Free University of Amsterdam

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam: looking further
Ever since it was founded in 1880, VU Amsterdam has been known for its distinctive approach to knowledge. VU is an open organization, strongly linked to people and society. What matters is not just the acquisition of a greater depth of knowledge, but also a wider one. We ask and expect our students, researchers, PhD candidates and employees to look further – to look further than their own interests and their own field, and further than what is familiar and further than the here and now.

VU Strategic Plan 2015 - 2020
‘VU: looking further’ links the origins of VU with its ambitions for the future and the content of theVU Strategic Plan 2015-2020 The SP sets out the ambitions, objectives and policy measures for the next five years. The starting point of the SP is the VU Vision 2025, which states where Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam wishes to be in 2025.

Freedom in responsibility: three core values
Academic research and education at VU is characterized by a high level of ambition, and encourages free and open communications and ideas. VU stands for universal university values such as academic freedom and independence, which is reflected in our name (‘VU’ is the Dutch abbreviation for ‘free university’): free from the church, state and any commercial interest. The basic philosophy of VU is expressed in three core values: