Entry Requirements

Master's degree

The candidate must have obtained a master’s degree that is comparable to a Dutch MSc. This is evaluated by NUFFIC, the Dutch organisation for internationalisation in education. Hence, accredited master’s degrees obtained in the Netherlands are automatically recognised. See “Registration procedure & Checklist” for details on documents that must be submitted depending on where the candidate obtained the master’s degree.

When a master’s degree is not recognised by NUFFIC, as equivalent to a Dutch master's, a Qualifying Exam (QE) may be required. If a qualifying exam is required, this will be indicated by PhD Services. The content is determined by the promoter in consultation with the candidate, in accordance with the rules for QE. These rules are stated in the Doctorate Regulations, which are determined by the Academic Board of Wageningen University & Research. Note that this QE exam is not part of the Training and Education Programme as formulated in the Training and Supervision Plan (TSP). The QE must be obtained within the first year of the PhD project.

Language requirements

In order to be admitted to the PhD program, the PhD candidate must demonstrate sufficient proficiency in the English language, as well as the Dutch language when the thesis is written in Dutch, at the level established by the Academic Board.

English language proficiency

There are no language requirements when the PhD candidate:

• has completed a master degree at a Dutch University;
• comes from an English speaking country and/or;
• has completed a higher education with English as the main language of instruction.

There are language requirements when the PhD candidate:

• does not have a master degree at a Dutch University;
• does not come from an English speaking country and/or;
• has not completed a higher education with English as the main language of instruction.

When the PhD candidate has language requirements to be met, an internationally recognized Certificate of Proficiency in the English language must be submitted.

This must be done prior to the registration at the graduate school and the test results may not be older than 24 months at the moment of application.

Note: a PhD candidate cannot be registered in the Hora Finita without meeting the language requirements. Hora Finita is the PhD registration system of Wageningen University & Research.

Proof of Funding, including tuition fees

For a candidate to be able to start a PhD at Wageningen University & Research funding must be guaranteed. This concerns: funds for research, monthly allowance (see Dutch Government immigration website: https://ind.nl/en) and possibly tuition fees. Below the tuition fees for the different PhD categories are listed. These fees are to cover an office space, working facilities, access to the library and a Wageningen University & Research ICT account.