How to prepare for your study abroad?
To have a good start (to your life) as a student at Driestar Christian University, it may be useful to know a little about the Netherlands (Holland) as well as to know more about a few practical issues concerning visa, accommodation, et cetera.
To study in the Netherlands, you might need a visa and/or a residence permit. Whether you need a visa or not, depends on:
- Your nationality – as stated on your passport.
- The duration of your stay: more or less than three months.
For a stay of up to three months, (International Class & Master Track Modules), you might need a short stay visa (IND).With a short stay visa, your stay in the Schengen area is limited to a maximum of 90 days within a period of 180 days. This means that once you have been in the Schengen area for 90 days you may not return until another 90 days have passed. An entry visa is also valid for only 90 days and is meant to be followed by a residence permit for a longer period of time. If you will be staying for more than three months, you might need a residence permit.
- Your purpose of stay: we assume you would come to the Netherlands to study, but for any other purpose of stay, please check the website of the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) for the requirements.
Which Visa will you need?
The Visa wizard of Nuffic will show you which immigration procedure applies to you.Start preparations early
Start preparing your visa application as soon as you can after applying to the study programme and receiving your letter of acceptance. It sometimes takes time to collate the right documents required for the visa application. Also remember to check that your passport is valid for long enough for your intended stay. If your passport expires within 3 months of your date of arrival you will be turned away at immigration, if not before at your departure airport.Finalise your enrolment
Once you have been admitted to your study programme at Driestar Christian University, you will need to finalise your enrolment in our online system. In this system, you will be asked for all the necessary details for your registration, residency and visa procedures, emergency contact details and proof of health insurance.More information
Please check the website of Nuffic or the website of IND for more detailed information or contact the International Office.
Every person living in the Netherlands is obliged by law to have insurance for medical expenses. Which type of healthcare insurance you need depends on your personal situation. You need to make sure that you are properly insured during your stay! Please do the check on the following website.
Study purposes only
You are legally not allowed to take out a Dutch public health insurance if you are in Holland for study purposes only. Make sure you have a health insurance from your home country with enough coverage or take out a private health insurance or health insurance from your home country.
If you are from the EU/EEA you may be eligible to receive a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) which covers your necessary medical costs during your stay. Please make sure you check this with your health insurer in your home country as this might differ per EU-member state. See the list of countries with special regulations on the website of Zilveren Kruis.
If you wish to arrange your own insurance in your home country you must make sure your country has a reciprocal agreement with the Netherlands regarding health insurance. Make sure you have a Health Card before you leave for the Netherlands which declares you are insured against medical costs in the Netherlands. Your health insurance must cover the Dutch tariffs, as medical costs are (very) high in the Netherlands.
- The institution of registration in the Netherlands is Driestar educatief, faculty: Education
- The address in the Netherlands will be: Burgemeester Jamessingel 2, 2803 PD Gouda.
You or your organization/foundation should pay for this insurance.
More information?
For more details about insurance, please refer to the Study in Holland website of Nuffic.
Your daily expenses include food, public transport, books, clothes, and other costs like leisure activities. But you also need to take into account the costs for housing and insurance. Experience has shown that students living and studying in Holland for one year spend between €800 and €1,100 a month (without tuition fee). This schedule provides an estimate of the living costs and should be used as a general indication of the costs of living in the Netherlands.
| Expenses | What | Costs per month |
| Tuition fee | See Tuition Fee Table for the Master track Christian Education. See Tuition Fee Programme International Class. |
|
| Study costs | Textbooks, readers, photocopies | € 50 |
| Housing | Rent (incl. Wi-Fi, energy, etc.) | €250 to €600 |
| Insurance | Health care and travel insurance | €100 to €120 |
| Phone | Prepaid sim cards or a plan | €25 to €30 |
| Food and drinks | Meals, drinks, etc. | €150 to €250 |
| Travel expenses | OV-travelcard | €62 |
| Additional costs | Clothes, relaxation, sports, etc. | €150 |
| VISA costs | Visa application short stay of Residence permit MVV (TEV | €60 / €192 |
Gouda is an attractive town to study and live in.
According to Keuzegids HBO, a Dutch independent university guide, Gouda is one of the most attractive university cities in the Netherlands!
Read more about student accommodation options here.
We have facilities for students with (chronic) illness or disability. We will ‘go the extra mile’ to help your study go as smoothly as possible. You can gain more information on this by contacting the international office. You can also have a look at the website of Expertise Centre for inclusive education (ECIO), a Dutch expertise centre for education and disability, on which you can see our university’s score compared to the average score of Dutch universities.
Counsellors at Driestar Christian University are available to help students with their study progress, regulations and conflicts, student facilities, or personal problems.
Counsellors at Driestar Christian University are available to help students with their study progress, regulations and conflicts, student facilities, or personal problems.
Students have set up a student union, Semper Fidelis, with the intention bring students into contact with each other by entertaining and/or inspirational events. This contributes to closer solidarity and a better atmosphere at Driestar Christian University.
Semper Fidelis is formed of enthusiastic students and organises all kind of events, such as:
- (Hymn) singing
- Politics
- Inspirational meetings
- Meals (i.e. New Year’s get-together)
- Sports
The library of Driestar Christian University contains a large collection of books, magazines, teaching kits, illustrative teaching materials, etc. The collection consists of more than 50,000 objects. The majority of it can be found in Gouda. All objects have a connection with education at the university or with educational practice at primary, secondary or special needs schools.
A large part of the collection consists of teaching schemes and methodology, with the subsets of Pedagogy and Religious Education featuring strongly. The libraries in the regional offices are primarily focused on pupil care and educational advice. The complete collection is listed in our catalogue.