How to apply

Students in a room applying for this programme

MSc application process explained

Am I eligible?

Before submitting your application, check the admissions requirements for the programme you're interested in.

Application opens: 1 October for all RSM MSc and Premaster programmes.

 

31 January

 

 

International Management / CEMS

 

 

 

 

15 May or earlier if programme is full

Detailed information about the deadline for each programme  in this category
is listed on the admissions requirements pages.

MScBA Business Administration Specialisations :

  • MScBA Accounting & Financial Management
  • MScBA Business Analytics & Management
  • MScBA Master in Management (English, Full-time)
  • MScBA Master in Management (Dutch, Part-time)

MSc Business Information Management

MSc Finance & Investments

MSc Global Business & Sustainability

MSc Marketing Management

MSc Strategic Entrepreneurship

MSc Strategic Management

Premaster Programmes:

  • Nederlandstalige Premaster
  • English Language Premaster (Online)

 

15 May

People, Organisations & Change

Management of Innovation

Medical Business & Innovation

Supply Chain Management

Only apply for one programme! 
If your application is not successful, the RSM Admissions Office will evaluate your application for our other programmes and offer you any alterantives, if possible. 

 

Each applicant must first register for their preferred programme in the Dutch national student registration system - Studielink. This is not your actual application! After registering for a study programme in Studielink, you must fill in the RSM Online Application Form (OLAF). 

Why is a registration in Studielink required?
  • A registration in Studielink connects you to the Erasmus University and activates your student account (ERNA) at the Erasmus University
  • After you have been admitted to RSM, you can monitor the status of your enrolment in Studielink and also arrange things such as your tuition fee payment in this system.
Tips:
  • While it's possible to register for several programmes and universities in Studielink, you can only apply for one programme at RSM
  • When adding a new enrolment application in Studielink, filter for programmes offered by Erasmus University and use the search term 'RSM" to see a full list of our programmes. 

  • Always choose the option 'Starts As - First Year student'. Only students applying for the English Language Premaster (Online) (RSM) are automatically marked to start as an advanced-year student.

  • If after registering in Studielink you receive a mail asking you to send the educational institution a copy of your passport/ID or your diploma and transcript, please ignore this request. When filling in the Online Application Form (OLAF), you will upload these directly to our system. 

Within 24 hours of a successful registration via Studielink you will receive your log in details (also known as ERNA credentials) and a link to the RSM Online Application Form (OLAF). You can also access OLAF via https://apply.rsm.nl/

Tips when using OLAF:
  • If you have started the application process in Studielink, but did not received your ERNA details, please inform the Erasmus University ICT Servicedesk: servicedesk@eur.nl
  • You can only apply for one programme in OLAF. If your application is not successful, we’ll automatically evaluate you for our other programmes and offer you any alternatives if possible.
  • You will receive updates about your application in the OLAF message center. Please log in to check it regularly.
  • Want to change the master you're applying for? If you started an application in OLAF, but changed your mind about the programme you want to apply for, as long as you didn't submit the application yet, you can change the programme preference in OLAF under the second step "Programme Selection". If you already submitted your application in OLAF but want to apply for a different programme contact the RSM Admissions Office.
Supporting documents:

After you have filled in details such as your personal information, prior education and language skills in OLAF, you will be asked to upload supporting documents. These documents will be used to evaluate your eligibility and act as proof, for example for your language skills (English).

Do I need to translate my academic documents? If the original transcripts are written in a language other than English, Dutch or German you must provide an official English translation by a registered sworn translator. Make sure to always include your diploma and/or transcript(s) in the original language along with the translation!

Your passport (or ID) must be valid up to and including the 1st of May 2024. If the document expires before this date, you must provide a new valid document by the 31st of August, 2024.

In your CV you should list all relevant experiences. The CV will not be assessed during the evaluation, but can provide additional information for the admission staff. The CV only plays an important role for the admissions staff in the preparation for the additional selection MSc International Management/CEMS.

This document is required in order to check on which basis you were allowed to start higher education. An official translation or the grade lists are not required.

It is not required that you have completed your bachelor studies at the time of application but if available, we advise you to include your diploma in the application. If you are accepted to RSM, you are expected to provide certified hardcopies of your diploma and final transcript, by the 31st of August.

In order to evaluate your eligibility, an (official) transcript of records including all subjects and grades you have obtained so far during higher education is required. We also advise you to include a list of subjects you are still planning to take before graduation. 

Many universities use online systems from which an overview of courses and grades can be extracted. A temporary transcript from an online system is sufficient at the time of application as long as it contains the name of the applicant, the name of the university and the name of the study.

If you have completed additional studies such as a 2nd bachelor degree or a master degree, please include the transcripts (and diplomas) in your application, following the guidelines above.

RSM accepts several kinds of proof of English proficiency. With every form of proof, you must include sufficient documentation to support this.

You can submit your application first without the proof of your English proficiency. Sufficient proof needs to be submitted by the application deadline, or before the programme has reached maximum capacity (whichever occurs first).

Add your (un)official score report. 

You can submit your application first without the GMAT results but they must be submitted by the application deadline, or before the programme has reached maximum capacity (whichever occurs first). 

Check the detailed instructions regarding the accepted form of language proof for the MSc International Management/CEMS programme.

After you have submitted your application in the Online Application Form (OLAF), you will be updated on the status of the evaluation in the OLAF message center.

1 - Prescreening:

Within approximately two weeks of submitting your application you will receive an update regarding the documents. If vital information is missing from the application, the evaluation will not continue until you have submitted additional documents.

2 - Evaluation:

If the documents in your application are sufficient, the evaluation will start.

Evaluation times depend on when the application is submitted.

  • Applications submitted in October and December: are usually evaluated within 4-6 weeks from the date the application was submitted. 
  • Applications submitted between January and March: During this time MSc & Premaster applications will be given low priority, as the admissions office must focus on the bachelor selection which has a national deadline. You may submit your application during this time, but it may take up to 8 weeks or longer to receive the results. During this time applications for the MSc International Management/CEMS programme will be regularly evaluated.
  • Applications submitted between April and May are usually evaluated within 6 to 8 weeks.

Next to meeting the minimum requirements for the MSc International Management, applicants also go through the CEMS selection interview. This additional selection is due to the limited number of places in the programme and the limited number of exchange spots.

After your application has been evaluated by the admssions team, you will be notified of the outcome in OLAF. The possible outcomes of the evaluation are:

Statement of eligibility: 

If your academic background meets our requirements but your application is still incomplete, you may receive a statement of eligiblity. Your official offer will only be made once you have submitted all required documents.

If your academic background does not meet the requirements of the programme you have applied for, the admissions team will automatically see if you are eligible for some of our other programmes and inform you about the alternative options.

Offer of admission: 

If your application is complete and you meet all the admissions requirements for the programme you have applied for, you will receive a (conditional) offer of admission. Applicants for the premaster programmes will also be informed which master programmes they are eligible for. You will have two weeks to respond to the offer in OLAF. You must also complete all the listed conditions by 31  August.

Denial + alternative offer: 

If your application is complete but you don't meet the course related requirements for the programme you applied for, the admissions team will automatically see if you are eligible for some of our other programmes and inform you about the alternative options.

Denial: 

If the evaluation results in a denial, you will be notified of the specific reasons. If you do not agree with the outcome of the application, please view the appeals procedure.

If you are offered admission to RSM, you are expected to respond to your offer of admission in OLAF within 14 days.

You can either accept or decline the offer. It is also possible to defer your offer of admission until the next academic year (with the exception of the International Management/CEMS).

If you need to change the response to your offer later on, this is possible until 31 August by notifying the RSM admissions office.

While your application can be evaluated based on unofficial digital documents you have uploaded in your application form, eventually the RSM Admissions office needs to check the authenticity of your diploma and your final transcript.

This step is vital in order to complete your enrolment for the study. You must be able to show us sufficient proof that you have completed the study your admission is based on by the 31st of August.

The conditions are listed in the conditional offer statement (PDF) as well as your offer message. These conditions must be met by the 31st of August as the academic year officially starts on the 1st of September.

The most common condition is the completion your bachelor programme. This means that all requirements of your bachelor must be met by the 31st of August, and all your grades have been processed (including your final thesis). 

In order to verify that you have completed the study your admission is based on, RSM needs to see your final diploma. However if your official diploma is given after the 31st of August, you should request an official statement from your university which explicitly states that you have completed all the requirements of your study.

In order to check that your grades and the courses you have submitted during the application process are true, RSM also needs your final academic transcript (i.e. grade list). 

If the original documents are written in a language other than English, Dutch or German you must provide an official translation by a registered sworn translator in one of these languages. Make sure to always include your diploma and/or transcript(s) in the original language along with the translation!

Students with admission based on a study completed at Erasmus University Rotterdam are not required to provide this documentation, as the completion of your study can be checked in Osiris. However you must make sure that you have completed all the requirements of the study and have requested your diploma on time. RSM will notify you once the completion of your study has been verified.

A certified copy of your final diploma (or diploma statement) and transcript can be acquired at the institution where you obtained them or at an official notary. Certified means that the document contains the original stamp and signature of your institution (director, course coordinator, registrar) or the official notary. When making your offer unconditional, make sure you send us the original document. Photocopies of a certified copy will not be accepted.

Online verification systems (EU/EEA only): If your university uses an online verification system (for example Bocconi University, or HEAR verification with an online provider such as Gradintelligence in the UK), please notify the admissions office. RSM is not able to verify documents online if it's required that software is downloaded before the verification.

I want to have the documents sent to RSM by e-mail: Your university must send the documents directly to RSM ( msc.info@rsm.nl ). The documents will not be accepted if they arrive from your e-mail address. Request your university to send both your diploma /graduation statement AND your final grade list.

By post: 

RSM MSc Admissions Office
Burgemeester Oudlaan 50, Mandeville Building T05-01
3062 PA Rotterdam
The Netherlands

Some courier services also require a telephone number. In this case please use the general phone number of RSM: +31 10 408 2222

We advise you to send the documents as a tracked delivery. The documents will first be received by the central post room, and will be delivered to the admisisions office within 2-3 days. Once the documents have arrived and they have been processed, you will be notified.

By e-mail: If you want to send the documents digitally, your university must send the documents directly to RSM ( msc.info@rsm.nl ). The documents will not be accepted if they arrive from your e-mail address. Request your university to send both your diploma /graduation statement AND your final grade list.

I want to bring my documents to the RSM Admissions Office in person: You can bring the documents to the RSM Admissions Office in person. The office is located at the Woudestein Campus, on the 5th floor of the Mandeville buidling, room T5-01. We advise you to check out the opening hours listed on our contact pages beforehand.

RSM will save your documents for one year. It is your responsibility to pick up these documents from the admissions office, if you want them back. The admissions office makes scanned copies of all documents for our digital archive and shreds all paper copies that have not been picked up on time.

After you have made your offer unconditional, your admissions will be confirmed in Studielink by RSM Admissions Office. 

After this your enrolment is mainly handled by the Erasmus Student Service Centre (ESSC). 

1. Tuition fee payment:

In order to start your studies in September, you must arrange the tuition fee payment by 31 August. First you need to indicate your preferred payment method in Studielink.

For more information about the payment methods, please visit the website of ESSC.

A different payment procedure applies for NON-EU/EEA students applying for a VISA/ residence permit. You will be informed about the payment process as well as the immigration process by RSM from March onwards. 

2. Passport photo

Upload a passport photo for your Student card.

3. Proof of enrolment

After completing your enrolment, you will receive two copies of your proof of enrolment per year. You can use these for organisations (e.g. insurance company, bank) that ask for this information. You can also produce, download and print such proof out yourself via Osiris Student