Rules and application form for permission to replace a MSc Internship with a MSc Research Practice

From September 2026 onwards, it is no longer possible for students to do a Research Practice without approval of the Examining Boards. This means that students can no longer start a Research Practice after 1 May. From that time onwards, students who can’t find an internship and want to do a Research Practice, need to ask for approval from the Examining Board.

The Examining Board only approves this when all the following conditions are met:

1. The student has started efforts obtaining an internship at least 6 months prior to the projected start date.
2. The student can prove that they have made at least 8 serious efforts to find an internship. This is substantiated with sent letters/emails of sufficient quality.
3. The chair group of the students’ preference can show how they have supervised the student in finding an internship, e.g. through contacts in their own network.
4. The chair group of the students’ preference and the student have made a serious effort to find an internship within Wageningen Research. This is also possible when a chair group and WR-department are mixed if the supervisor has a WR-contract.

To prove that a student fulfils these requirements, they need to fill in the Form Research Practice permission (see attachments) and hand it in to the Examining Board.

Additional remarks:

• The wish to pursue a PhD after their MSc programme is no legitimate reason for an exception. This is also the case for student who already have experience and the professional field and therefore prefer something research oriented. These students can do an internship at another university (both in the Netherlands and outside), a research institute or at Wageningen Research.
• Chair groups have the responsibility to help students find an internship, also if the student has barely sufficient grades and the chair group prefers not to use their network. The internship coordinator will keep track of the chair groups that often don’t take this responsibility and request a research practice. When the Examining Board denies a request because the chair group didn’t make enough effort, the internship coordinator will also take this up.
• For programmes that officially started in February 2025: we aim to provide these students with an internship, but they have the legal right to so a research practice in the first part of academic year 2026-2027. They are part of the exceptional cases.
• A (minor) thesis cannot be used to replace an internship.
• Especially for research oriented internships (e.g. at another university) it can help the student to forgo compensation, as many institutions decline students because they don’t want to pay for an internship reimbursement.