diff --git a/.vscode/launch.json b/.vscode/launch.json
index aa506d012ad..63cc1119fae 100644
--- a/.vscode/launch.json
+++ b/.vscode/launch.json
@@ -30,7 +30,8 @@
             "request": "launch",
             "mainClass": "org.rascalmpl.shell.RascalShell",
             "projectName": "rascal",
-            "vmArgs": "-Xss80m -Xmx2g -ea"
+            "vmArgs": "-Xss80m -Xmx2g -ea",
+            "cwd": "${workspaceFolder}/../rascal-core"
         },
         {
             "type": "java",