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VU University Amsterdam

De Boelelaan , Amsterdam , Netherlands

National Ranking: 5

Founded: 1880
Establishment: University
Type: Public
Total Students: 23656

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VU University Amsterdam

The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (abbreviated as VU or VU Amsterdam) is a university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1880, and ranked among the world's top 150 universities by four major ranking tables. The VU is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being the University of Amsterdam (UvA). The literal translation of the Dutch name Vrije Universiteit is "Free University". "Free" refers to independence of the university from both the State and the Dutch Reformed Church. Both within and outside the university, the institution is commonly referred to as "the VU". Although founded as a private institution, the VU has received government funding on a parity basis with public universities since 1970. The university is located on a compact urban campus in the southern Buitenveldert neighbourhood of Amsterdam and adjacent to the modern Zuidas business district.

The official university seal is entitled The Virgin in the Garden. Personally chosen by Abraham Kuyper, the Reformed-Protestant leader and founder of the university, it depicts a virgin living in freedom in a garden while pointing towards God, referring to the Protestant Reformation in the Netherlands in the 16th and 17th century. In 1990, the university adopted the mythical griffin as its common emblem.

The university's main campus and medical centre are situated in the Buitenveldert neighbourhood, part of the southern district of Amsterdam. The campus occupies about 0.4 km2 and is built along the 'De Boelelaan', a large east-west thoroughfare. Initially a fairly isolated location surrounded mostly by fields, the campus is now adjacent to the modern Zuidas business district housing some of the largest banks, accounting and law firms in the Netherlands. The VU campus is served by the 51 metro line as well as a number of tram lines and bus routes.

Important Facts

WHY CHOOSE VU AMSTERDAM

A UNIQUE UNIVERSITY
Our students and staff look further: beyond the boundaries of their own field, culture, traditions and philosophy to become critical and socially engaged academics.

LIVELY AMSTERDAM
We are located in lively and multicultural Amsterdam, the city with the largest concentration of students in the Netherlands and where English is the second language.

THE NETHERLANDS
Dutch society is multicultural. People from other parts of the world have been living in the Netherlands for decades, thanks to the country’s historical ties with other nations.

HIGH QUALITY EDUCATION
VU Amsterdam is an internationally renowned research university, ranked among the world's best.

SERVICES FROM OUR INTERNATIONAL OFFICE
Our International Office assists you with excellent services such as housing, visa and residence permits. We also organize social and career activities for you to attend.

CAMPUS
Almost all of our students, staff and programmes are located on campus: a single building complex in the business district of Amsterdam.

DURING YOUR STUDIES
Meet new people through one of our student associations, learn Dutch or visit our Griffioen theatre. Just one of the many things you can enjoy during your stay here.

Ranking / Awards

The Netherlands has a binary system of Higher Education with 13 research universities, including Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and 40 universities of applied sciences. The Dutch research universities are all of high academic quality, and consistently ranked among the first 250 universities in international rankings. Only the US and UK feature more research universities in the top 200. In no other system except for Switzerland, the proportion of all research universities in the top 250 is this high.

The best known international rankings are those of Times Higher Education - e.g. World University Ranking (WUR), Impact ranking and European Teaching ranking - and the Shanghai ARWU Ranking. These rankings give an impression of the quality of research and education by assigning scores to institutions worldwide. Each ranking uses a different set of indicators. As a result, the position of a particular university may vary depending on the ranking’s methodology.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam - international scientific and societal impact in 2019-2020:
• World’s 39 in the Impact ranking related to attribution to the SDGs in policy, education and research of Times Higher Education (THE Impact 2019)
• Europe’s 24th best university in the European Teaching Ranking of Times Higher Education (THE European teaching ranking 2019)
• Ranked 103rd best world university in academic excellence in Academic Ranking of World Universities – Shanghai ranking 2019
• Ranked 85th regarding scientific impact in Leiden CWTS ranking and named 138th of world’s best universities by Times Higher Education World University ranking in 2019