Hi, I seriously consider going to sudy EU law focused programme in one of the abovementioned universities. My main focus is competition law and I can not decide which of the options is the best. I have almost 5 years of working experience in competition law and I look for a programme which would help me understand it from broader perspective.

Since, I guess, the quality of eduacation is generally very high in all Holland, decisive factors may be:

A) Cost of living, housing possibilities, sports
B) Focus on competition law, teachers approach

What I do not care about is attractiveness of the pace, number fo bars...

Could you please help me and share your eperience?

Are you only considering schools in the Netherlands?

The reason I ask is that there are a few Belgian schools you might want to explore as well, given your interest in these subjects. For instance, the University of Liège runs a fantastic EU-oriented completion law program through the Liege Competition and Innovation Institute. The Brussels School of Competition and the College of Europe (in Bruges) also run excellent competition law programs.

Dear Grandececo,


Perhaps I can give you some insight in the European and Economic Law master's in Groningen. I have completed the first two blocks (half a year), and starting on my thesis.

Although you clearly mentioned your questions, I would like to mention briefly that Groningen is a very comfortable city to live in; everything is close, hence no traffic anytime. Moreover, it is extremely safe.

More to your point, the costs of living depend a lot on your requirements. I know some international students that can make ends meet with well under a thousand euro's a month in total living expenses (besides tuition fee). Generally, rent will tak up the biggest slice of your budget, with the small, far away rooms starting from EURO 250 (this is very small, cheap), and rooms located in the city center with a bit more facilities upwards of EURO 400. When looking for a room, start early, especiallyin the run up to September, which is when all fresmen/women are looking.
Sports depend of course on what exactly you're looking for. The University offers a fairly cheap gym subscription to the Aclo (I think with rates as low as EURO 15 p/y). There are cheap gyms scattered throughout the town. Additionally, there is a variety of student sports associations; rowing, tennis, soccer, are some I know of. The good thing is that, due to the relative close proximity of everything in Groningen, you can go from one activity (studying) to another (eg sports) fairly efficiently.

As to the program. In general, the lecturers are all professors, extremely knowleadgable in their field. Classes are of limited size, and interaction is perfectly possible due to this. All lecturers have their own style, both in teaching as well as their academic profiles (type of research, approach to conveying their message, background); which, for me, is extremely interesting in order to decide which (combination of) style(s) suits me. Every lecturer has been genuinly engaged with the group, and some of my brilliant fellow students have always been able to ask any question. Take into account that you will hear a lot of different perspectives, and thus, it is not a program where you can simply learn some knowleadge by heart and expect a good grade- as you indicated you have experience with competition law, there is usually not a right single answer, but a solid reasoning is what is important.

I would say the 'core' courses having to do with competition law are market regulation and, obviously, competition law itself. The other courses serve as creating an interesting context- eg Constitutional Principles have shattered some of my long-held beliefs on the fundaments of the EU legal order.

If you want to broaden your horizon, Competition Law and Market Regulation will provide you with enough different visions. However, you will have to research and develop on those visions yourself- the course is very much for self-starters. When you invest the time, however, it is very rewarding. Take into account, however, that I had not had 5 years of experience prior to starting the course, so you'd be departing from a more advanced position. Some colleagues of mine who already had some experience, however, have, as far as I know, found the course interesting as well. The level of the course is high, and the learning outcomes involve being able to create risk assessments and policy documents, for example. This will also be asked on the exam, so for me it was key to not merely study, but practice in writing such documents as well.

To summarize everything; the quality of living is extremely high in Groningen, as long as you have your housing sorted; living costs are, depending where you come from, affordable, as long as you've found affordable housing (hence, housing is the key!);sports options are plentiful; the program will give you different perspectives, taught by different professors; competition law and market regulation are course through which you gain a very thorough understanding of the basics, when you invest the time.

If anything might be unclear or if you'd have additional questions, feel free to ask!


Best wishes,
Rasmus