In Leiden, Delft, Eindhoven and Amsterdam, students have to wait around five years before getting a room, reports Nu.nl. The situation is also dire in other cities. Tilburg is the only city with a waiting time shorter than three years.

The news website asked student housing providers how long students need to be registered before they are allocated a room. The outcome is similar to a year ago, when the Higher Education Press Agency (HOP) conducted a similar survey.

Self-contained student rooms

Good figures are actually hard to come by. Nu.nl only looked at the waiting time for self-contained student rooms. In the case of rooms with shared facilities, housemates can often choose who gets to move in and the waiting time is less informative. Furthermore, students can move to another room, which is not shown in the data.

The figures nonetheless provide an indication. There is a severe shortage of student accommodation. Last week, it was reported that the rents for rooms advertised on Kamernet have risen sharply, especially in Amsterdam. This refers to accommodation not offered by student housing providers.

The ongoing housing shortage is one of the reasons why enthusiasm for the internationalisation of higher education has cooled in the House of Representatives. Many parties believe that educational institutions need to pay closer attention to the influx of international students, especially in cities where finding a room is nearly impossible.

Housing shortage

According to the National Student Housing Monitor, the student housing shortage is currently estimated at nearly 24,000 beds. This shortfall is projected to rise to between 40 and 57 thousand beds by 2030.