What Anton de Kom University does

Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname (AdeKUS) is the primary public university in Suriname, founded in 1968 and headquartered at Leysweg 86 in Paramaribo. Named after the Surinamese resistance fighter Anton de Kom, the university operates as a state-funded institution under government oversight and serves as the country's dominant tertiary education provider, enrolling approximately 3,737 students and employing 422 scientific and academic staff across seven faculties: Humanities, Law, Medical Sciences, Social Sciences, Technological Sciences, Mathematics and Natural Sciences, plus an Interfaculty Graduate Studies and Research division.

The university delivers higher education through three program tiers — Schakeljaar (bridging year), bachelor programs, and master programs (including the MSc in Sustainable Management of Natural Resources) — and operates a Numerus Fixus restricted-admission system for nine programs including Medicine, Physiotherapy, and Public Health. Its core technology stack consists of Office 365, the StudentSpace student portal, and AdeKUS Webmail, with no proprietary AI/ML capabilities or APIs disclosed. Research is conducted through seven wholly-owned affiliated institutes: CELOS, the Confucius Institute, the National Herbarium of Suriname (BBS/HERBARIUM), IMWO, MWI, NZCS, and the Universiteitsinstituut Kinderrechten (University Institute for Children's Rights, established November 1, 2002). Active projects include Blue Carbon Restoration and the Biodiversity Research Education Program Suriname (BioREPS).

The business model is government-subsidy-driven rather than tuition-driven: bachelor students pay only registration fees (inschrijfgeld), while master students pay both registration fees and tuition fees (collegegeld), with installment options and fee discounts for staff and multi-student families. Revenue is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is entirely domestic through the single Paramaribo campus, with go-to-market executed via direct enrollment through the Bureau Studentenzaken (Student Affairs Office), supplemented by social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube), email newsletters, and participation in industry events such as SEOGS. International academic partnerships include an Erasmus+ exchange with Radboud Universiteit (May 2026) and a tropical-forest research collaboration with U.S. academic institutions (January 2025).

Name

Anton de Kom University

Legal name

Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname

Website

https://uvs.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname (AdeKUS) is the primary public university in Suriname, founded in 1968 and headquartered in Paramaribo. It delivers bachelor, master, and bridging-year programs across seven faculties to roughly 3,737 students and operates as a state-funded institution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Under-18 / High School-to-University Foundation Pathways (EDAIAJAI)

Keywords

• Higher education programs
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate degree programs
• Academic research services
• University library services

Headquarters

HQ city

Paramaribo

HQ country

Suriname

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Registration Fees: Bachelor students pay only registration fees (inschrijfgeld). Master students pay both registration fees and tuition fees (collegegeld). Students may pay in installments during the academic year.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Anton de Kom University provides higher education through three program levels — Schakeljaar (bridging year), Bacheloropleidingen, and Masteropleidingen — across seven faculties and seven affiliated research institutes in Suriname. The university also offers student services including a library, webmail, online portal, and student housing. Programs include Numerus Fixus restricted-enrollment offerings in Medicine, Physiotherapy, and Public Health.

Product overview

Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname (AdeKUS) is a university offering higher education through three program levels: Schakeljaar (bridging year), Bacheloropleidingen (undergraduate programs), and Masteropleidingen (graduate programs). The institution comprises seven faculties covering humanities, law, social sciences, medical sciences, technological sciences, mathematics, and physics. AdeKUS also provides student services including a webmail system, StudentSpace portal, and university library. Research is conducted through affiliated institutes including CELOS, CONFUCIUS INSTITUUT, HERBARIUM, IMWO, MWI, NZCS, and the Universiteitsinstituut Kinderrechten. The university operates a Numerus Fixus system for limited-enrollment programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Faculteit der Humaniora (FdHUM): Faculty of Humanities
• Faculteit der Juridische Wetenschappen (FJW)
• Faculteit der Medische Wetenschappen (FMeW)
• Faculteit der Maatschappijwetenschappen (FMeW)
• Faculteit der Technologische Wetenschappen
• Faculteit der Wis- en Natuurkundige Wetenschappen (FWNW)
• Interfaculty Graduate Studies and Research
• Faculteit der Medische Wetenschappen

Products and services

• Bacheloropleidingen (Bachelor Programs) Undergraduate degree programs offered across seven faculties including Humaniora, Juridische Wetenschappen, Maatschappijwetenschappen, Medische Wetenschappen, Technologische Wetenschappen, and Wis- en Natuurkundige Wetenschappen, for prospective students in Suriname.
• Masteropleidingen (Master Programs) Graduate-level academic programs building on bachelor's degree knowledge, including the MSc in Sustainable Management of Natural Resources (SMNR), for students seeking advanced academic qualifications.
• Schakeljaar (Bridging Year) Preparatory program for students who wish to study at AdeKUS but do not meet all requirements of their desired program, providing the foundational preparation needed for university-level studies.
• Numerus Fixus Programs Limited-enrollment programs with selection procedures, including Medicine, Physiotherapy, and Public Health from the Faculty of Medical Sciences, plus other programs with restricted admission.
• Bibliotheek (University Library) University library services supporting academic research and study, available to students and academic staff of AdeKUS.
• StudentSpace Online portal for student services and information, providing enrolled students with access to academic and administrative resources.
• AdeKUS Webmail Email service for staff and students of the university, providing official university communications and account access.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Radboud UniversiteitcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Erasmus+ exchange program between AdeKUS and Radboud Universiteit. In May 2026, dr. Eric Jagdew (lector and dean Faculteit der Humaniora) and Jerome Egger MA participated in the exchange. The partnership strengthens academic cooperation and research capacity between the two institutions.
• U.S. Academic InstitutionscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Enhancing Academic Linkages and Research Capacity between U.S. and Suriname. Includes Monitoring and Mapping of Tropical Forest Disturbance Field Workshop, with application deadline January 17, 2025.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• University of the West Indies: The largest regional university system serving the Caribbean including Suriname-adjacent states. Comparable in academic breadth and public-mission orientation, but materially larger and multi-campus — a benchmark incumbent in the same educational ecosystem.

Direct peers

• University of Belize: Belize's primary public university, similarly small-country, government-funded, and multi-faculty. Faces the same small-population constraints and serves as a near-analogue in Central America/Caribbean higher education.
• University of Trinidad and Tobago: A national public university in the Caribbean, founded later but with comparable applied/professional program mix (engineering, technology, business). Operates similar enrollment scale and funding model to AdeKUS.
• University of Aruba: Small-island public university serving Aruba's population; runs undergraduate and bridging programs similar to AdeKUS's Schakeljaar. Highly comparable given similar population scale and Dutch-language academic heritage.
• University of Guyana: The national public university of Guyana, a direct neighbor with a comparable sole-provider role in a small South American/Caribbean country. Like AdeKUS, it offers multi-faculty programs across humanities, sciences, and professional schools with similar scale constraints.

Regional players

• University of Cape Verde (Uni-CV): Cape Verde's public higher-education system with multi-island delivery and comparable scale; both Uni-CV and AdeKUS serve small island/coastal populations with limited domestic talent pools and rely on external academic partnerships.
• Universidade Federal do Amapá (UNIFAP): The Brazilian federal university in Amapá, which directly borders Suriname. Comparable as a publicly funded multi-faculty university serving a small-population northern state with similar tropical-biodiversity research positioning.
• University of Namibia (UNAM): Namibia's principal public university — a developing-country national university with similar enrollment scale, multi-faculty structure, and government-funding dynamics. Often cited as a peer-institution analogue for small-state universities.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AdeKUS.official
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/anton-de-kom-university

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Anton de Kom University