Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology was founded in 1842 and is the oldest and largest technical university in the Netherlands. Its faculties cover aerospace, civil engineering, architecture, applied sciences, electrical engineering, industrial design and technology policy.

Civil engineering and water management are areas where the institution's reputation is tied directly to the country's own expertise — a nation substantially below sea level has had to be good at this — and aerospace, robotics and sustainable energy are similarly strong.

Master's programmes are taught in English, while most bachelor's programmes are taught in Dutch with a small number of English-taught exceptions. That distinction is the first thing an international applicant should check.

Admission is procedural and mathematically strict; the published requirements are applied exactly as written.

• A secondary school qualification recognised as equivalent, with a strong mathematics and physics background for engineering programmes.
• A bachelor's degree in a closely related engineering or science discipline for master's entry — the university checks module content, not just the degree title.
• English proficiency at the published IELTS or TOEFL minimum, including per-section scores.
• A motivation letter and CV, both read carefully and expected to be specific to the programme.
• GRE scores for some master's programmes, and a portfolio for architecture and industrial design.

Several programmes have a capped intake with an earlier deadline than the general one.

Dutch fees come in two bands, and which one applies to you is the single biggest factor in the cost.

• The statutory fee applies to EU/EEA students and is set nationally each year.
• The institutional fee applies to non-EEA students, is set by the university, and is substantially higher than the statutory rate.
• Set per programme within the institutional band — engineering and technology programmes are priced by faculty.
• A one-off application or handling fee for non-EU applicants at many Dutch institutions.
• Doctoral candidates are usually employees rather than fee-paying students, which is a materially different arrangement.

Dutch institutional fees for non-EEA students are generally more moderate than in the UK, Ireland or the United States. Accommodation is the harder problem here, not the fee. Work from Delft's tuition fee pages for your programme and fee band for your specific programme and year of entry — it is the only figure that will be correct for you, and it is republished every year. We will confirm the current cost and what it includes before you commit to an application.

Delft's funding is concentrated at master's level and is genuinely competitive, with its excellence scholarships among the most substantial available in the Netherlands. Doctoral candidates are normally employed by the university rather than funded as students, which is a different arrangement with different terms.

• Excellence scholarships — the largest awards, decided on academic record and highly competitive.
• National scheme participation — Delft takes part in the Dutch national scholarship for students from outside the EEA.
• Faculty awards — attached to particular programmes.
• Doctoral positions — salaried employment rather than a scholarship.

Dutch scholarship deadlines fall ahead of course deadlines and are enforced strictly. Treat the scholarship date as your real one.

A dedicated technical campus in a small canal city between Rotterdam and The Hague, with a strong engineering culture and an unusual amount of student self-organisation.

• A large, purpose-built campus south of the historic centre, with major laboratories, workshops and a landmark library.
• An engineering culture built on project teams — the student-run solar car, hyperloop and racing teams are a real and substantial part of life here.
• Study associations by faculty, which organise much of the academic and social calendar and are worth joining early.
• A cycling city — a bicycle is not optional, and everything in Delft is a few minutes away on one.
• Rotterdam and The Hague are minutes away by train, and Amsterdam under an hour.
• Student housing is scarce, as across the Netherlands, and the university does not guarantee it.

Housing is the thing to solve first. Dutch student accommodation is genuinely in short supply, waiting lists are long, and arriving without a confirmed room is a common and serious problem.