UvA still popular with international students – but for how long, is the question
The number of international students at the UvA increased only slightly this year. While it is often assumed that this is due to the government’s discouraging policy, there may be another reason: other European countries are successfully attracting international students and are also offering more and more English-language programs.
Amsterdam still ranks first as the city offering the most English-language higher education in Europe, excluding British and Irish cities. This is according to figures from the British Council, the British organization that promotes cultural exchange in education. It is no surprise that so many international students find their way to Amsterdam with its wide range of English-language studies. The question is how long this will continue, as other countries are increasingly joining the competition for international students.
Last month, it was announced that the proportion of international students at the UvA had risen slightly again, although the upward trend appears to be leveling off. The total number of students declined for the first time in ten years. For the UvA, the decline in student enrollment is a relief. “We didn’t want to grow any further,” said Rector Magnificus Peter-Paul Verbeek two months ago. Internationalization is not a problem in itself for universities, said Geert ten Dam, then chair of the UvA board in 2022. The problem was not so much the international composition of the student population, but rather the rapid and sustained growth in the total number of students, Ten Dam believed. According to her, this growth (to possibly 55,000 students) would threaten to compromise the quality of education.
The Netherlands is slowing down, the rest of Europe is advancing
Across the Netherlands, the proportion of international students is actually declining on average. This may be because other countries are now actively focusing on attracting international students by expanding their range of English-language courses.
In 2017, the Netherlands still ranked highest in terms of English-language higher education among all countries in Europe outside the United Kingdom and Ireland, according to a report by the KNAW. Currently, 25 of the 64 bachelor’s programs at the UvA are taught in English, including 17 programs that are bilingual and can therefore also be taken in Dutch. And 72 of the 94 (research) master’s programsExcluding dual master’s programs, master’s programs for preparatory higher education teachers, and post-initial master’s programs are taught in English. But foreign competition is catching up: among countries in the European Economic Area (EEA), Italy, Portugal, and France in particular has been offering significantly more English-language university education between 2019 and 2024. Germany has also overtaken the Netherlands in terms of its English-language offerings. This is according to the same report by the British Council. So why continue to go to the Netherlands or the UvA if the English-language program you would like to follow is also offered in English in Germany or France, where student housing, for example, is a significantly less significant problem?
According to a 2025 report by Nuffic, there are three possible reasons why universities in the Netherlands are attracting fewer international students:
1. Since 2022, Dutch universities have been required to cease recruitment activities targeting international students, with the exception of certain fields of study where there are labor shortages.
2. Universities are already taking measures in preparation for the Balanced Internationalization Act (Wib) bill. In consultation with the umbrella organization Universities of the Netherlands (UNL), the UvA had decided to discontinue the English-language tracks of the bachelor's program in psychology.
3. The political and social debate in the Netherlands surrounding issues such as (knowledge) migration is said to be causing international students to hesitate about studying in the Netherlands.
In addition, a spokesperson for Nuffic’s German counterpart, DAAD, told Folia that German students are less likely to choose the Netherlands “because they are concerned about finding accommodation.” According to Nuffic, Germans are the largest group of international students in the Netherlands.
The battle for international students is now bearing fruit in other countries. Over the past five years, international students have increasingly been finding their way to other countries in Europe. In Germany, for example, there are now 19% more foreign students than five years ago, according to figures from Study in Germany, the German organization that recruits students to study in Germany. France has seen a 17% increase in international students over the past five years, according to figures from a similar organization, Campus France. There has also been a greater influx of international students in countries such as Portugal and Poland.
A spokesperson for Nuffic, the Dutch organization for the internationalization of education, says that the Dutch government has not been focusing on the growth of international students for years, while other countries are doing so. In fact, a new law is on the way, the Balanced Internationalization Act (Wib), with which the government is trying to curb the influx of international students. In the original proposal, study programs would be subject to a language test. Programs without a demonstrable need for English-language education would no longer be allowed to offer it. The plan to test existing programs has been scrapped, but such a test could still apply to new programs.
In contrast, other countries are focusing on growing their international student populations. France, for example, has set a target of welcoming half a million international students by 2027. Japan is also aiming for more, with an ambition of 400,000 international students by 2033.
Finally, competition for international students is intensifying because the number of students in many countries is declining, says a spokesperson for Nuffic. The world is aging, also in European countries where many of the international students in the Netherlands come from. This means that fewer children have been born in recent decades. As a result, there are also fewer students. This will intensify competition in Europe to attract international students, as the total number of students from countries that are important to the Netherlands will decline.
So, the Netherlands is deliberately putting the brakes on, while other countries are expanding their English-language programs and trying to attract more international students. It is therefore not only the possible Wib measures that are deterring international students, but also the competitors who are stepping up their efforts in the battle for international students.
Internationalization under pressure: blessing or concern?
The question is how serious it is that international students will decreasingly find their way to Amsterdam. The psychology program has attracted many international students for years and offers an English-language track, but its future is uncertain. The program feared it would not be able to pass the Wib language test, and so it had long been questionable whether the psychology program could continue to be offered in English. The possible abolition of the English-language track depends on the Wib, which has not yet been implemented.
Ingmar Visser, associate professor of developmental psychology and director of the psychology department, has previously stated that he finds the further decline in the influx of international students a worrying development. According to Visser, this primarily affects the so-called international classroom. “Science is an international phenomenon and benefits from open borders, exchange, and diversity in your student body,” he says. As a result of fewer international students in the classroom, students have a less diverse experience.
In addition, Visser also argues that education and research benefit from greater knowledge exchange with other universities abroad. At the same time, Visser emphasizes that universities should not become completely international. “You also have to remain accessible to local students, otherwise you lose your connection with your city and country.”
However, the growing international competition between universities for students does not necessarily have to be a disadvantage for the higher education landscape. In his farewell lecture in 2022, the former dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Han van Dissel argued that competition for international students forces universities to improve. “International competition for students stimulates quality, innovation, and differentiation among universities,” Van Dissel said at the time.
Fewer international students = fewer resources?
But isn’t it true that with fewer international students, there will be less money left for the UvA? Students from outside the EEA, Switzerland, and Suriname pay a hefty amount in tuition fees, often between €20,000 and €35,000 depending on the program. For Dutch or European students, the UvA receives a fixed amount from the government. The forecast for this government budget per student in 2025 was €13,661, according to the umbrella organization Universities of the Netherlands (UNL).
In 2025/2026, the group of students from outside the EEA actually decreased compared to the previous year, by almost eight percent. The importance of the group of non-EEA students for income varies from university to university. At the UvA, the share of income from non-EEA students is the highest in the Netherlands, at seven percent of total income. This was calculated by accounting firm PwC for 2026.
This makes the UvA the most dependent of all universities on students from outside the EEA. PwC calculated the expected impact of a ten percent decline in the number of non-EEA students for universities in 2026. This impact was most severe at the UvA, which will see a loss of seven million euros. If all non-EEA students were to disappear, this would result in almost €70 million in lost revenue.
Visser is concerned about this and says that “higher education will inevitably have to make cuts” if fewer international students enroll. According to Visser, the financial consequences of fewer international students will detract from the quality of education. “Specializations or elective courses will then become too small to remain viable.” More expensive seminars could also disappear, leaving only lectures. According to Visser, this will lead to less choice for students and less intensive education, and ultimately to a loss of quality.
Response from the UvA
According to a spokesperson from the UvA, the assumption that international students from outside the EEA generate more revenue for the UvA than European or Dutch students is ‘incorrect’. Non-EEA students pay the ‘institutional tuition fee’, which covers costs and is determined for each program based on actual costs. The spokesperson said it would be particularly undesirable if the total number of students were to suddenly decline. This would make it more difficult to maintain certain specializations and elective courses and would leave less room for investment in educational quality, staff, and facilities.
According to the UvA-spokesperson, there is currently no downward trend in the number of international students at the university. The UvA expects that the number of Dutch students will decline as a result of demographic developments, with fewer young people around the age of 18 in the coming years. However, according to Nuffic, this development is also occurring outside the Netherlands, leading them to expect that the total number of international students will also decline. It therefore remains uncertain how long international students will continue to flock to the UvA in large numbers.
