Make data-driven decisions for transport & supply chain networks
Are you intrigued by the complexities of supply chains? Want to put your quantitative skills to the test?
Then the Transport and Supply Chain Management Master’s programme is for you.
We welcome ambitious students that possess at least an accredited Bachelor’s degree or equivalent, including sufficient training in supply chain / operations management / operations research and in economics. Experience in using Excel and R is highly recommended. The study programme is demanding and interactive. We therefore aim for high quality and strongly motivated students to guarantee study success and maximize learning outcomes of business games, case studies and company projects.
Admission requirements
With a Bachelor's degree in (International) Business Administration, Economics or Econometrics and Operations Research from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam you are admissible provided you successfully meet the requirements in this document.
Students are expected to have:
Application procedure
To enroll in the programme submit your enrolment application via Studielink.
Services for international (EBE, EOR, IBA) students / Residence permit:
If you are planning to continue your studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam after your SBE Bachelor, please contact the Central Admission’s Support Team of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam for further information and specific questions about the offered services for international students like extending your residence permit. You will need to apply for extension of your residence permit if you continue your studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
We welcome ambitious students that possess at least an accredited Bachelor’s degree or equivalent, including sufficient training in supply chain / operations management / operations research and in economics. Experience in using Excel and R is highly recommended. The study programme is demanding and interactive. We therefore aim for high quality and strongly motivated students to guarantee study success and maximize learning outcomes of business games, case studies and company projects.
Admission requirements
Transport Supply Chain Management is open to students with a university Bachelor's degree that provides a thorough knowledge of supply chain / operations management / operations research and economics.
Students are expected to have:
- A fascination for analysing and solving real-life supply chain challenges
- Solid background in Operations/Supply Chain Management and Economics
- Proven empirical and analytical skills
- Experience in using R and Excel
You need to have successfully completed courses and studied literature related to the core of this programme, summarized below:
1. To get up to speed with Supply Chain Management we expect students to be at least familiar with the contents of chapters 1-4 and 11/12/14 of the book "Supply Chain Management: Strategy, Planning, and Operation” by authors S. Chopra and P. Meindl; Global edition (latest edition). Pearson Higher Education.
2. For Transport Economics a good preparation source is "Applied Transport Economics: policy, management and decision making” by Stuart Cole (latest edition, Kogan Page).
3. We use R for data analysis and statistics. Familiarize yourself with the basic syntax and data input/output of this software before the start of our programme (e.g. via Youtube).
4. Make sure your MS Excel skills are at an advanced level.
Approval depends on specific backgrounds and the extent to which you are familiar with the topics mentioned under ‘admission requirements’.
With a Bachelor's degree in (International) Business Administration, Economics or Econometrics and Operations Research from Dutch Universities you can review this document. Any additional admission requirements can be found on the Curriculum page of this website.
Please note: this information is only meant as an indication of your admissibility. No rights can be derived from this table. This document is based on the obligatory courses and does not take electives into account. Students are recommended to apply for the Master via Studielink (without obligation) to find out if additional courses need to be completed. Every application will be reviewed individually by the Admission Board. The final admission decision may differ from the indication in this table. If your programme is not listed but contains enough relevant courses, please feel free to apply.
You will gain direct admission after completing the premaster’s programme for this master. This is a 30 EC fulltime programme with courses on at least three days a week and runs from February till July.
Here you can find detailed information about the premaster Transport and Supply Chain Management
Application procedure
To enroll in the programme submit your enrolment application via Studielink.
Step 1:
Apply for the programme via Studielink before 1 June.
Step 2:
After application in Studielink, you will receive a VUnet-ID and password. Please complete your application in your VU dashboard by answering additional questions and uploading the Master Application File. Download the correct file here. In this file you can see which documents are required to apply for this programme.
Please note: we can only process your application when you uploaded a complete Master Application File.
Step 3:
The admission committee will assess if you meet the admission criteria and will inform you about the decision via email.
For the full description of the registration procedure see the VU website.
Students must meet the following admission requirements:
Your previous education needs to be deemed equivalent to at least a Dutch academic Bachelor’s degree (wetenschappelijk onderwijs, WO) obtained at a research university (nominal duration 3 years). Please find more information about your admissibility with a non-Dutch degree here.
We expect you to have successfully completed courses based on the following literature, or equivalent:
Supply Chain Management / Operations Research / Operations Management: "Supply Chain Management: Strategy, Planning, and Operation” by authors S. Chopra and P. Meindl; Global edition. Pearson Higher Education, recent edition (at least chapters 1-4 and 11/12/14).
Transport Economics: "Applied Transport Economics: policy, management and decision making” by Stuart Cole, Kogan Page, recent edition
If you do not fully meet all criteria, the Admission Board might be flexible in one topic if you excel in another topic to help you fulfill the admission requirements.
How to demonstrate that you meet the above requirements
You are required to indicate in the course description section of the Application Form how you meet the programme specific admission requirements.
Whether you meet the admission requirements, is determined by the Admission Board based on your complete application.
You will have to demonstrate sufficient English language proficiency. You can find an overview of relevant information to demonstrate your English language proficiency on the language requirement page.
To apply you are required to provide the following documents:
After having prepared the required documents, please follow the online application procedure.
All students seeking admission to an international Master’s programme with an international degree are required to pay a non-refundable €100 application fee. Only after you have paid this fee will we be able to start the evaluation of your application file. If you are applying for more than one programme, you will only need to pay the application fee once. Your application fee payment is valid for two years.
Information on how to apply with an international university degree and deadlines can be found here.
As an international student planning to study at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, you can apply for a variety of grants and bursaries. Detailed information about scholarships and deadlines can be found on www.vu.nl/scholarships or www.grantfinder.nl.
Our International Student and Alumni Ambassadors are happy to tell you all about their experiences with studying at VU Amsterdam and living in Amsterdam.
You will find the full overview of our Ambassadors here: vu.nl/ambassadors. There you can chat with them directly.
Applying for the pre-master's programme directly is not possible. All international students are required to apply for the Master's programme of their choice first. If you do not meet the admission requirements directly, the Admission Board might refer you to the pre-master's programme. After completing the pre-master's programme you are directly eligible for the Master's programme.
The pre-master's programme is a deficiency programme that provides the necessary knowledge and skills to prepare you for this Master's programme. It is a programme of 30 ECTS that is offered in the second semester, from February through July. Content details of the offered pre-masters can be found here.
Admission requirements for the pre-master's programme
Deadlines and application
The programme starts 1 February. Because of visa application deadlines, non-EU citizens must have submitted their application before 1 November. EU citizens or students with a valid residence permit for the Netherlands have until January 31st to complete their application. However, to make sure everything is arranged before the enrolment deadline it is advised to submit your application well before this date.
Note: When applying, you can find the pre-master's programme in Studielink after selecting Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and by entering ‘pre-master's’ in the search bar.
Can I be admitted into an SBE Master with my Dutch university degree?
The admission board can make a decision regarding your admissibility based on several documents. Apply for the Master via Studielink and complete your application on your VU dashboard by uploading the required documents. Some Master programmes require additional documents such as an English CV and motivation letter, as well as your transcript of records. You will receive an admission decision within a couple of weeks after completing your application. Registration for the Master via Studielink is without obligation and does not commit you to anything yet.
I have a higher vocational (HBO) degree. Do I need to complete the pre-master's before I can start with an SBE Master?
Yes, we require all students with an HBO higher vocational Bachelor degree to complete the corresponding pre-master's before they can start with the Master. More information on the pre-master's can be found here.
I have a higher vocational (HBO) degree and wish to start with an SBE Master that does not have a specific pre-master's (MSc Econometrics & Operations Research, MSc Economics, MSc Spatial, Transport and Environmental Economics). How do I apply?
Please send your transcript of records directly to admissions.sbe@vu.nl/ toelating.sbe@vu.nl. Make sure the name of your education and institution are visible.
I do not want to start with a master in the next academic year, but the year after. How do I know if I am eligible?
You can still apply for the Master that starts in the next academic year via Studielink. Registration for the Master is without obligation and does not commit you to anything yet. If you need to complete additional courses in order to be admissible, you can do so during the next academic year. Because the admission decisions are valid for one year, make sure to check in advance if the admission requirements have not changed.
I am already completing a Master at a Dutch university. Can I be directly admitted into one of the SBE Masters?
You cannot be automatically admitted into one of the SBE Masters. First, your application needs to be reviewed by the admission board of the Master in the same way as all Bachelor students. Please apply for the Master via Studielink and upload all required documents. You can use an online PDF merger to upload both your Bachelor grades and (preliminary) Master grades.
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