Study in Europe › Netherlands › University of Amsterdam

BA Linguistics

University of Amsterdam (Faculty of Humanities) · Amsterdam, Netherlands

100% taught in EnglishApply via Studielink, not the CAOOpen entryMandatory matchingNo English test for Irish students
Duration3 years
StartsSept 2027
EntryOpen entry
Deadline (EU)1 May 2027
EU fee 2027/28€2,771 / yr

About the course

Covers how language is structured, acquired, represented in the brain and used in society, including phonetics, syntax, semantics, psycholinguistics and multilingualism, ending with a bachelor’s thesis. In first year students also learn one extra language from a list of 13, such as Arabic, Spanish, Turkish or Sign Language of the Netherlands.

Entry requirements for Irish students

  • The UvA’s published Irish Leaving Certificate rule (shown on its PPLE admissions page for September 2026 entry) is: at least 6 subjects from the established Leaving Certificate programme, at least 2 at Higher Level with H5 or better, the other 4 at O6 or better (Ordinary Level) or H7 or better (Higher Level), and at least 350 CAO points. Humanities programmes use the UvA diploma finder, so confirm with admissions that this rule applies to this programme for 2027 entry.
  • No specific subject or maths requirement is published for this programme. Applicants who completed fully English-taught secondary education in Ireland do not need an English test.

How to apply

  1. Apply in StudielinkRegister for Linguistics under its Dutch name, Taalwetenschap, in Studielink before 1 May 2027; aim for 1 April if you need visa or housing help.
  2. Pay fee and upload filePay the non-refundable €100 application fee and upload your Leaving Cert results or predicted grades and other documents in the UvA portal.
  3. Admission decisionDecisions usually take 1 to 2 weeks for diplomas listed in the UvA diploma finder, and up to 8 weeks for others. Send certified copies of your results by 31 August.
  4. UvA MatchingCompulsory online study-choice activity (18 January to 15 June 2027): register before 3 June 2027 and take part before 15 June 2027, or you are deregistered.
Deadline for Irish/EU applicants: 1 May 2027 (final deadline; 1 April is the advisory deadline if you need visa or housing help from the UvA). Check the exact 2027 date with the university..

Costs

  • Standard Dutch EU fee: €2,694 (2026/27). The 2027/28 fee is set by the Dutch government each year (expected to be close to €2,800).
  • EU students may be eligible for a Dutch tuition-fee loan (DUO).
Open-entry course: if you meet the requirements, you get a place. Taking part in UvA Matching by 15 June 2027 is compulsory.

At a glance

CountryNetherlands
CityAmsterdam
LanguageEnglish
Apply viaStudielink
PlacesNo cap
EntryOpen entry
International applicants: steps and requirements ↗UvA diploma finder (international qualifications) ↗UvA Irish Leaving Cert rule (PPLE admissions page) ↗← Back to all European courses

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Checked against the official University of Amsterdam website: September 2026 (2027 entry). The Irish grade rule, the fee and some deadline pages are from the 2026-27 cycle, so confirm the details before applying. Always confirm details with the university before applying.