Dutch hbo colleges or hogescholen are planning to take action to limit the number of international students on some courses, in the wake of similar moves by the country’s 13 universities.

While international students only account for less than 10% of the hbo college student body, there does need to be a better balance on some courses, hbo association chief Maurice Limmen said.

The number of foreign students taking degree courses at hbo colleges, known as universities of applied science abroad, has remained stable in recent years.  Nevertheless, “to maintain this balance in the future, we are taking measures now,” Limmen said. “In this way, we can  strengthen the advantages of internationalisation and limit the disadvantages.”

Most of the professions which hbo students train for are Dutch-speaking, such as nursing and teaching. Some 80% of degree courses are Dutch only.

At the moment, only degree courses for sectors that by definition offer work in an international context, such as hotel schools and the aviation sector, are usually in a foreign language.

The hbo plan involves making agreements on limiting the number of applications for courses taught in other languages and taking action to boost the amount of accommodation so foreign students can find a place to live.

The colleges also want to help steer international students towards a career in the Netherlands and will include language lessons as part of the package.

The proposals have been submitted to education minister Robbert Dijkgraaf who is currently working on measures to limit the number of international students in general and promote more teaching in Dutch.

Some 12,000 international bachelor and master’s students started a degree course at an hbo college this academic year.