We are very glad to announce that from the start of the academic year in September at least one of our two RBS buildings will reopen. The limit on how many people can gather in buildings has finally been lifted by the Dutch government. Although the social distancing rule of 1,5 meter will remain in place, this means that a number of your classes will be offline again. That is why we expect all first-year students to come to Rotterdam in time in September and join both our online and offline activities.
Unfortunately most non-EU students will not be able to join us from the start. As long as most consulates and embassies remain closed, many of you cannot obtain the visa needed to come to the Netherlands.
We realise this is not the ideal way to start your student life at RBS. That is why we will do our best to make you feel part of the RBS experience, even with thousands of miles between us. Especially for you we offer the possibility to initially follow the RBS program 100% online. This will include online alternatives to some of our offline activities, which focus mostly on socialising, coaching and collaboration: three important ingredients of study success.
Of course, when you finally are able to obtain your visa, you are expected to come to Rotterdam as soon as possible, as communicated by the Centre of International Affairs (CoIA). Contact us by then for advice on housing by sending an e-mail to coia-housing@hr.nl. For further information about entry requirements send an e-mail to coia-admission@hr.nl. For more about visa procedures you can visit our dedicated website page or send an e-mail to coia-studentsupport@hr.nl.
We sincerely hope your visa will arrive sooner rather than later and wish you an inspiring start to your first year at RBS. We are looking forward to meeting you in Rotterdam!