Prior to the UK’s departure from the European Union, British students were funded at Dutch universities in the same way as all other EU nationals. Tuition fees for EU students are best described as a contribution towards the cost of their education. In 2021/22 this contribution will be €2,168 for nearly all Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. This contribution is topped up by the government to meet the actual cost of educating students in their chosen field.

Post-Brexit, UK nationals will have to make up the amount of the subsidy in the same way as all other non-EU students. At the same time, access to the Dutch Student Finance system will cease. This means there will no longer be any loans available for tuition fees and the system whereby students working part-time can access living cost support will also cease. This rather than the level of non-EU fees is likely to have the biggest impact on British students’ ability to afford to study in Holland.

Non-EU tuition fees in the Netherlands are modest by UK standards, typically in a range between £5,500 and £13,500 per year. Medicine degrees clearly fall outside this range with annual tuition fees of over £30,000. In many respects, international fees at Dutch follow the same distribution as can be found in British universities although with less distortion by prestige. The illustration below shows the relative annual cost of studying business at a research university for British versus EU students in 2021/22:

Prior to Brexit, we estimated the annual total cost of studying in the Netherlands at around £11,000, of which approximately £2,000 could be borrowed from the Dutch government if required. Post Brexit it will be a minimum of £15,000 but probably closer to £20,000 for the most popular options for British students. These amounts still compare favourably with the anticipated cost of a similar education at a British university but the absence of student finance will unfortunately put it beyond the reach of many.

Unfortunately, the financial advantage for British students stands to be completely eroded by Brexit. However, all of the other reasons why studying in Holland is a sensible choice remain valid and we hope that British students are still able to consider Dutch universities.

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