As with most universities in the Netherlands, there is no central campus accommodation at the University of Groningen. This means that as a student you will live in different locations throughout the city, a great chance to immerse yourself in Dutch life! Luckily, as an international student you benefit from the help of the University, who cooperate with the Housing Office in order to try to secure accommodation for you for a maximum of one year, ready in time for your move to the Netherlands.
The Housing Office is an independent non-profit organisation. You can either rent accommodation directly from them, or use their help to find your own privately owned accommodation.
As is the case in much of the Netherlands, do not underrate the opportunity to have housing found for you. Some people prefer to try to find accommodation themselves on the private market, and find it to be much tougher than they anticipated, leaving them with regrets that they did not take the much easier route of getting university allocated accommodation.
The prices for accommodation as sourced through the Housing Office range from €280 to €450 per month, with the average price around €350. This includes electricity, heating, internet etc. There are single and double rooms, and studios available. When you apply for accommodation, you will have to pay a registration fee of €300, as well as a deposit of €375. While the fee is not refundable, you will receive the deposit back at the end of your stay, by bank transfer, provided that there are no damages to your room.
When you apply, you state your preference for the type and cost of the room. However, these preferences are not binding and it is possible that you will be allocated a room that doesn’t exactly fit what you were looking for. This is the chance you have to take in order to be able to properly secure accommodation.
At Groningen though you are lucky, as you can receive a maximum of two offers. You can refuse the first room in hopes of getting something more to your liking, but you cannot refuse the second offer. If you refuse both offers, then you will lose your registration fee and your deposit will be transferred back to you. In the event that the Housing Office is unable to find accommodation for you, they will refund you both the registration fee and your deposit by bank transfer. If you do not arrive or properly cancel your allocation accommodation if required, then you will of course lose both fees.
You should apply for accommodation as soon as you receive your acceptance from the University, as the Housing Office works on a ‘first come first served’ basis. Housing is definitely not something you should leave to do later, as the sooner you submit your application the more likely it is you will be allocated a room that most fits your stated preferences.
You apply for accommodation on the Housing Office website, using their online application form.
Once you have filled in the form and sent it, you will receive an email with a link you need to click to confirm your application. Your application is then sent to be approved by the faculty of your chosen degree programme, and then processed by the Housing Office. Once your application is approved, you will receive an email asking you to pay the registration fee and deposit.
Once they have received these payments, they will confirm this to you by email and you will officially be put on the waiting list. Soon, between two to six weeks before you need to come to Groningen, you will receive an offer for accommodation, which you can accept by email. You will then need to contact your student manager or accommodation landlord about your arrival plans.
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