Student Support Fund (StOF)
What is StOF?
Note: Due to a change in the law, the name of the Profileringsfonds has been changed to Student Support Fund (StOF) from academic year 2025-2026. The old term will no longer be used.
The Student Support Fund is a scheme that provides financial relief to directors of student organisations based on their governance burden. Unless an organisation is not included (yet), it will apply for recalibration once every three years, depending on the cluster (Sport, Study, Gezelligheid, Cultural or other). The board burden will then be reassessed and the financial allowance adjusted. If the organisation is not yet included, it may apply every year.
How does StOF work?
The administrative burden is assessed on the basis of various documents. Applications for the StOF must therefore comply with the substantive and procedural requirements described under ‘Application for inclusion in StOF’. These rules are strictly followed.
After the deadline, CUOS assesses the applications and sends a recommendation on inclusion to the Board of the University. Once the final decision is made by the Board, with the approval of the University Council, it is communicated by CUOS to everyone who has applied. The decision is then posted on the ‘Decisions’ page and includes, among other things, the number of administrative bursary months (BBM) to which the upcoming directors of the student organisation are jointly entitled.
It is then up to the student organisation itself to apply for the administrative grant and distribute it among the organisation's board members. You can read how to do this at the bottom of the page under the heading ‘How do I apply for my own Board grant?’.
The Board of the University annually adopts the Student Support Fund Regulations, to which CUOS is bound.
Application for inclusion in StOF
Deadline: 15 November, 12:00 (noon)
CUOS will only assess applications that meet all substantive and procedural requirements. If there is any deviation from those rules, the application will not be accepted. CUOS holds introductory interviews, information meetings and sends information emails to provide additional explanations on the requirements. Questions about this can always be addressed to cuos.secretaris rug.nl.
Boards are advised to keep their documents up to date every year, even if no application needs to be made. The board submitting an application is always responsible for ensuring that the application is correct and complies with the rules in force at the time. No rights can be derived from previous recalibrations or applications.
Substantive requirements
All documents must be prepared in exact accordance with the instructions below. This means that - depending on the number of applicable documents - each organisation will submit a minimum of 13 and a maximum of 17 documents, unless otherwise agreed with CUOS. Additional documents will not be considered.
The way the documents are to be submitted in terms of format and content may not be changed. File titles may only be changed to replace [year] and [org] with the relevant year and organisation name.
CUOS handles the submitted documents carefully and confidentially in accordance with applicable regulations. For more information, please read the CUOS Privacy Statement.
A complete application consists of the following documents:
0. Form A - [org]
File name: 0. Form A - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: Form A - Application form (Dutch)
Content: Form A is a summary overview of your application. General details regarding the particular student organisation, a checklist of the documents to be submitted, the cluster, etc. are all mentioned in it.
1. Statutes - [org]
File name: 1. Statutes - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: Original, certified statutes as available from the Chamber of Commerce.
2. Extract Chamber of Commerce - [org]
File name: 2. Extract Chamber of Commerce - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: Original extract as requested from the Chamber of Commerce.
Content: The extract contains the registration of only the current board of your organization. Please note that registration may take some time after a board change. Please contact the CUOS ahead of time at cuos.secretaris rug.nl if this cannot be arranged before the deadline.
3. Budget [year] - [org]
File name: 3. Budget [year] - [org]
File type: PDF or Excel
Format: N/A.
Content: Your most recent annual budget.
4.1 Annual financial report [year] - [org]
File name: 4.1 Annual financial report [year] - [org]
File type: PDF or Excel
Format: N/A.
Content: The adopted annual financial reports for the past three financial years are provided in triplicate. These adopted annual financial reports shall include at least an income statement, balance sheet and accompanying notes.
Document 4.1 is about the oldest year, and document 4.3 about the most recent year. The numbering therefore runs from old (4.1) to new (4.3).
Required: Signatures of two board members of the respective year (if not yet signed, signatures of current board members also suffice).
4.2 Annual financial report [year] - [org]
See explanation under 4.1.
4.3 Annual financial report [year] - [org]
See explanation under 4.1.
5.1 Form J [year] - [org]
File name: 5.1 Form J [year] - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: Form J - Secretarial annual reports
Content: Form J is submitted in triplicate (i.e. of the past three years) and in each case describes the policy pursued in the relevant reporting year based on the secretarial annual report. It is strongly recommended that all sections are filled in as specifically, carefully and completely as possible, as they give a good indication of the board load (important for the number of BBM) of the year in question.
Document 5.1 deals with the oldest year, and document 5.3 with the most recent year. The numbering thus runs from old (5.1) to new (5.3).
Required: Signatures of two board members of the respective year (if not yet signed, signatures of current board members also suffice).
NB: It is not necessary to enclose the secretarial annual reports. These will not be considered.
5.2 Form J [year] - [org]
See explanation under 5.1.
5.3 Form J [year] - [org]
See explanation under 5.1.
6.1 Form D [year] - [org]
File name: 6.1 Form D [year] - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: Form D - Summary of activities
Content: Form D is submitted in triplicate (i.e. of the past three years) and shows the organised activities for the year in question in each case. Please ensure that the form is filled in as completely as possible; what it does not contain we cannot include in the assessment of the board burden.
Recurring activities can be bundled by year. For example, if you organise a particular get-together or training session every week, “52” can be entered under frequency.
The number of participants per activity may be estimated, but be as specific as possible. Board meetings, committee meetings and other administrative activities are not included in activities.
Document 6.1 is about the oldest year, and document 6.3 about the most recent year. So the numbering runs from old (6.1) to new (6.3).
6.2 Form D [year] - [org]
See explanation under 6.1.
6.3 Form D [year] - [org]
See explanation under 6.1.
Only if applicable:
7. Form L - [org]
NB: Not applicable to foundations.
File name: 7. Form L [org]
File type: Excel
Format: Form L - List of members
Content: Form L contains the members registered with your association. The RUG and Hanze check the number of registered students on 15 November using the member lists under the tabs “RUG” and “Hanze”.
Members only count in the assessment if they are enrolled at the RUG and/or Hanze. It is therefore essential to supply current and correct student numbers. Only the numbers without S or H in front of them (each in its own “cell”) are counted in the assessment.
Other data cannot be checked because of privacy laws. This data must be provided to prevent fraud with student numbers.
NB: Careful completion is important, because for each cluster there is a minimum number of members registered at the RUG or Hanze. In addition, a higher number of registered members may lead to a membership surcharge for associations in certain clusters.
For more information on how member data is handled, see the CUOS Privacy Statement.
8. Proof paying members - [org]
NB: Not applicable to foundations.
File name: 8. Proof paying members - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: N/A.
Content: In case an organisation has members who pay dues, this should include proof of the number of paying members for the year of application. Here, the item “dues” can be broken down into the different amounts of dues and the number of members paying this amount.
9. Evidence monitoring and promotion of educational quality - [org]
NB: Often applicable to study associations.
File name: 9. Evidence monitoring and promotion of educational quality - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: N/A.
Content: In the event that an organisation undertakes activities to promote educational quality, we would like to see proof of this. This could be, for example, proof of consultation (think minutes etc.) with the programme director or faculty board.
10. Proof operating building - [org]
NB: Not applicable if Housing is facilitated by the UG
File name: 10. Proof operating building - [org]
File type: PDF
Format: N/A.
Content: When an organisation uses a building, we would like to receive proof of use of those building. This could be, for example, a rental agreement, proof of purchase or document from a managing foundation. Any other file, such as a bank statement or unofficial document, will not suffice.
Procedural requirements
Submitting the application is as follows:
Send one email to cuos.aanvraag rug.nl
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with the subject line “[org] application Student Support Fund”;
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including all requested documents (so no link to a drive or something similiar);
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before the deadline of 15 November, 12:00 (noon);
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by one of the board members of the organisation to be assessed.
NB: The address cuos.aanvraag rug.nl is for documentation of the compulsary documents only. After downloading the documents, the email of the relevant application will be deleted - unread. If you do want to comment besides the documents, please do so by sending an email to cuos.secretaris rug.nl, to and from which address all communication regarding the applications will be sent.
How do I apply for my own Board grant?
NB: CUOS is NOT responsible for the applications or the disbursement thereof. For questions you can always reach out to the UFC under ufc@rug.nl as they are responsible. More information on the application procedure can be found here.
You can apply for your individual Board grant under this link: http://www.rug.nl/studievertraging.
Students from the Hanzehogeschool may send their application to mrs. E.M. van Olffen (e.m.van.olffen pl.hanze.nl).
The deadline for the application is to be found within the regulations.
For the application you need a document in which you state how the Board grant months are divided within your Board. This document needs to be signed by your entire Board. Please find a sample document below:
Sample document division of Board grant months
Declaration Board year
If you are doing a Board year in an organisation that is currently inlcuded in the Graduation Fund, you can receive a Board grant. At the end of your Board year you need to upload a document that is signed by your successor to prove that you have successfully completed your Board year. You can use the document below and upload it through the same (UFC) portal where you also apply for the grant.
You can find more information here.
| Last modified: | 29 July 2025 09.34 a.m. |