University of Amsterdam - UvA
speciality: Psychology

As a student at the University of Amsterdam, I particularly appreciate the international atmosphere and the focus on academic excellence. The interaction between students from different cultures enriches my learning experience enormously. The campus is located in the middle of the vibrant city, which offers numerous opportunities for social life and networking. The facilities are good, although it can sometimes be difficult to find a study space during exam periods. What is currently striking is the growing focus on sustainability, with projects such as a zero-waste campus. This inspires students to be more environmentally conscious.

The wide range of disciplines included within the study program allows you to experience a wide range of topics. I appreciated that we were not limited to learning in one way, we were taught about various approaches to research, experiments, or understanding. One thing that posed an issue is the lack of flexibility, the university is extremely unaccommodating even with extreme circumstances.

I believe that UvA is a wonderful university where opportunities are offered to you if you put in enough effort. For me, it was a great fit, as I am quite an independent student, however, the amount of contact hours is relatively low so this might be tricky for someone who needs a bit more encouragement and structure. I was particularly interested in the research side of my degree and this is exactly what I got. My program was really research-focused giving me a great scientific background for further studies.

I obtained Bachelor’s in Psychology at the University of Amsterdam (UvA). Pros&Cons of this study program:

Pros: very high-quality study program, most lecturers are true professionals in their field, possibility to tailor the program according to your own interests, huge emphasis on scientific critical thinking.

Cons: few weekly contact hours (therefore, harder to make friends with your fellow students), exams every/other month (very high pace, can be exhausting), hard to combine studies and internship/part-time job timewise

Generally about UvA: huge uni (more than 40k students), campus spread across the city.

The psychology bachelor was an in-depth all-around program. At times, things could have been better organized and attention to the students’ needs could have been taken more into account.
Overall, I was really happy with the programme

I liked that it was a 3-year programme, so it was more intense than in other countries while at the same time it included all the relevant information. I liked the autonomy they gave us and the topics they covered. However, the way of teaching was too theoretical and not that practical. Also, the first year was way too intense compared to the others, it should have been more balanced.

I really like how following this program can help me apply my psychological knowledge in society and business. All my professors have their own business or work in a business which creates a very stimulating environment full of opportunities.