i.e. it should carry the university’s stamp, signature and a date.
- Please email your document to masteradmission@eshcc.eur.nl if you are applying for History and Arts and Culture Studies;
- Please email your document to mediastudies@eshcc.eur.nl for Media Studies.
- Please email your document to masteradmission@eshcc.eur.nl if you are applying for History and Arts and Culture Studies;
- Please email your document to mediastudies@eshcc.eur.nl for Media Studies.
Yes, if you cannot submit your language test report before the application deadline, we will consider your application anyhow. However, any offer made to you will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. Please plan your test as soon as possible.
Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results.
If you are admitted, we do need the test report ultimately 10 August. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!
You are free to choose the subject of the essay. You may send a paper you have written during your Bachelor’s degree programme. The purpose is to give the programme’s selection committee an impression of your academic writing and analytical skills.
The minimum length is 2,000 words (approximately 5 pages). The paper must be written in English. Do not forget to include a reference list.
A sworn translator can provide an official translation. Nowadays, most universities provide separate translations or bi-lingual degree certificates and transcripts of records. These documents are regarded as official translations as well.
Please note: you must send a copy of the documents in the original language along with the translation.
Only if you apply for our Research Master, you are required to submit two reference letters.
For all other programmes these documents are not mandatory. However, you may include additional documents if you believe this will contribute to your profile.
The purpose of the essay is to enable the programme’s admission committee to quickly assess your academic writing and analytical skills. Hence, the request to submit an essay of approximately 5 pages. Therefore, please always upload a short essay. You can submit an essay you have written during your previous studies.
In addition, you may upload your thesis under ‘additional documents’.
GPA stands for Grade Point Average. This average is based on the weighted average of all grades from your bachelor programme.
In many countries official academic transcripts contain a GPA (Grade Point Average) - one calculated per semester, and one calculated over the entire study programme. In some cases a GPA will only be calculated once the programme has been completed.
Yes, we do. All students to whom this applies, will automatically receive further information from our International Officer.
You can find out more about housing on this page. All international students who are invited to join the programme, will receive a detailed email from our International Officer with information about housing.
It is advisable to arrive in Rotterdam well in time for the first lectures. Introductions such as ESN and the EUReka week are planned for mid-August and are a nice way to get settled before classes start.
In Rotterdam there are many places you can turn to for help and assistance. Please look here for more information.
Please note that for medical assistance, the usual practice in the Netherlands is for a patient to have an initial consultation with a general practitioner (Dutch: huisarts), before making an appointment with a specialist in hospital.
Erasmus University Rotterdam has made arrangements with several general practitioners. For information, click here.