Amsterdam’s two universities, the UvA and the VU, agreed not to compete in terms of the fees they charge students who take a second masters degree, the Volkskrant reports on Thursday.

The claim is based on minutes of a meeting between the two institutions. The minutes form part of the evidence collected by student bodies in support of a court case which they hope will force universities to justify the high fees.
A second masters degree at both the UvA and the VU costs €12,000.
Competition
The minutes state that ‘the UvA and VU must not compete financially in terms of masters degrees’.
Universities are now free to set their own fees for second degrees because they no longer get government funding for students who have already graduated but want to study a new subject.
The paper says the UvA has admitted holding talks with the VU but says the fees are the same because the costs are similar. A spokesman for the VU said the universities wanted to compete on quality, not price.
Leiden and Utrecht universities charge similar fees, the paper says