Thinking of applying to the International Bachelor Economics and Business Economics?
You are in the right place! Be aware of the 15 January deadline, since this study programme is a numerus-fixus programme. Below, you will find everything you need to know about admission requirements and the selection procedure.
Our team of admissions officers will evaluate your eligibility based on the following criteria:
- Your previous education: we look at the level and content of your diploma.
- English proficiency: crucial for succeeding in an English-taught study programme.
- Mathematics proficiency: a solid background in math is essential.
If you meet the minimum requirements, you will be invited to take part in our selection procedure.
More detailed information you may find by clicking on the buttons below.
General admission requirements
To be eligible for our International Bachelor Economics and Business Economics, your diploma must meet certain academic standards. Our admissions team has prepared a list of the most common diplomas that qualify, including the required subjects and minimum grades.
Here is what you need to know:
- Your course curriculum should consist of general education subjects.
- Applied or vocational subjects are not accepted.
- Mathematics should be studied up to and including the final year of secondary school.
- We assess your actual diploma, not its equivalent.
- For example, ’homologation’ or recognition of your diploma is not enough.
- If you are awarded two diplomas, we will only consider the one with the highest academic level.
Below you will find more information about your type of diploma.
All VWO profiles are eligible (N&T, N&G, E&M, C&M). To qualify you need:
- Mathematics A minimum score 7.0 on scale 1-10 or mathematics B minimum score 6.0
- English language minimum score 7.0
Do you not meet these grades? You must submit a valid English and/or mathematics proficiency certificate. More information is listed further down on this website.
Only the following HBO propaedeutic diplomas are accepted:
- Accountancy, isat-code 34406
- Finance and Control (formerly, Bedrijfseconomie), isat-code 34401
- Finance & Control, isat-code 35520
- Finance, Tax and Advice (formerly, Fiscaal Recht & Economie), isat-code 35517
With an HBO propaedeutic diploma from one of the above-mentioned studies, you can apply if you meet the following additional requirements:
- A weighted GPA of 7.5 or higher (both at the time of applying and on the final propaedeutic diploma).
- A mathematics proficiency certificate, see our mathematics requirements.
- Result of 7.0 or up for English as part of your HBO propaedeutic programme.
If your propaedeutic curriculum did not include English as a subject, you will need to take an English proficiency test, unless your HBO-programme was taught in English. (see English language requirement further down this page)
- English A HL (4) or English A SL (5) or English B HL (5)
- Mathematics:
- Analysis & Approaches HL minimum grade 4 or;
- Analysis & Approaches SL minimum grade 5 or;
- Applications & Interpretation HL minimum grade 5
Do you not meet these grades or you chose Application and Interpretation SL? You must submit a valid English and/or mathematics proficiency certificate. More information is listed further down on page.
- English language chosen as either language 1 or 2, minimum grade 7 (scale 1-10)
- Mathematics:
- 3 hours mathematics per week, minimum grade 7.0 (scale 1-10)
- 5 hours mathematics per week, minimum grade 6.0 (scale 1-10)
Do you not meet these grades? You must submit a valid English and/or mathematics proficiency certificate. More information is listed further down on this page.
- A diploma from an accredited high school.
- At least 4 independent* AP courses** of which Calculus AB or BC is mandatory.
- AP courses to be concluded with the external AP College Board exam.
- AP Calculus minimum score of 4 or higher, other AP's score of 3 (scale 1-5).
- Only one AP can be a language course.
- SAT / ACT are not accepted.
English language proficiency
- no additional exam required
Mathematics proficiency
If you do not meet the AP Calculus requirement, you will need to submit a mathematics proficiency certificate in your application. Detailed information on which certificates are accepted is listed further down on this webpage.
* By independent courses we refer to overlapping courses being counted as 1 AP. For example, AP US History and AP World History are counted as one and AP Micro- and AP Macro-economics count as one as well.
**Accepted subjects are: Art history, English language and composition, English literature and composition, Comparative Government and Politics, European History, Human Geography, Macro-economics, Micro-economics, Psychology, US Government and Politics, US History, World History: Modern, Calculus AB or BC, Computer Science: A, Computer Science Principles, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Physics and (all 7) World Languages and Cultures.
- A combination of at least 3 (I)GCSE's and 3 (I)GCE A-levels in accepted subjects* with final grades between A* - C. In total six different subjects are required.
- Only one of the (I)GCE A-levels may be a language
- e.g. English language and Greek are not counted as two individual A-levels.
- Overlapping subjects are counted as 1 A-level.
- e.g. Mathematics and Further mathematics are counted as 1. The same applies for Mathematics and Statistics, etcetera.
English language proficiency
- (I)GCSE English language, minimum grade of B (5)
- (I)GCE AS-level English language, minimum grade of C
- (I)GCE A-level English language, minimum grade of C
Mathematics proficiency
- (I)GCE A-level Mathematics, minimum grade of B (for applicants applying during the final year of A-level education this refers to your penultimate year (AS-level year)).
Do you not meet these grades? You must submit a proficiency certificate. More information on accepted certificates is listed further down on this website.
Please find an overview of the most common foreign secondary school diplomas which our admissions office receives for International Bachelor Economics and Business Economics.
We kindly refer to the above-mentioned general admission requirements such as mathematics being a mandatory subject up to and including the final year of secondary school and that a curriculum with a significant number of vocational subjects is not accepted.
Disclaimer: we do our best to keep this information accurate and up to date. However, no rights can be derived from this overview. The team of admissions officers ultimately decides if the level and content of your education meets the standards of the Dutch education system.
More information will become available by September 2025.
More information will become available by September 2025.
More information will become available by September 2025.
More information will become available by September 2025.
More information will become available by September 2025.
More information will become available by September 2025.
Since this is a fully English-taught programme, consisting of many international students, you will need to show that your command of English is strong enough to succeed in class and communicate with your fellow students. In the overview of diplomas you can review the English requirement for your specific diploma. If you do not meet the requirement, you must include one of the following language certificates in your application for which the deadline is 15 January:
- TOEFL iBT, minimum overall score 80
- IELTS Academic, minimum overall score 6.0
- Cambridge B2 First, minimum overall score 6.0
- Cambridge C1 Advanced, minimum overall score 170
- Cambridge C2 Proficiency, minimum overall score 180
- Book your test early as the results take a few weeks and test slots fill up quickly.
- We do not require specific subscores.
- Your certificate cannot be older than 2 years at the time of your application.
- The Examination Board of Erasmus School of Economics determines the English language requirements for all our degree programmes.
Economics is all about numbers, so a strong background in mathematics is essential!
Your background must be comparable to the Dutch pre-university diploma (VWO) Mathematics A or B with a solid grade. On the list of diplomas, you can review the mathematics requirement for your specific diploma. If you do not meet the requirement, you must include one of the following certificates in your application for which the deadline is 15 January:
- OMPT (Online Mathematics Placement Test)
- OMPT-A minimum score 70%
OMPT-B minimum score 60%
Note: only your first attempt counts!
- VWO deelcertificaat (Staatsexamen)
- Wiskunde A minimum cijfer 7.0
- Wiskunde B minimum cijfer 6.0
- Boswell-Bèta certificaat
- Wiskunde A minimum cijfer 7.0
- Wiskunde B minimum cijfer 6.0
- CCVX certificaat
- Wiskunde A minimum cijfer 7.0
- Wiskunde B minimum cijfer 6.0
Plan ahead! Due to the early application deadline of our study programme, it is important to register on time when you require to pass a mathematics deficiency exam.
OMPT is often the most convenient; it is online and available worldwide.
For Boswell- Bèta exam or CCVX, the registration window is October / November. Make sure to contact these organisations well in advance.
Staatsexamens only take place in the spring / summer. Registering for these in the year in which you submit your application is too late.
Selection procedure
Our International Bachelor Economics and Business Economics is a numerus-fixus programme, meaning only a limited number of students are admitted. For 2026-2027, 700 seats are available. Admission is based on a decentralised selection procedure and a weighted lottery.
Here is how it works:
- Your grades
- Current secondary school students: we use the end-of-year grades of your penultimate year.
- Graduates: we use the grades on your final grade list, along with any obtained college or university grades if applicable.
- Online ESE curriculum-based activity
- You will be invited to complete this activity in February/March, if you meet the admission requirements.
- It is mandatory to participate and judged on a pass/fail basis.
- More information will be available in the fall of 2025.
How the ranking works:
- Numbers 1-350 : best grade average + passed the activity
- Numbers 351 and higher : through a weighted lottery
- Passed the curriculum-based activity
- Your grades (weight 50%)
- A random score (weight 50%)
More detailed information is available through the document* Regulations numerus-fixus and decentralised selection for International Bachelor Economics and Business Economics 2026-2027.
*this document will be published, on this website, by September 2025.
Do you have a question?
Find the answer about application and admission in our knowledge base. Please note: we only communicate directly with applicants when aged 18+. We do not communicate with parents or other third parties.