By: Sonia

At the very centre of Groningen the city of talents, stands the oldest and leading research university in Europe: Groningen University. They’ve earned enough reputation to be known as one of the ambitious international research university. Below we explain four of their strongest characteristics:

Top Quality Education

UG stands proudly amongst the top 100 of the ShanghaiRanking (ARWU) and THE World University Rankings, as one of the best research university in Europe. It’s not just their performance in the field of research and education, but the institution’s overall reputation that led them to the top. Even in the ‘subject rankings’ of THE World Universityrankings, UG belongs to the top 100 in Arts & Humanities (#83), Business & Economics (#76), Education (#82), Law (#88), Social Sciences (#87), Life Sciences (#86), Physical Sciences (#87), Psychology (#38) and Pre-clinical, Clinical & Health (#78)

Also, in the worldwide ranking list of universities by The American Journal U.S. News, based on report from Clarivate Analytics, UG is in the top 100 in the fields of Economics and Business (#32), Psychiatry and Psychology (#33), Molecular Biology and Genetics (#43), Social Sciences & Public Health (#83), Neuroscience & Behaviour (#90), and Pharmacology & Toxicology (#95).

Another important consideration to be made before students enrol in university is the graduate employability — how much worth the degree is in the eyes of the international employment market. According to The Global University Employability Ranking 2017, that reveals which countries and institutions best prepare its students enough skills and competency on entering the digital industry, UG secured the 6th place worldwide. All of these achievements are supported by their excellent facilities. You can explore thefacilities inside the campus building in a 360-degree view here.

The University Library, situating in the centre of Groningen, has several reading and study rooms with a total capacity of 2,200 seats. Law students can enjoy all computer facilities, including internet, e-mail and printer, not tomention Wi-Fi connection throughout the Law Faculty buildings. UG also provides an electronic learning environment, “The Student Portal”, where students can easily connect to their lecturers,and where updates on their studying materials can be received practically.

Students are also given the opportunity to fill their free time with extra studies. They can join the Language Centre, the GU Sports Foundation (ACLO) for courses on specific fields, or the Cultural Student Centre (USVA) for affordable non-academic courses.

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Groundbreaking Research

UG’s academic research method distincts them from other top research universities. Based ontheir top subject rankings explained earlier, they are most advanced in the scientific field. In Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities (NTU Ranking), UG holds the 80th place worldwide, with the best scores in the areas of Clinical Medicine (#52),Social Sciences (#56), Life Sciences (#77) and Pharmacology & Toxicology (#78).

Amongst 2,000 universities, UG sits in the 63rd list of URAP’s highest number of publications ranking. UG also achieved 7th place in the Universitas Indonesia Green Metric Ranking list— a list that draws attention to sustainability university policies, where universities are ranked based on a numerical data in the fields of Setting & Infrastructure, Energy & Climate Change, Waste, Water, Transportation and Education.

The research done at UG spans around three main focus areas: Energy, Healthy Aging and Sustainable Society — fields that are considered important for the future of society. Students are given academic freedom to conduct the research in any way, with the mutual aim to bridge the gap between science and society. UG caters for differences in individual talents and provides opportunities for ambitious students. In support of their personal development, students are provided with a well-balanced,high-quality curriculum across a multitude of disciplines.

Specific programs that cater tointensive personal growth are provided; The Honors College programme trains Bachelor andMasters students to broaden as well as deepen the knowledge in accordance with their fields,while the University College programme provides a cross-curricular top Bachelor’s programmethat is aimed at the research priorities. PhD students are also able to harness their researchskills through the programmes at the Faculty of Graduate Schools.

Vibrant Student City

A huge, research-based university might like a bustling, rigid, study-only place, when actually the city itself is flourishing and full of life — thanks to a quarter of the population being dominated by youths.Throughout the city, students can be found almost everywhere. Diverse faces are seen and conversations in various languages are heard. Even the city has shops, restaurants and placesof worship that caters to every ethnic background. It’s easy to feel right at home in Groningen. The air is clean, the atmosphere surrounding thecity is a good balance between historical and modern, and not to mention the living and accommodation expenses are student-friendly too (see the estimation list of the expenses here). For addition, here is a fun video explanation on why UG belongs to the top three of the mostinnovative cities in Europe — perfect for students.

Find out more about Groningen University on EHEF.ID!

Openness to Internationalization

UG has grown significantly innovative after two things: Allowing a woman to apply in 1878 and its dedication to make itself open towards international eyes. As the university itself states: “Exceptional teaching and research depend on a diverse academic community with a broad range of nationalities and talents”. Groningen is visited by approximately 3,000 foreign students every year, and the university itself currently contain students, lecturers and staffs from more than 120 nationalities. Their website can even display information in different languages, from the introduction to the quick links tothe Bachelor and Masters programme offered in English.

There are 35 bachelor degree programs, 120 Master’s programmes, and 90 PhD programmes taught in English. Many of them include the Erasmus Mundus programmes, an increasing number of double degree programmes, and many more provided by UG’s intensive cooperation with its international partners.

The application process is made easy: International admissions to UG can be made online. Entry requirements, including English language proficiency will vary depending on the faculty of the chosen course.Information on the admission procedure can be accessed here. For a country-specificqualification information, click here.

Are you now convienced to study in this this top research university in your list? learn more about the University on their official website here.