St. Maarten leaves Kingdom exchange scholarship funding largely unused

GREAT BAY--Scholarship funding reserved for St. Maarten under a Kingdom-wide educational exchange program went completely unused in four of five funding rounds, according to a Dutch government evaluation published on November 1, 2026. The findings highlight difficulties local students face in accessing financial support intended to expand educational opportunities within the Kingdom.

The findings are contained in the evaluation of the Kingdom Scholarship Program (Koninkrijksbeurzenprogramma) for 2024-2027, prepared by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. The program was introduced in 2024 to support student exchanges and internships between the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom and the European Netherlands.

According to the report, the scholarship budget reserved for St. Maarten remained entirely unused in four of the five funding rounds examined. The evaluation also identifies several obstacles affecting participation by students enrolled at educational institutions on St. Maarten, including restrictions on part-time students, academic requirements and the duration of overseas exchanges.

The program has an annual budget of €604,000, with 86 percent reserved for students attending educational institutions in the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom. However, across the first two and a half years of the pilot, only 35 percent of the 425 scholarships awarded went to students enrolled at Caribbean institutions. The remaining 65 percent went to students attending institutions in the European Netherlands.

The evaluation explains that funding reserved for Caribbean students but not used becomes available to students enrolled at institutions in the European Netherlands.

St. Maarten accounted for approximately one percent of all scholarships awarded during the period reviewed. The exact number of recipients from St. Maarten institutions was not disclosed because the relatively small number of students could make individuals identifiable.

Barriers affecting St. Maarten students

The Dutch evaluation identifies several factors that help explain why St. Maarten has made limited use of the scholarship program.

One of the principal obstacles is the requirement that applicants be enrolled as full-time students. The report notes that St. Maarten has a substantial population of part-time students, including working adults who attend evening classes while maintaining employment and supporting their families.

Because these students do not meet the full-time enrollment requirement, they are excluded from the scholarship program, regardless of whether an overseas exchange or internship could benefit their education.

The report also identifies the practical difficulties associated with leaving St. Maarten for an extended period.

Many working students have financial and family responsibilities that make it difficult to spend 21 days or longer abroad. For some, taking time away from employment or household obligations represents an additional obstacle beyond the cost of travel and accommodation.

Another challenge concerns the compatibility of exchange opportunities with existing educational programs. According to the evaluation, student mobility does not always fit within the curricula offered by institutions on St. Maarten.

The report also points to limited institutional capacity for organizing exchanges, including the availability of placements and the agreements needed between participating educational institutions.

Local institutions consulted

The University of St. Martin (USM) and the National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) were among the educational institutions consulted during the evaluation.

Researchers interviewed representatives of Caribbean and Dutch educational institutions to assess the program's accessibility, effectiveness and practical challenges.

The evaluation also involved discussions with the education ministries of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten.

The report does not attribute St. Maarten's low participation to any single institution or government department. Instead, it identifies a combination of eligibility requirements, institutional limitations and circumstances affecting students.

The findings also show that, across the Caribbean institutions, all students who submitted applications and met the basic eligibility requirements received scholarships during the pilot period. This suggests that the main difficulty has been accessing and qualifying for the program rather than eligible applicants being rejected because of insufficient funding.

Recommendations to improve access

The evaluation recommends several changes that could make the scholarship program more accessible to students in St. Maarten and elsewhere in the Caribbean.

Among the recommendations is expanding eligibility to part-time students, which would address one of the principal obstacles identified for St. Maarten.

The report also proposes supporting shorter exchanges and group-based educational activities, as well as opportunities for staff members of educational institutions to participate in mobility programs.

Other recommendations include reviewing scholarship amounts, improving information about housing and immigration requirements, and establishing a central information point to help students prepare for exchanges.

The evaluators found that scholarship funding does not always cover the full cost of participating, leaving some students unable to take advantage of opportunities even when financial support is available.

The Kingdom Scholarship Program was initially introduced for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 academic years before being extended through 2026-2027.

The evaluation found that the initiative has increased student mobility within the Kingdom, particularly among students enrolled at Caribbean institutions. However, the uneven participation rates indicate that its benefits have not been equally accessible across the islands.

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