Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The University of Groningen is a research university. This means that all of our winter schools are research-driven and are targeting advanced bachelor students or (post) graduate students. Each winter school has its own set of requirements. These can be found on the page of the winter school of your interest.

All our winter courses are taught in English, so you need a good command of English. You do not need to submit proof of English proficiency.

To apply, you can use the online application form on the winter school page. This can be found under the blue box that says 'application procedure'.

This depends on the winter school you want to apply for: each winter school has its own deadline. You can find the application deadline on the specific winter school page, under application procedure.

Some winter schools offer scholarships or (partial) waivers. If this is the case, it will be specifically mentioned on the page of the winter school of your interest, under fee information.

The University of Groningen also offers a number scholarships for international students who are interested in doing a short course in Groningen. Please use the Grantfinder to search for available scholarships, the central winter school office cannot assist with this.

Depending on your nationality, you may need to apply for a Schengen visa (short stay visa). Remember that you should only apply for a visa after you have received official confirmation that you have been accepted to the winter school! Find out more on how to apply for a Schengen Visa on the Dutch government's website .

All international students in the Netherlands must have health insurance. What kind of health insurance applies to you depends on your country of origin, age and the duration of your stay. If you do not have insurance, you must arrange this yourself before departure.

If your winter school offers accommodation, this will be clearly specified on their website. If housing is not provided by your winter school, you will need to find your own accommodation. Your winter school coordinator can provide you with a list of suitable hotels.

Many winter schools offer daily lunches (Mo-Fri) and one or two dinners. If this is offered, it will be specified under the fee information on the page of the specific winter school. There you can also find if coffee/tea breaks are included.

Once you have been accepted to a winter school, you will receive payment instructions. You are obliged to pay the full fee (including housing, if applicable) within one week of the invoice issue date. If you have problems making your payment, please contact the coordinator of your winter school.

We accept payments with credit card, iDeal and International Bank transfer. Please note that University Groningen Winter Schools is not responsible for any bank charges incurred in the transfer of fees. All bank charges, including those incurred overseas and in the Netherlands, are the responsibility of the person making the payment.

Payment by cash on arrival is not possible.

Upon successful completion of the programme, the winter school offers a Certificate of Attendance. The workload in hours will be mentioned on the certificate (NB 28 hours corresponds to 1 ECTS). Students can apply for recognition of these credits to the relevant authorities in their home institutions, therefore the final decision on awarding credits is at the discretion of their home institutions.We will be happy to provide any necessary information that might be requested in addition to the certificate of attendance.

If your questions are not answered by any of the FAQs above, please send an email to winterschools@rug.nl.

For questions about a specific winter school, we recommend that you contact them directly using the email address on their winter school page.