Details

• Netherlands
• MAECO-22
• Graduate
• WS 2025
• Time spent at the partner university: 6 months

1. Preparation

Thanks to another exchange report, I already found a place to stay in January (even though my semester only started in August). So I was really happy to have accommodation sorted early for my exchange semester. In general, many of my friends stayed in Verbs, which I would recommend if you want to make friends easily and be part of the social and party life there. I would also really suggest joining TOP Week, as it’s a big introduction and party week before the semester starts and you’ll probably meet many of your closest friends there. Choosing courses at Tilburg University was also quite easy, as there is an online Excel list where you can go through all courses and pick what fits you best.

2. Accommodation

Through another exchange report, I found a recommendation for a room in an apartment close to the university. However, there are also many student housing options (like Verbs), where you can get a room for around €500–€800, which is actually quite cheap for the Netherlands. The only thing to know is that applications for many of these places are quite late (around June), which is why I decided to book my room already in January.

3. Academic life at host university

The host university is one of the best in the Netherlands and offers a lot to students, especially considering how big it is for such a “small” city. The city is not only international, but so is the university. In general, the Netherlands is extremely international and people speak excellent English, which makes it very easy to communicate and fully take part in university life. The campus is quite large and a bit confusing at the beginning, but after 1–2 months you definitely get used to it.

5. Every day life in the host country

Depending on how many courses you take, your everyday life can either be quite relaxed with a lot of time to travel or very busy with classes. TiU divides the semester into Block 1 and Block 2, and many courses (including all of mine) take place twice a week. For example, Block 2 starts in October and lasts until the beginning of December, where I had around 8–10 lectures per week. In Block 1 (end of August to beginning of October), I only had one course, so we used the time to travel a lot — to cities like Antwerp, Rotterdam, The Hague, Breda, etc., and we even did bigger trips like going to Oktoberfest. Keep in mind that getting good grades in the netherlands is quite difficult hence, you have to study a lot!

6. Testimonial

A very cool and rewarding experience at one of the best universities in Europe and in a very international city. You will make a lot of new friends from all over the world (my closest friends are from Colombia, Mexico, and Australia), and you’ll have many fun and memorable experiences in the Netherlands — one of the most dynamic, diverse, and sustainability-oriented countries.