Fewer “excellent” master’s programmes in Dutch University Guide, none at UM

Scores in the Dutch University Guide are based on the results of the annual National Student Survey (NSE), in which students rate their programmes on content, teachers, assessment, atmosphere and career preparation. Programmes that receive two “pluses” in every category are labelled as “excellent”.

The only UM master’s programme that comes close this year is the Venlo-based Master in Health Food Innovation Management. It falls just short, missing two pluses in the categories teachers and assessment. On the negative side, Governance and Leadership in European Public Health, offered by the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, stands out. It scores well below average – two “minuses” – on content, assessment and atmosphere.

Worse than last year

One of last year’s top-rated programmes, Economics and Strategy in Emerging Markets at the School of Business and Economics, performed considerably worse this year. The programme did not receive the coveted double-plus rating in any category, although it still scores above average on teachers, assessment and atmosphere.

For Imaging Engineering, the other UM master’s programme rated “excellent” in 2025, no data are available this year because too few students completed the survey. This is hardly surprising, given that only two students were enrolled in the programme last academic year.

Small programmes

That said, a small number of students does not necessarily prevent a programme from appearing in the guide. Last year, the editors dropped the minimum requirement of ten survey responses to give smaller programmes a chance to be included. Instead, they now look at the responses themselves. If students in a small group largely agree, the programme is included in the guide; if not, it is left out. Of the 61 master’s programmes offered at UM, 23 did not meet these criteria and are therefore not included.

Finally, it is notable that students must pay much higher fees for five of the nine “excellent” master’s programmes in the Netherlands. These are “executive master’s programmes”, aimed at professionals who already hold a degree. Instead of the standard tuition fee of €2,694 per year, students pay between almost €13,000 and more than €38,000.