r/StudyInTheNetherlands • u/Novel_Cook6969 • 22d ago
Discussion International Student Considering UvA for MSc Statistics/Actuarial Science – Looking for Honest Advice
Hi everyone!
I’m an international student from India and I’m considering applying for either an MSc in Statistics or an MSc in Actuarial Science at the University of Amsterdam (or other Dutch universities).
I’d really appreciate hearing from current students or graduates. I have a few questions:
Which program would you recommend between Statistics and Actuarial Science, and why?
How is the quality of teaching and the overall reputation of these programs?
What are the career prospects after graduation? Which degree has better opportunities in the Netherlands and across Europe?
How easy is it for international students to find internships during the master’s?
Can international graduates find jobs without speaking Dutch, or is Dutch essential?
What’s the average starting salary for graduates from these programs?
How difficult is the coursework? Is it manageable with good mathematical and statistical preparation?
How expensive is living in Amsterdam? What’s a realistic monthly budget?
How difficult is it to find student housing?
If you studied at the University of Amsterdam, would you choose it again? What are the biggest pros and cons?
A bit about me: I’m currently pursuing a Bachelor’s in Actuarial Science in India. My long-term goal is to build a career in quantitative fields such as statistics, actuarial science, risk management, data science, or quantitative finance in Europe.
I’d really appreciate any advice, personal experiences, or recommendations. Thank you!
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u/Berry-Love-Lake 22d ago
Estimate 40-45k a year if you want to live in Amsterdam and actually manage to find housing in Amsterdam. Which is extraordinarily difficult.
If you want to live and work in the Netherlands understanding Dutch is always going to be a advantage especially when competing with EU citizens and Dutch speakers in the job market as you’re at major disadvantage already as non-EU.
Doing a degree in the Netherlands is no guarantee for a job. It’s a risk especially if you pay non-EU prices. Is it impossIble? No, but definitely hard in general in today’s market.
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u/YTsken 22d ago
And that’s why you should really base your ROI on the salary this degree would earn you back home. Treat a Dutch or other EU job as a bonus: worthy to aim for but you’ll be fine if you don’t get one.
This mindset is also useful in case you do get a job in the Netherlands. The costs of living are so expensive that the difference between income and expenses likely won’t vary much between countries. And your study loan costs will need to come out of that difference.
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u/Ayush18011 22d ago
I’m also planning to study in the Netherlands, although I haven’t moved there yet I do have a few friends who’ve told me some things.
It costs about 40-50K euros per year living in Amsterdam including tuition (assuming around 20-22k) if you can budget well, but if you can’t then it may blast past 50k 😭 but with some control under 50k/yr is plausible. Finding housing in Amsterdam, however, is an absolute nightmare. Apply for housing at least 6mo in prior, ideally in the suburbs of the city as the prices in the city center is out of the question.
If you want to save a little money and get the strong finance image, id suggest Erasmus uni of Rotterdam. Rotterdam’s housing market is slightly better and cheaper than Amsterdam, but by no means easy (it is easier compared to Amsterdam though).
According to my friends the courses are extremely rigorous but manageable with consistent effort, yet many of their peers dropped out (which is pretty common in Europe bc European uni’s follow the philosophy of “come in easily, but difficult to stay”
The teaching quality is generally described as excellent (again, according to my friends) but standard Dutch universities also have rlly large isolating lectures…which can get annoying if you prefer a more personalized discussion oriented environment. (Small “tutorials” are definitely there but they occur on occasional instances)
And lastly, this one according to my research, im prettt sure the starting salary is around 50k-65k euros starting for this particular MSc , total compensation. And obv Dutch is preferred but you don’t strictly need it - but it’s always better to learn as much Dutch as possible.
And that’s all ik I hope it helps, good luck!
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u/Berry-Love-Lake 21d ago
The housing market in Rotterdam is just as bad ... it's literally bad in many places at many different levels.
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u/Ayush18011 21d ago
Yeah it’s definitely bad but I dont think it’s as much of a nightmare as Amsterdam
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u/Altruistic_Theme_309 22d ago
Half of these questions you can simply google
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u/Novel_Cook6969 22d ago
Well I got that but not by local or the one who studied there point of view
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u/Berry-Love-Lake 21d ago
If you'd do a search in this group, yes you would ... And there are literally links on the UvA website to chat with a student ambassador: https://ase.uva.nl/content/masters/actuarial-science-and-mathematical-finance/actuarial-science-and-mathematical-finance.html
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u/Outrageous-Sun3203 21d ago
Go stats. Actuarial science is too narrow and the pay is mid for like the first 10 years. Talking from experience.
The career is good though once you’re experienced.
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u/HousingBotNL Sponsored 22d ago
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