[whooshpaddy]

I sent off my application for International Business at Maastricht last week, and am hoping that I have uploaded all of the necessary documents for my application to be processed!

It is a world away from what I have originally applied for, but after a rejection from Oxford, I have had to think very long and hard about what I have actually applied for and why.

So who else has applied?

[soldiersixteen]

(Original post by whooshpaddy)
I sent off my application for International Business at Maastricht last week, and am hoping that I have uploaded all of the necessary documents for my application to be processed!

It is a world away from what I have originally applied for, but after a rejection from Oxford, I have had to think very long and hard about what I have actually applied for and why.

So who else has applied?

I will be applying in the next week or so(bus econ and econ).
So, where else did you apply in the UK(and for what)?

[whooshpaddy]

(Original post by soldiersixteen)
I will be applying in the next week or so(bus econ and econ).
So, where else did you apply in the UK(and for what)?

Applied for Environmental Geoscience at Bristol, Imperial and UCL, offers AAB apart from Imperial which is AAA, Master of Ocean, Earth and Climate Science at Southampton (Offer AAB) and Earth Sciences at Oxford (rejected).

I really should have applied for Economics and Management at Oxford but was too scared! Looking at it now, I could have done pretty well in the Thinking Skills Assessment as that's kinda my thing. I love the look of the course at Maastricht though - and I miss doing languages. Are you going to an open day?

[soldiersixteen]

(Original post by whooshpaddy)
Applied for Environmental Geoscience at Bristol, Imperial and UCL, offers AAB apart from Imperial which is AAA, Master of Ocean, Earth and Climate Science at Southampton (Offer AAB) and Earth Sciences at Oxford (rejected).

I really should have applied for Economics and Management at Oxford but was too scared! Looking at it now, I could have done pretty well in the Thinking Skills Assessment as that's kinda my thing. I love the look of the course at Maastricht though - and I miss doing languages. Are you going to an open day?

Nah, i'm not going to the open day.
I have an offer from Nottingham for Accounting and Finance.
The only thing that worries me about moving to Maastricht is would i limit my job opportunities in the financial sector. I'm just wondering where I would have the highest chance of getting into a job career i like.

[Degrees Ahead]

Hi there,

I work for a company 'Degrees Ahead' - we help students to apply to Universities abroad and are doing work looking into employer thoughts about studying abroad.

Universities in Holland and the Netherlands have had a lot of publicity at the moment due to the tuition fee rise. Areas publicised in national newspapers have been the way they teach and the independent students they produce. I think that it is something all employers will recognize more and more in the coming years.

Many employers are saying that as long as they have heard of the University, the more important thing is that students apply for graduate jobs in good time, that they fit the job they are applying to, they have the aptitude to do the work and have good work experience to show.

I think that one of the key benefits of studying outside the UK is that you will put into practice everything you learn - if it's giving presentations, doing role play of particular situations, work placements and internships or putting together plans for real life case studies. The courses tend to be more practical and hands-on than many degrees in the UK.

I hope that this helps - there will soon be a section on our website about employer opinions to studying abroad - feel free to have a look - www.degreesahead.co.uk

Amy from the Degrees Ahead team

[Durido]

I applied for European Law and am now waiting for the non academic application process to start , sorting out financial matters etc.....

[lucas13]

Is it hard to get into Maastricht or other dutch unis such as Amsterdam, what a level grades do you need?

[Alexgadgetman]

(Original post by Durido)
I applied for European Law and am now waiting for the non academic application process to start , sorting out financial matters etc.....

Any idea when this stuff starts? Hopefully not too late!

[soldiersixteen]

is anyone applying for business econ and econ?

[vazee]

(Original post by soldiersixteen)
is anyone applying for business econ and econ?

I am still considering about applying for this course

[bakefrancis]

Applying for the liberal arts degree/europe law degree.

Looking forward to it immensely

[soldiersixteen]

(Original post by vazee)
I am still considering about applying for this course

Where in the UK have you applied?
I was deciding between this and int. business. But i chose this instead. The course looks better to me.

[vazee]

(Original post by soldiersixteen)
Where in the UK have you applied?
I was deciding between this and int. business. But i chose this instead. The course looks better to me.

Actually , I am not a citizen of the UK, but I have also applied to Edinburgh, Durham, Strathclyde in the UK, and Utrecht University in the Netherlands. I got an offer from Utrecht university and I cant decide- apply to Maastricht or go to Utrecht.

[Durido]

(Original post by Alexgadgetman)
Any idea when this stuff starts? Hopefully not too late!

as far as I'm concerend in about March

[razorfin]

I'm going to be applying for European Studies.

About grades, I get the impression it's quite flexible unlike British unis.

[whooshpaddy]

I have had a message through Studielink saying that my grades are acceptable and now I just have to finish my application ASAP.

Is anyone else learning dutch?
If so, I wouldn't mind a "study buddy", I'm only alphabet and basic phrases "in" so far! - Could do this on skype?

[razorfin]

How the hell can anyone afford to go to Maastricht as you cannot get any financial help? I'm intrigued.

[Bpm2012]

I am confused in whether you can get funding for universities in Holland. I was told that at Amsterdam university I would be able to get a loan for the study period , anyone shine any light onto this subject?

[whooshpaddy]

(Original post by razorfin)
How the hell can anyone afford to go to Maastricht as you cannot get any financial help? I'm intrigued.

Yes, you can get financial help. And as the fees are less than £1,500 a year, to work to pay them, or a loan from parents wouldn't be such a big deal.

You can get a loan to pay your tuition fees from the dutch government which you don't need to start paying back until two years after you finish your education, but again, as this will be a loan of £4500, plus interest, not 50k+ that I would come away with from studying in the UK.

http://www.ib-groep.nl/international...dy_finance.asp

If you work 32 hours a month, so two 4 hour shifts a week, not only do you get the wage (which in reality will probably be something like 140 euros a month at minimum wage, i'm sure waitressing inc tips would be higher), but you get a grant (yes, you don't repay it) of 266 euros a month. So this is an income of ~400 euros a month, doing the bare minimum. Double the amount of paid work, or get a higher paid job and you're practically covering all of your expenses, and with the tuition paid by the loan, you're doing pretty well for yourself.

The average costs of living per month whilst studying at Maastricht that are on the MU website:

Rent (including gas, water, leccy): 350 euros
Groceries: 180 euros
Books&Materials: 35 euros
Insurances: 98 euros
Clothing & personal care: 90 euros
Lesiure expenses: 100 euros

So a total cost of ~850 euros a month. Although on other websites, the quote the figure as between 600 and 1000 euros a month, so I guess that is a good average above.

Tuition fees cost really 130 euros a month, so if you didn't have a loan for that, and were being careful with money, you would need to find around 750 euros a month to live on, and pay for your studies. With the grant paid to you, you would need to earn ~480 euros, or have that from savings. So basing this on the fact that you will be in Maastricht for 10 months of the year living, and only paying for the rent while you are not there, not the other things, so this is ~8,000 euros a year, including tuition. With a tuition loan, and being careful with spending, this is ~7,000 euros a year. Considering if I was in the UK and getting the lowest maintenance loan and full fees loan, I would still have to find 4k a year somewhere to live, and that is living without many luxuries.

So that is about £5,500 a year, with the tuition fee loan. This means living abroad is going to cost me £1,500 a year more than in the UK in the short term, but with the problem based learning that really appeals to me, and the opportunity to learn new languages and live in such a beautiful and accessible place, I think it is worth it. There are also scholarships available, and I am planning on coming out with almost no debt personally, and with the experience of living in Europe.

Also, I am planning on contacting the slc to see whether I am eligible for a maintenance grant when studying abroad, or if I am eligible for any help financially. You can put a thousand or two in the bank over one summer, so I don't think that going to Maastricht is going to be a problem for me financially at all.

Personally, I think I am going to pay the first year's fees of £1,500 up front and then when I am out there worry about grants and loans - mostly because I will need an address to open a current account to receive the loan into.

[soldiersixteen]

I'm gonna apply for Business and bus econ this week.
on the CV, it asks for proof for everything. Do I have to provide this for every activity i did?

thanks