Welcoming Ceremony

At the beginning of each semester the university welcomes both new international Bachelor and Master students to Groningen and Leeuwarden. Distinguished speakers from the university, the city of Groningen and the Erasmus Student Network (ESN) open the official Welcoming Ceremony in a short plenary session, after which students can gather lots of useful information for a great start of their time with us.

Next ceremony

The next Welcoming Ceremony takes place on Thursday, August 28th at Martiniplaza starting at 14:00. Students will receive an invitation to attend this event in the 1.5 months running up to the event with details on the location and programme, as well as a link to register for attendance. In case you haven't received anything by Monday August 25th please let us know via events@rug.nl so we can send you the appropriate information separately.

Movin' to the University of Groningen

If you arrive at Schiphol airport on August 26th or 27th come and say hello to our Movin' to the University of Groningen team who will welcome you and help you on your way to Groningen (or Leeuwarden, if you are a CF student)! Give us some details about your arrival so we can meet you at the right arrivals hall, or to send you some useful information in the event you arrive outside the alotted times we will be there.

ESN Introduction week

The ESN introduction week is another great way to start off your time in Groningen. Get to know your way around the city, find out where the best bars and clubs are, learn about Dutch history, watch a comedy act and learn everything about the transport (even how to ride a bike!).

Public transport card with discounts for international students

The RUG and ESN Groningen collaborate with Student Mobility to provide international students easy access to all forms of transport in the Netherlands.

With a Student Mobility Card you are able to receive a customized public transport card with special discounts for international students! You can use this card for train, tram, metro and bus. Students from the Hanze/RUG will receive, on top the standard 15% off-peak discount from the NS (National train), also 40% off-peak discount in local busses (Qbuzz) and trains (Arriva) for academic year 2025-2026.

You can order the Student Mobility Card from ESN for a one-time fee of €15,00. If you want to connect your card to an international payment method and use the discount on NS trains, there is a monthly subscription fee of €4,50. If you don’t, just use it as a Top-up card. You will be able to collect your cards during the ESN welcome days.

Ben je een Nederlandse studiekiezer? Ga dan naar onze pagina's voor Nederlandse studenten.