Amsterdam UMC Careers, Salaries & Jobs

Amsterdam UMC was formed by the administrative merger of Amsterdam's two academic hospitals, the Academic Medical Center (AMC) and VU University Medical Center (VUmc), in 2018.

It is the medical faculty of both the University of Amsterdam and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and works from two locations: AMC on Meibergdreef and VUmc on De Boelelaan.

Its careers site gives more than 17,000 employees, more than 350,000 patients a year and staff of 87 nationalities. The hospital says its emphasis is on the complex treatment of rare disorders, and its research is organised in eight research institutes, from Cancer Center Amsterdam to Amsterdam Neuroscience. The Emma Children's Hospital is part of Amsterdam UMC.

For an internationally trained health professional, the key point is that Amsterdam UMC hires through the same Dutch rules as every other employer. Doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists, physiotherapists and other BIG-registered professionals need a certificate of professional competence and BIG registration, which in turn require Dutch at the level the BIG register sets, such as B1 for nurses and B2+ for doctors. Research roles for scientists are separate and do not need BIG registration.

Pay follows the Cao umc, the collective agreement for all seven university medical centres. Amsterdam UMC's terms of employment page confirms the 3.5% rise from 1 July 2026, an 8% holiday allowance, an 8.3% year-end bonus and a 36-hour full-time week, with 40 to 48 hours for medical specialists.

Founded

2018 (administrative merger of AMC and VUmc)

Run by

Amsterdam UMC, the medical faculty of the University of Amsterdam and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Leadership

• Hans van Goudoever, Voorzitter (chair)
• Karen Kruijthof, Vice voorzitter (vice chair)
• Saskia Peerdeman, Lid en decaan faculteit geneeskunde VU (member and dean, VU medical faculty)
• Yvo Roos, Lid en decaan Faculteit Geneeskunde UvA (member and dean, UvA medical faculty)
• Yvonne Koppelman, Lid (member)

Switchboard

Location AMC (020) 566 9111; location VUmc (020) 444 4444

• Complex care for rare disorders

  Amsterdam UMC says its emphasis is on the complex treatment of rare disorders, in cooperation with hospitals across Noord-Holland and Flevoland.

• Cancer Center Amsterdam

  One of the eight research institutes, linking cancer research with care across both locations.

• Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences

  The research institute for heart and vascular disease, one of the topics the hospital highlights.

• Amsterdam Neuroscience

  The research institute for brain and nervous system disorders.

• Emma Children's Hospital

  The children's hospital within Amsterdam UMC, with its own patient and careers pages.

• Reproduction and development

  Amsterdam Reproduction & Development is one of the eight institutes, and pregnancy and childbirth is a featured topic.

• Public and global health

  Amsterdam Public Health and international research partnerships; the hospital reports collaborations with over 130 countries.

• Amsterdam UMC's careers site is published in Dutch and English and says its staff come from 87 nationalities. We did not find an international recruitment programme for nurses or doctors, or a page on relocation or visa support, on the public careers site when we checked in October 2026.
• Stichting Amsterdam UMC is listed in the IND public register of recognised sponsors for labour and highly skilled migrants, so it can apply for a highly skilled migrant permit. Its research company, Amsterdam UMC Research B.V., is listed separately and has its own terms of employment page.
• Amsterdam UMC's International Affairs office supports international collaboration and exchange for researchers, students and healthcare providers. It is not described as a recruitment service.
• In practice, internationally trained clinicians reach Amsterdam UMC by completing BIG recognition and Dutch first and then applying directly to vacancies. Researchers usually apply directly to PhD and postdoc vacancies, which do not require BIG registration.

• BIG registration. To work at Amsterdam UMC as a doctor, nurse, physician assistant, pharmacist, midwife, physiotherapist or in another profession listed in Article 3 of the BIG Act, you must be in the BIG register. With a diploma from outside the EEA and Switzerland you first need a certificate of professional competence, assessed by the BIG register on the advice of the CBGV. The BIG register says the whole process takes on average 6 months to 1.5 years from your application, the application and assessment are free, and registration costs €85. Your first registration is conditional: you work for 3 months under supervision before it becomes definitive.

• Dutch at the level the BIG register sets. You prove Dutch before you apply for recognition: B1 for nursing, B2 for higher vocational professions such as physiotherapy and midwifery, and B2+ (above B2, below C1) for doctors, dentists and pharmacists. The BIG register also asks for proof of English reading skills, and says learning Dutch to the right level takes on average one and a half to two years.

• The BI-test. Doctors, dentists and nurses sit a professional knowledge test (BI-toets) as part of the assessment. The BIG register lists the fee for nurses as €400. For doctors it said, when we checked in October 2026, that there are no test places available at the moment and that it is not known when doctors can be scheduled again.

• A residence permit. Non-EU staff usually come on the IND's highly skilled migrant (kennismigrant) permit, which only a recognised sponsor can apply for. Stichting Amsterdam UMC is listed in the IND public register of recognised sponsors for labour and highly skilled migrants (register updated 5 October 2026, checked 21 October 2026). In 2026 the salary must be at least €5,942 gross a month if you are 30 or older, or €4,357 if you are under 30, excluding holiday allowance; the fee is €423 and the IND decides within 90 days.

• BIG registration for the permit. The IND states that if you will practise a profession listed in Article 3 or 36a of the BIG Act, you must be registered (or conditionally registered) in the BIG register. For doctors in specialist training the salary only has to reach the minimum wage, but the training must be recognised by the RGS or another listed committee.

1. 1

   Check your profession and start BIG recognition

   If your job is a BIG profession, use the BIG register's advice wizard and apply for a certificate of professional competence through mijn.bigregister.nl. It is free, but it takes months and may end with extra training, so start well before you apply for jobs.
2. 2

   Get your Dutch to the required level

   Plan for the language certificate the BIG register asks for: B1 for nurses, B2+ for doctors. Certificates must be no more than two years old when you apply.
3. 3

   Find a vacancy at Amsterdam UMC

   Search the vacancies at werkenbij.amsterdamumc.org/en. Set a job alert if nothing fits yet. Read each advert for the Cao umc scale, the hours and whether BIG registration is required.
4. 4

   Apply online

   Apply through the vacancy with your CV and motivation letter. Mention your BIG status (registered, in progress or not yet started) and your Dutch level, because both decide whether you can start in a clinical role.
5. 5

   Permit and start date

   If you need a permit, Amsterdam UMC applies to the IND as a recognised sponsor once you accept an offer. Depending on your nationality you may also need an MVV entry visa, collected at a Dutch embassy or consulate.
6. 6

   Start under supervision

   If your BIG registration is conditional, you work your first 3 months under the supervision of a BIG-registered colleague in your profession, then send the signed supervision form to the BIG register.

• All general scales (1 to 18)

  €2,744 to €13,171 a month

  Cao umc appendix A, from scale 1 step 0 to the top of scale 18, 1 July 2026.

• Salary scales for nurses (8aM, 8M, 9aM, 9M)

  €3,626 to €5,845 a month

  Cao umc appendix Aa, 1 July 2026. Which scale applies depends on how the nursing job is graded.

• Doctors not yet specialists, including residents (scale 11a)

  €4,642 to €6,393 a month

  Cao umc appendix B, steps 0 to 10, 1 July 2026. Covers aios and anios.

• Medical specialist (MS scale)

  €7,727 to €9,136 a month

  Cao umc appendix C, 1 July 2026.

• University medical specialist (UMS scale)

  €10,032 to €14,265 a month

  Cao umc appendix C, 1 July 2026.

• Holiday allowance

  8% of annual salary

  Cao umc article 4.5.

• Year-end bonus

  8.3% of annual salary

  Cao umc article 4.4.