University College Roosevelt (Netherlands)
- Sara Cavalieri
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Located on a peninsula in the southwest of the Netherlands, University College Roosevelt (UCR) is celebrating its 20th birthday this year.
With 600 students, 65 percent of whom are international, UCR is one of two honors colleges affiliated with Utrecht University.
Named after the Roosevelt family, whose roots are from this region, UCR is located in a gorgeous, historic building that used to be the town hall.
Here are some of the highlights from my visit!
Middelburg
Middelburg is a small, safe city of 50,000 residents in the Zeeland province.
A 15-minute bike ride in either direction, and you'll arrive at a beautiful Dutch beach.
Because of its small intake, students have guaranteed housing for the full duration of the program in one of the four sites across the city.
At around 500 euros a month, the lease is for 12 months, so students can stay over summer.
They can choose from a traditional student house or studio apartment, and I must say, the studios were really spacious!
Academics
UCR offers a liberal arts curriculum and degrees that students build based on their interests with the help of an advisor.
There are 200 subjects from Arts & Sciences, Engineering, Social Sciences and Science, and students have to do at least one from each area.
Engineering is one of the newest departments, and UCR is one of only two Dutch university colleges to offer this.
It's focused on high-tech, such as data science, robotics, AI, electronics, mechanical, materials and because of its location, lots of projects related to water management and seaweed.
Interestingly, students can apply undecided and declare their major at the end of the first year.
In Year 2, students can consider adding a minor (4 classes in a discipline outside their own), going on exchange or doing an internship.
Finally, in the last year, students undertake a senior research project.
It's worth noting that this is a very different learning environment from other institutions in the Netherlands; UCR focuses on interactive education with a research focus and continuous assessment.
With the max classroom size of 22, UCR also provides community-engaged learning, a form of experiential learning where students work on a societal issue, learn to engage stakeholders, build resilience and reflect about it.
About 75 percent of the faculty are international.
Admissions
Admission to UCR is selective; about 200 students are selected every year.
However, it's a holistic process, so UCR is not only looking for motivated and academically strong students, but it also wants to get to know each student on a personal level to make sure both sides agree it's the right fit.
For American students, at least four Advanced Placement exams with a minimum score of 3 are required.
Students must also submit a motivation letter and participate in an interview.
There are two intakes; about 180-210 students start in fall and 30-40 start in spring.
Summary: University College Roosevelt
University colleges in the Netherlands offer a soft landing into living and studying internationally, and UCR is no different.
Students get so much more support and 1-on-1 attention than they would at a larger institution, and at UCR, housing for all years is guaranteed -- which is also unusual in the Netherlands.
However, students love its flexible but rigorous curriculum, and about half of the international students at UCR end up staying in the Netherlands upon graduation.
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