Transitional arrangements for PhD students

Since 1 January 2016, the arrangements for (external) PhD students of the old Faculty of Psychology and Education and Faculty of Human Movement Sciences have no longer been applicable. In order to accommodate existing (external) PhD students from these faculties (who began their programme before 1 January 2016), transitional arrangements came into force on 1 January 2016.

Those transitional arrangements consist of two separate sets of arrangements: one for (external) PhD students from the former Faculty of Psychology and Education and another for (external) PhD students from the former Faculty of Human Movement Sciences.

The requirements that (external) PhD students must meet in order to benefit from these arrangements are set out below, as well as the procedure that must be followed for applications and payments.

Transitional PhD Bonus arrangements, Faculty of Psychology and Education

PhD students at the old Faculty of Psychology and Education who are/were due to receive their PhD in 2016, 2017 or 2018 are eligible for the PhD Bonus from the Faculty of Psychology and Education under the transitional arrangements, provided they meet the PhD requirements set by the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences (including the completion of the training plan, as approved by the William James Graduate School) and provided they meet the deadline stipulated (i.e. for students with a full-time appointment, the dissertation must receive approval within 4 years, and within 3 years for 3-year PhD programmes, or pro rata in the case of a non-standard number of working hours). In addition, the date on form II (admission to the dissertation defence) must be before the end date specified in the training and supervision plan at that time.

If a PhD student is ill for an extended period (as evidenced by entries in SAP HRM) or takes maternity leave, then the relevant deadline will be extended by the length of the period of illness, or by the length of the maternity leave period (16 weeks).

The amount of the Faculty of Psychology and Education PhD Bonus is dependent on the year in which the (external) PhD student receives his/her PhD.

PhD received
(Faculty of Psychology and Education PhD students) / Amount
Faculty of Psychology and Education PhD Bonus
2016 / €3,000 gross
2017 / €2,000 gross
2018 / €1,000 gross

Transitional arrangements for PhD compensation, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences

External PhD students of the Faculty of Human Movement Sciences who are/were due to receive their PhD in 2016, 2017 or 2018 are subject to the transitional arrangements for PhD compensation of the Faculty of Human Movement Sciences, provided that the AMS logo appears on their dissertation (or, if available, the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences’ research institute’s new logo).

The amount of the Faculty of Human Movement Sciences PhD compensation is dependent on the year in which the (external) PhD student receives his/her PhD.

PhD received (PhD students, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences) / Amount
Faculty of Human Movement Sciences PhD compensation
2016 / €700 net
2017 / €650 net
2018 / €600 net

Procedure for application/payment under the transitional arrangements

To apply for the PhD bonus under the transitional arrangements for the Faculty of Psychology and Education:

  • (External) PhD candidates who wish to make a claim under the transitional arrangements can make this known to their supervisor within 2 months of the date of approval of their dissertation;
  • The PhD student submits the training and supervision portfolio to the PhD Education Committee so that the completion of the training and supervision plan can be assessed. The PhD student will receive a certificate for this.
  • The supervisor then checks whether the PhD requirements and the timeframe specified by the faculty have been met.
  • The supervisor sends a copy of Form II, the training and supervision plan, the PhD Education Committee’s approval of the portfolio, further details regarding the start date for the appointment and any changes to Carlo Schuengel;
  • For PhD students (employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), the PhD bonus is paid out in the form of a bonus using the Change Terms of Employment form, under cost centre number: 2503011.

The supervisor, HR consultant, controller and the next senior supervisor all sign the form, after which it can be forwarded to the HRM Servicedesk for further processing.

  • For external PhD students (not employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), payment is made on the basis of an expense declaration by means of VUnet; see:

The expense declaration must be booked under cost centre number: 2503011

The applicant must include proof of approval (an e-mail from the supervisor in which he/she states that he/she agrees to the payment) along with the digital expense declaration form.

To apply for the PhD compensation under the transitional arrangements for the Faculty of Human Movement Sciences:

  • (External) PhD candidates who wish to make a claim under the transitional arrangements for the Faculty of Human Movement Sciences can make this known to their supervisor within 2 months of the date of approval of their dissertation;
  • The supervisor checks whether the relevant logo has been included on the dissertation;
  • The PhD compensation will be made on the basis of an expense declaration.

For PhD students (employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), please refer to VUnet:

For external PhD students (not employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), please refer to VUnet:

The expense declaration must be booked under cost centre number: 2503011

The applicant must include proof of approval (an e-mail from the supervisor in which he/she states that he/she agrees to the payment) along with the digital expense declaration form.

Reimbursement of expenses for PhD students

Standard expenses

All (external) PhD students from the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences who send a completed and signed license agreement to the University Library regarding non-exclusive publication of their dissertation in electronic form (where relevant with a temporary embargo on publication) are eligible for a standard expense allowance of €500.

This relates to the costs incurred by (external) PhD students in relation to receiving their PhD, such as: the cost of printing the dissertation, the cost of hiring academic attire, catering/drinks, and so on. With effect from 1 January 2017, the expenses will be reimbursed by the faculty (and not the Beadle’s Office as previously).

Additional expense allowance

If an (external) PhD student meets all of the following requirements, he/she may also qualify for an additional expense allowance of €300 in addition to the standard expense allowance of €500 (bringing the total expense allowance to €800):

In order to qualify, the (external) PhD student must meet the following requirements:

  • Start date of the (external) PhD student was after 1 January 2016*
  • The PhD student is employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam or is an external PhD student with his/her own time-dependent scholarship or stipend;
  • The (external) PhD student meets the timeliness requirement:

This means a maximum of 4 years for full-time PhD students and a maximum of 5 years for part-time PhD students (0.8 FTE) (or pro rata for non-standard working hours as agreed and confirmed in a written agreement at the start of the PhD programme).

The date on form II (admission to the dissertation defence) must therefore be before the end date specified in the training and supervision plan at that time.

*PhD students who started their programme before 1 January 2016 and who will complete their programme after 1 January 2019 (who are not eligible for the Transitional arrangements for PhD compensation, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences or the Transitional PhD Bonus arrangements, Faculty of Psychology and Education) may be eligible for an additional expense allowance of €300 if they meet requirements 2 and 3 (bringing the total expense allowance to €800).

Procedure for payment of expense allowance

To apply for the expense allowance, the (external) PhD student must complete and sign the license agreement. Information regarding this is provided by the Beadle’s Office.

The completed and signed license agreement can be sent to the University Library (no stamp required):

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

University Library, AMS Dept.

DARE team, room 13B-01

Antwoordnummer 2941

1000 SN Amsterdam

The University Library will check and sign the license agreement on behalf of the Faculty Board and will return the signed agreement by e-mail.

The license agreement (signed and approved on behalf of the Faculty Board) must be included as an attachment to the application for the payment of the expense allowance submitted in Vunet. If this is not included, the expense allowance cannot be paid.

The expense claim must be booked under cost centre number: 2503061

PhD students who are employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam can have their expenses reimbursed via Vunet;please see:

External PhD students (not employed by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) can have their expenses reimbursed via Vunet; please see: