Bachelor Animation

About the course

Year 1 covers the basics: storytelling, 2D animation, design, film history, then 3D animation with more advanced tools. Year 2 adds projects with students from other departments and a specialist role in a team production, ending with a pitch for an animated series. Year 3 brings real client briefs and a semester-long internship or exchange, which can be abroad. Year 4 is a one-semester minor and a graduation project in one of WdKA’s three ‘Practices’ (autonomous, commercial or social). Skills include stop-motion, character design, storyboarding and sound design. Graduates work as animators, directors, motion designers, concept artists and creative producers.

Entry requirements for Irish students

• You need a school-leaving diploma at the level of the Dutch HAVO (or higher). WdKA checks foreign diplomas against the Nuffic guide and only screens them after you pass the artistic admission. The Leaving Certificate is not named, so it is assessed individually – contact wdka.admission@hr.nl if unsure.
• No set school subjects are required. Your portfolio and motivation decide whether you get in.
• English: IELTS Academic 6.0, TOEFL iBT 80 or Cambridge 169 (test-centre versions only). If your schooling was fully through English, you can upload your diploma and results showing this and ask for an exemption; the screening team decides.
• Two-stage admission exam: first a digital portfolio (10–25 works, one PDF or PowerPoint up to 50 MB, showing process as well as final pieces) plus a motivation form; if that is positive, a matching interview. WdKA suggests showing storytelling in an Animation portfolio.

How to apply

1. Register on StudielinkApplications for 2027–28 open on 1 October 2026. EU applicants must register on Studielink by 1 May 2027. Check your spam folder for the confirmation email.
2. Upload portfolio and motivationLog in to WdKA’s applicant portal and pick one admission round. Upload deadlines: 17 January 2027, 14 March 2027 or 6 June 2027.
3. Matching interviewIf your portfolio is approved (results within about 3 weeks), you are invited to a matching interview. The final decision comes about 3–4 weeks later.
4. Send diploma and English proofAfter a positive artistic result, upload your diploma or school statement, results and English test or exemption evidence.

Costs

• Tuition: WdKA has not yet published its 2027–28 fee; the Dutch statutory EU fee for 2027/28 is €2,771 per year.
• No registration or application fee. Budget for your own laptop, software and art or making materials.
• EU students may be able to get a Dutch DUO tuition-fee loan (collegegeldkrediet).

At a glance