Utrecht University Motivation Statement: 6 Questions

Utrecht University Motivation Statement: 6 Questions

Utrecht University calls its master's motivation letter a motivation statement, and its own template asks six questions. It adds that a Dutch motivation statement is "generally one to two pages". It must be written in the programme's language and uploaded as a PDF of no more than 2 MB.

Utrecht does not leave you to guess what to cover: it prints the questions. Our view: answer all six, in the order printed, and the letter has its structure before you write a word. The sixth, "Reflect on your academic achievements", is the one a recycled letter from another university will not contain. Skip it and your transcript answers the grade question for you, without context. When your draft is ready, choose the Dutch motivation letter rubric for a free review.

Every Utrecht page quoted below was checked on 31 October 2026. The template and procedure pages carry no academic year, so recheck your programme's own page before you submit.

What Utrecht requires

Utrecht's application procedure page says the document list "varies for each programme, but will always include" a passport scan, evidence of previous education, proof of English, a CV and "A motivation letter". So the letter is never optional at Utrecht. What changes by programme is everything around it.

The order of steps matters. You first start an enrolment application in Studielink. Only then do you receive login details for OSIRIS, where you upload the statement and pay the application fee. Utrecht says: "We will only be able to view and process your application once you have clicked 'Submit' on the final page of the application form."

The six questions, verbatim

The motivation statement template (a PDF) asks you to address "the following issues":

"Why have you chosen this Master’s programme, and why at Utrecht University?"

"What is your experience/what demonstrates your interest in this field?"

"Which subject areas within this field do you find most interesting and why?"

"What makes it evident that you possess the required qualities for this Master’s programme?"

"How does this Master’s programme correspond with your career or research ambitions?"

"Reflect on your academic achievements."

The seventh bullet is not a question. It is the length line: "In the Netherlands a motivation statement is generally one to two pages." That is a norm, not a hard cap, and the template gives no font or word count.

Note the first question has two halves: why this programme, and why at Utrecht. They need separate answers. A paragraph about the city or the university's ranking answers neither.

A paragraph plan that answers each question

Our recommendation: one paragraph per question, in the template's order. That is six paragraphs, which fits one and a half to two pages. The table says what evidence each paragraph needs.

The countercase: a fixed six-paragraph plan does not fit every applicant equally. Two cases show why it bends.

Case A, strong record, career goal. An applicant with steady high grades can answer question 6 in three sentences and spend the space on questions 3 and 5.

Case B, mixed record, selective programme. Utrecht's Applied Data Science page says the committee "selects students that meet the entry requirements, based on an analysis of their academic background, grades and their motivation". It also requires that "you have completed at least 7.5 EC (EC = European Credits) courses in statistics, and at least 7.5 EC courses of programming, covering both R and Python". Here question 6 carries real weight, and question 4 should name those courses.

It also does not fit a programme whose own page adds questions or a form: there, the programme's list comes first and the template second. What Utrecht does not publish: how much the motivation statement weighs against grades, or how it is scored. Treat any claim of a percentage as unsourced.

Constructed answer to "Reflect on your academic achievements"

Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant statement.

Context (invented): Meera Pillai holds a bachelor's in economics from an invented university. Her first-year maths grades were low. Her later statistics and programming courses were strong. She is applying to Applied Data Science.

Weak version:

Throughout my academic career I have always been a hardworking and dedicated student. Although I faced some challenges at the beginning, I overcame them and achieved good results. I believe my grades show that I am ready for this programme.

Revised version:

My first-year results in Calculus (6.0) and Linear Algebra (5.8) are the lowest on my transcript. I was working twenty hours a week that year, and I did not change how I studied until the second year. From then on my results rose: Econometrics I (8.1), Statistical Programming in R (8.4) and Python for Data Analysis (8.0), which together give me 15 EC in the statistics and programming areas this programme requires. My bachelor's thesis used regression on household survey data and earned an 8.2. I would ask the committee to read my record from the second year onward as the version of me that will start in September.

The revised version is 109 words (our count). It names the weak courses instead of hiding them, gives one plain reason, and then points to the courses that meet the programme's stated 7.5 EC requirements. All grades, courses and the university are invented.

Deadlines for 2027 entry

Utrecht says "Each programme has its own application deadline" and that all deadlines close "at 23:59 (midnight) Central European Time". Your statement must be uploaded and the fee paid by then. Applied Data Science is one example; it prints no year.

The NL Scholarship at Utrecht is for programmes with "a start date of 1 September 2027". It pays "€5,000, €10,000 and €15,000", and you "must apply before 1 February 23:59 CET". Its criteria include "Your motivation, which should explain the relevance of your time in the Netherlands and at Utrecht University to your future goals." That is a separate answer in a separate OSIRIS form, not your motivation statement. The page also warns that if you submit "between 27 January and 1 February, any incomplete or incorrect information cannot be updated or supplemented." See the NL Scholarship motivation letter guide for that form.

Before you upload: a six-step check

1. Open your programme's page and list any extra documents it asks for.
2. Confirm the programme's language and write in it.
3. Check that each of the six questions has its own paragraph, in order.
4. Check that question 1 answers both "this programme" and "Utrecht".
5. Read question 6 against your transcript: is every weak period explained in one or two sentences?
6. Export to PDF and confirm the file is 2 MB or less.

Questions about the Utrecht motivation statement

Do I have to use Utrecht's template?

No. The template says "You may use this template, but you may also upload your own document." If you write your own, keep the six questions as your paragraph order.

How long should a Utrecht motivation statement be?

The template says "generally one to two pages". Utrecht sets no word count on that page. If your programme's page gives a limit, that limit wins.

Is the Utrecht motivation letter the same as the NL Scholarship motivation?

No. The scholarship asks in its own OSIRIS form about the relevance of your time in the Netherlands and at Utrecht to your goals, with its own 1 February deadline.

Can I reuse my letter for Leiden or Amsterdam?

Not as it stands. Utrecht's six questions are Utrecht's; other Dutch universities ask different things. The Netherlands motivation letter guide compares them, and reusing one letter for several universities shows what you can carry over.

Get a free review of your motivation letter

Get a free Quick Review of your motivation letter against GradPilot's Dutch motivation letter rubric. It reads whether you answer why this programme and why this university, show your background as evidence of readiness, state a concrete future direction, and write plainly. For more Dutch writing guidance, see how to write a motivation letter for Dutch universities, the research master's motivation letter in the Netherlands, or browse all graduate school essay guides.

Sources

Retrieved 31 October 2026, except where noted.

• Utrecht University, Application procedure (no academic year stated): required documents, PDF and 2 MB rule, Studielink then OSIRIS, 23:59 CET deadlines.
• Utrecht University, Motivation statement template (PDF, no year stated): the six questions, the one-to-two-page norm, language rule, template optional.
• Utrecht University, Applied Data Science: degree from a non-Dutch university (no year printed): selection basis, 7.5 EC requirements, deadlines.
• Utrecht University, NL Scholarship (1 September 2027 start): amounts, deadline, motivation criterion, late-submission warning.