Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam - VU Noodfonds emergency support

VU Noodfonds emergency support

You receive a one-off gift of up to 3,000 EUR if you study at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) and hit a sudden financial emergency. The money is meant for essential costs like rent or daily living, and it is paid once, not monthly. It is a gift from the VU, not a loan, funded by donations from the VU-fonds, alumni, staff and the wider VU community. You cannot use it to pay tuition fees.

Who can apply

• Your university: You study at VU Amsterdam and have paid tuition there. Exchange students attached to the VU and living in the Netherlands can also apply if their own home university cannot help in time.
• A real emergency: Something you could not foresee has pushed you into acute money trouble, for example war or conflict, a natural disaster in your home country, or a personal crisis you could not plan for.
• No other route: The usual support schemes and your own network cannot solve it in time.
• A one-time situation: It is a single incident, not a recurring or structural problem, and you have not already received money from this fund for it.
• Solvable with a small amount: A one-off payment genuinely fixes the situation. The fund does not hand out large sums.
• Field and nationality: All subjects and all nationalities can apply, as long as you are enrolled at the VU.

How to apply

You submit your request through the student deans (studentendecanen, the university's student advisers). Use their online contact form or book an appointment in their online calendar. There is no deadline, so you can apply whenever an emergency arises. A committee then checks whether your situation meets the criteria and decides as quickly as possible.

How realistic are your chances?

This is not a merit scholarship you compete for. It is a safety net for a specific, provable crisis. Whether you get it depends on your situation fitting the criteria (unforeseeable, acute, one-off and solvable with a small sum), not on grades or a large applicant pool. If your emergency clearly matches and you can back it up with evidence, your prospects are good, and the deans aim to decide fast.