Students must meet the following admission requirements : 1. Academic requirements Your previous education needs to be deemed equivalent to at least a Dutch academic Bachelor’s degree ( wetenschappelijk onderwijs, WO ) obtained at a research university (nominal duration 3 years). Please find more information about your admissibility with a non-Dutch degree here . We do not require a GRE or GMAT test score. 2. Programme specific requirements The programme is aimed at science Bachelor’s graduates (chemistry, biology, biotechnology, biomedical sciences, artificial intelligence, computer science, mathematics, physics or similar) with a strong interest in biological research topics and computational (quantitative) methods. The Master’s requires proficiency in three key courses: Mathematics, Programming, and (Molecular) Biology. In all cases proficiency in Mathematics must be proven by having successfully completed a course of at least 5 ECTS in Calculus or Linear Algebra at university Bachelor's level, or equivalent. If you have also received training in Programming and (Molecular) Biology you are directly admissible If you miss one or more of the three key subjects, you should show an interest in solving biological problems with computational or mathematical tools in your motivation letter; and demonstrate the ability to easily acquire knowledge and skills, for example by having a sufficiently high GPA (as an indication, each subject ‘gap’ could be compensated by a 0.5 gradepoint higher GPA*). Please refer to this page for more information about preparing yourself for a smooth start in the Master's. * The VU International Office will convert your grades to the Dutch grading system . Minor knowledge gaps in either biology, programming or mathematics will be cared for as an integral part of the master curriculum during the first two compulsory courses (“Fundamentals of Bioinformatics” and “Introduction to Systems Biology”). However, it is strongly advised to select introductory courses during your (current) Bachelor’s for an optimal transition to the Bioinformatics & Systems Biology Master’s programme. Depending on your background, take one or several of: Introductory course programming (preferably in Python) Introductory course calculus (and optionally linear algebra; most important are differential equations and matrices) Molecular cell biology, e.g. a book like 'Essential Cell Biology' (Alberts) Introductory course Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, like Basics of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology Please refer to this page for more information. How to demonstrate that you meet the above requirements You are required to indicate how you meet the programme specific admission requirements in your Application Form . The Admission Board will evaluate your Application Form and decide if your academic background is sufficient to gain admission to the programme. 3. English-language proficiency requirements You will have to demonstrate sufficient English language proficiency. You can find an overview of relevant information to demonstrate your English language proficiency on the language requirement page .
To apply you are required to provide the following documents: Scan of your passport or national ID card (ID for EEA students only) valid at the start date of the programme Master’s Application File please download the correct file from this page . In this file you can see which documents are required to apply for your programme. Proof of English language proficiency (if already obtained): upload your proof of English language proficiency or English language test results. Please find the English language requirements here . After having prepared the required documents, please follow the online application procedure .
All students seeking admission to an international Master’s programme with an international degree are required to pay a non-refundable €100 application fee. Only after you have paid this fee will we be able to start the evaluation of your application file. If you are applying for more than one programme, you will only need to pay the application fee once. Your application fee payment is valid for two years. Information on how to apply with an international university degree and deadlines can be found here .
In this interdisciplinary programme, you combine biology, computer science, mathematics and data science to understand how living systems function at the molecular level. You learn how to analyse complex biological data, build computational models and apply machine learning to answer fundamental biological and biomedical questions. By combining theory with hands-on research, you develop the expertise needed to contribute to advances in healthcare, biotechnology and life sciences.