If you decide to move to another country, it is always important to adapt to the culture. Does that mean also the language? well, it depends on the country itself. Luckily for many of us, English is the common language that unites people from literally all over the world, including Holland!!
Is Dutch mandatory to find a job?
The main topic that determines whether international students or expats will continue their journey in Holland always revolves around the language. I have been here three and a bit more years and for the life of me still cannot speak Dutch. I was brave enough to commit to A1, ended up speaking French in my vocal exam, yet with a nice attitude ended up passing and getting the certificate. How? I have no idea to this day. (VU offers dutch courses to expats, if you are interested!)
Either way, the point is that I have been here long enough, do not speak dutch fluently, yet I am thriving and working at a really nice company. At the end, it all depends on your field of interest/education and the company you apply to. There are a lot of requirements for people to speak dutch if the company is not international or small. Try applying to multinational companies and ALWAYS be honest. I know faking it until you make it is the goal in life but not with Dutch.. trust me.
Is Dutch mandatory to have a good life in Holland?
This is a question that I myself most of the time struggle to answer. On one hand, I can survive speaking English in Holland maintain a good social life due to my friends also being from VU or international at my job. I speak English everyday on my job an dutch is not required (unless I read some documentation or news, but google always helps!). However, there are times that I wish I would be back home because it can feel lonely.
The loneliness comes to the other hand, not being able to understand or follow some conversations. I find it sometimes hard to be in a group with duchies that switch from English to dutch out of nowhere for most of the conversation. Sometimes it feels really annoying to not be able to connect or talk with a person because of the language barriers, which can lead to frustration, depression on making friends or bonding with Dutch natives. However, most of the time they are understanding and try to help you feel connected and not let out.
Overall, if you find the right friends that are understanding and are willing to accept you for who you are, life will be pretty awesome in Holland.
Conclusion
Dutch is definitely an important element to maintain a good social life and find jobs in holland. However, it is not a requirement. Although it can be harder to find employment without speaking the native language, there are companies that are looking for international talent and want to retain international students/expats to keep their KPIs and diversity.
Listen, I am not saying to never learn Dutch (hard, difficult, spoken little in another country) but I am saying that it is not a necessity if you really cannot learn it.
FYI
*for those that might feel offended and say “you come to my country so learn the language”, bro, its 2022, internationalization has been happening for awhile, English is literally being spoken more here than dutch itself, get with the system.. I probably pay more tax than you do ;D
