As the spiritual home of the Erasmus programme, the Netherlands is an excellent destination for study abroad. Today, a Masters in Holland means studying at historic universities in one of the world's most international university systems.
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Are you a number-cruncher with an eye for what lies beyond the facts and figures? Do you follow and try to unravel every corporate scandal in the news? Do you aim for an international career? The Accounting and Auditing programme will get you there.
This specialisation is your path to become a ‘Chartered Accountant’ (RA, Certified Public Auditor, post-graduate), “In Dutch: Registeraccounting”. It covers all theoretical and practical aspects of collecting, categorising, summarising, analysing and using financial data in organisations. In paper assignments and group discussions we will not only introduce you to techniques and theoretical frameworks relevant to accounting and auditing, we also stimulate a critical, independent perspective toward this fascinating field.
At Erasmus School of Economics, you find yourself in a city where all midsize and larger auditing firms are located. Add our vast and active network to the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you will gain from this programme, and you know this is the place to start your international career.
Chartered Accountant, internal auditor, management consultant, financial economical expert? Regardless of your career preference, with a Accounting and Auditing programme you will be warmly welcomed in a multitude of organisations, for example:
Does the accounting, auditing and assurance business sound like the environment for you? Do you want to know more about what the Accounting and Auditing specialisation brings you? Our students gladly share their experiences with you.
Download the brochure here.
Are numbers your forte? Does the art of controlling organisations have your focus? Would you like to contribute to sound management decisions and achieving corporate objectives? The Master specialisation Accounting and Control prepares you in the best possible way, for a position as a business controller, Chartered Controller (RC) or enrol in an Executive Master of Finance and Control programme.
From Accounting Process Management and Accounting Business Ethics to Advanced Behavioural Finance and Management Control, the courses, electives and seminars in this application-based programme cover all topics essential to a successful career in controlling. This is how Erasmus School of Economics provides you with a solid background and well-rounded education, both in theory and practice.
At the Erasmus School of Economics, you find yourself in a city with one of the largest ports of the world, a diverse multi-ethnic community and an interesting maritime tradition. In Rotterdam, you find lots of companies, both multinationals and more local oriented, all looking for highly qualified and talented people to control their businesses. The need for management accountants, controllers and financials is high. Add our vast and active network to the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you will gain from this programme, and you know this is the place to start your career.
The Master’s specialisation Accounting and Control meets the growing demand for academically trained staff in the controlling field. Not just at management consulting firms or industrial companies, but also in banking and insurance as well as ICT, high-tech, manufacturing and trading companies. Your prospective career path includes:
Are you strong at mathematics? Are you analytical and have a broad interest? Do you have the drive, focus and qualities needed to enrol in our Accounting and Control programme? See what you have in common with our students!
Download the brochure here.
Do competences like analytical, inquisitive and meticulous best describe you? Do you want to combine your knack for numbers with managerial and research skills? The Accounting and Finance programme offers you the best practice-based academic foundation for a career in accounting and finance.
This programme covers topics like Advanced IFRS, Accounting Process Management, Business Ethics and Financial Risk Management. In addition, you can select no less than two out of ten seminars with subjects ranging from corporate governance to behavioural and energy finance, followed by a thesis. By examining real-life issues, for example through empirical research, you will acquire an ‘all-round’ perspective on financial issues.
The Master specialisation Accounting and Finance offers you both a broad focus and the chance to match our programme to your own interests. So if you are looking for a made-to-measure academic education that’s held in highest regard in the field of finance worldwide, do join us here in Rotterdam.
At the Erasmus School of Economics, you find yourself in a city with one of the largest ports of the world, a diverse multi-ethnic community and an interesting maritime tradition. In Rotterdam, you find lots of companies, both multinationals and more local oriented, all looking for highly qualified and talented people to control their businesses. The need for management accountants, controllers and financials is high. Add our vast and active network to the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you will gain from this programme, and you know this is the place to start your career.
Are you committed, ambitious and do you have a profound interest in business and finance? Find out how our students experience this programme at Erasmus School of Economics. See how you match.
Download the brochure here.
Judged best in the field
The highly regarded Keuzegids Master’s Selection Guide 2017 ranked Utrecht University’s Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance programme as the best in the field in the Netherlands.
Our Research Master’s programme in Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance Studies focuses on interdisciplinary study of the material, social, and intellectual developments in Europe (including the Mediterranean region) from Antiquity through the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Within this long period, you can focus on your academic interests by choosing one of the following tracks:
Within each track, you will work with source materials in their original languages, including in manuscript form. The Ancient Studies track has a keen interest in archaeology. The Medieval Studies and Renaissance Studies tracks go beyond a solely historical approach by including courses in literature, linguistics, art history, musicology, and history. In the Medieval Studies track, you may specialise in either Medieval History, Medieval Art History, Medieval Literature, or Medieval Musicology. Medieval Celtic Studies combines literary studies with historical linguistics. Read more about the tracks.
The programme is enhanced with research conducted by lecturers who are internationally renowned in their fields of expertise. You are encouraged to work alongside these lecturers on research projects, and you can spend a semester abroad at one of the many universities with which we have research links. After graduation, approximately 50% of graduates go on to undertake a PhD, either in the Netherlands or abroad.
For those with ambitions outside research, courses are being developed on ‘Heritage and Cultural Transfer’ (including an internship in material culture, e.g. on written texts as objects), and on the uses of the ancient and medieval languages.
The programme attracts students from the Netherlands and abroad. International students find an internationally unique interdisciplinary approach to the study of pre-modern civilisations. They quickly feel welcome in the community of teachers and students and fully participate in the programme’s scholarly life.
This Research Master’s programme will provide you with the knowledge and skills needed to gain admission to PhD programmes in your chosen specialisation; you can also conduct independent research and complete your doctoral dissertation. The programme will give you the skills needed for your future career, including pursuing scholarly research to be published in peer-reviewed journals.
Our programme also prepares you for careers outside academia in management, politics, or the arts. The programme is both academically and socially relevant; by developing your professional skills and your ability to work independently, you will be well prepared for the challenges of the modern employment market. Read more about possible career prospects.
With the Master’s programme Applied Cognitive Psychology, you will apply the most up-to-date knowledge of cognition to situations and solutions for problems that occur in daily life. Students will apply knowledge of human cognitive, sensory and motor systems in real-life situations.
During this one-year programme, you will learn about processing information, especially about how you can use that information to advise clients on how to improve communications. That knowledge is useful for making signage or advertising more effective, for example, or for making products more user-friendly.
Students also learn to come up with solutions for a wide range of problems that can occur in professional practice. Humans are dramatically changing their environment using increasingly complex technology, such as the Internet, social media, robotics and automation. In order to design a living environment that is well suited to human cognitive abilities, we must have a good understanding of how humans process knowledge and their skill at applying it.
This Master’s programme is internationally oriented, from the literature used in class to the opportunity to do an internship and write a thesis abroad, and from the option of attending electives at foreign universities to participating in international summer schools, research conferences or workshops.
Both our lecturers and our students have very diverse backgrounds. During the study programme, you will spend a lot of time learning to work in multi-disciplinary teams. Accurate and careful communication is vital to that process.
Once you have completed the Master’s programme, you will be a true academic professional who can apply scientific knowledge in day-to-day practice, such as acting as an independent consultant on ergonomic problems. As a member of an interdisciplinary team, you will contribute to solving these problems together with designers, policy makers, technicians, computer scientists and business experts. You can also advise on the sensory aspects of marketing communications. As a person with a Master’s degree, you will also have developed excellent verbal and written communication skills to communicate with all sorts of audiences.
There is a big demand for applied data scientists in all disciplines in society, where data is being used for research, decision-making and customer interaction. Data scientist is even being refered to as ‘the sexiest job of the 21st century’.
Do you have an obvious interest in data science and eagerness to apply this science within the health domain? The Applied Data Science Postgraduate Master’s programme trains you to be an expert in current and upcoming data science methods and techniques. You will be doing the full cycle of knowledge discovery research, both by following relevant courses and doing a research project.
This Master’s programme is for those who have a strong interest in, and affinity for, performing application-oriented research and the implementation of data science in the field of health. Our study programme enables you to apply state-of-the-art scientific concepts and techniques in the growing field of data analytics. You will prepare and organize data analytics in health care projects and contribute to innovation in the field of data science.
Moral problems occur in all areas of life: professional, personal, political. Should banks impose strict criteria on clients to promote corporate social responsibility? How to allocate fairly the benefits and burdens of climate change policy options? Do you believe it is ethical for us to use biological enhancement technologies to make us better, rather than simply well? Such problems require careful reflection on the facts – but also on our basic moral values.
The Applied Ethics Master’s programme offers you an in-depth focus on the interaction between moral practice and ethical theory, allowing you to explore ethical theories in relation to actual practical dilemmas. At the end of your studies, you’ll possess a thorough theoretical background in ethics, including important methods and debates in applied ethics. You will also understand the implications of legal and political frameworks for ethical argumentation.
Our interdisciplinary approach offers you multiple avenues of investigation into applied ethics. In addition to studying philosophy, you’ll learn about the contexts in which moral problems arise and the different types of analysis that may be needed in various contexts. You’ll also examine how viewpoints from different disciplines can strengthen ethical reflection and argumentation.
This English-taught Master’s programme attracts international and Dutch students with diverse disciplinary backgrounds (for example, philosophy, medicine, law, international studies, economics) as well as people with professional experience (for example, health care professionals, lawyers, veterinarians, management consultants in corporate social responsibility & business ethics, or journalists). This unique student body provides a wide range of cultural viewpoints through which you can explore ethical dilemmas. The programme offers the opportunity to do an internship with a national or international organisation or NGO, and to participate in elective Master-level courses abroad.
The Master’s programme in Applied Ethics is embedded in Utrecht University’s Ethics Institute, a research-driven organisation that focuses on human dignity and human rights, education ethics, animal ethics, sustainability ethics, public health ethics, and bioethics.
During your studies in this programme, you’ll develop the necessary skills to analyse important current ethical issues. You’ll learn to critically propose possible solutions as well as to engage professionals and other concerned individuals in reflection on the moral dimensions of their practice. After completing the programme, you’ll have the skills to:
There are various career opportunities after graduating with a degree in Applied Ethics. A recent survey shows that around 30% of our graduates work at a university today, either as teachers or as PhD students. After finishing the programme, you are also able to teach ethics to professionals or to work as a consultant in governmental and diplomatic services. Some of our alumni work in journalism or in various NGOs or banks. Read more about possible career prospects.
Through its focus on musical infrastructure, Utrecht University's Master's programme Applied Musicology will equip you with the specific knowledge and skills required to operate as a musicologist within the international musical industry. The programme utilizes reflective training in both current and innovative approaches in musicology, through which you will learn to apply academic musicological skills to the day-to-day challenges in a musical life.
Our Master's programme in Applied Musicology was designed in direct dialogue with top institutions within the musical infrastructure in the Netherlands and beyond; it does not discriminate between classical and popular music. The curriculum builds on knowledge and skills gained through Bachelor's programme in Musicology, with emphasis on both historical musicology and the relation of music with other media.
As a student, you will receive intensive mentoring while developing research and reflective skills relevant to questions in contemporary music production, programming, financing and participation. You will acquire additional relevant skills (for example journalistic writing skills) through classroom labs as well as coaching by professors and professionals in the field.
This Master's programme prepares you for the cultural professional field. You will have developed skills which are required in your future career. It gives you opportunities in both the cultural field and in careers that require an expertise in the field of applied musicology. Read more about possible career prospects.
Our two-year Research Master's programme focuses on the art and architecture of the Low Countries (present-day Netherlands and Belgium), and spans the period from the late Middle Ages to the present day. You will study Netherlandish art and architecture, taking into account their international context. We invite you to critically reflect on the production of art and architecture, and the role of patronage; investigate the reasons why so many artist went abroad and how they became agents in the international diffusion of styles and themes; and explore how artworks testify to the Dutch encounter with the wider world from the Golden Age to the present day. Furthermore, the programme will acquaint you with the innovative approaches of global, technical, and digital art history. In the end, we hope you will imagine new possibilities for the field of art history of the Low Countries.
You will also have the opportunity to study other specific subjects that align with your own personal interests. Our close ties with major art museums and other cultural organisations both in the Netherlands and abroad mean that the academic and practical work are closely linked.
Dutch students will spend a semester in a major art museum abroad while students from other countries intern at a major Dutch or Flemish art museum. You may also wish to study at another university for one semester. To date, our students have undertaken placements at approximately twenty institutions in eight different countries. Whatever your choice, your internship or study abroad will be tailored to your own individual interests.
The Research Master's programme in Art History of the Low Countries will prepare you for further research by specialising in the art and architecture of the Low Countries. Many graduates have gone on to undertake PhD programmes in the Netherlands or abroad. To name just a few examples, alumni are currently doctoral candidates at KU Leuven, University of Ghent, Paris Sorbonne University, LMU Munich, Goethe University Frankfurt, Utrecht University, University of Amsterdam, and a number of universities in the United States, including Princeton University, Harvard University, and Columbia University.
Graduates can also apply for curatorial positions requiring specialist skills in art history at museums and research institutes. A number of our graduates are currently employed in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum Twenthe in Enschede, the Municipal Museum of The Hague, the Städel Museum in Frankfurt, the Printroom of the Royal Library in Brussels, the Groeningemuseum in Bruges, and in the Netherlands Institute for Art History (RKD) in The Hague. Read more about possible career prospects.
Artificial Intelligence is a fast-paced and challenging field that is making visible inroads into our everyday life. This Master's programme focuses on the theoretical symbolic foundations within Artificial intelligence. We examine the semantics of natural language and of reasoning and argumentation. Moreover, we also look at the foundations of autonomy and collaboration between distributed software systems. These are applied for instance in virtual characters in serious games, in logistic applications like train schedules and in autonomous cars. Other application areas are social simulation for policy management and change of behaviour.
The Master’s in Artificial Intelligence offers you an integrative and cutting-edge approach to the field from the viewpoints of Informatics, Logic, Cognition, Psychology, Philosophy, and Linguistics.
Students can choose from three tracks:
Choosing from a broad range of courses you can tailor the programme to your personal interests within Artificial Intelligence.
As a graduate of the Artificial Intelligence programme, you will have a solid understanding of the logical, philosophical, and cognitive foundations of AI research. You will also have a good overview of the main AI techniques and an in-depth understanding of how to apply these techniques in at least one of the areas within multi-agent systems, reasoning, or cognitive processing. In addition, you will have the skills to carry out AI research in academic or R&D environments and to identify how AI techniques can provide intelligent solutions to IT problems in companies and organisations.
The cultural world is in a state of rapid transformation due to technological innovation, urbanisation, economic globalisation, and an increasingly unpredictable sociopolitical landscape. All facets of the arts – practice, organisation, leadership, societal relevance, and internationalisation (in Europe and beyond) – are affected by this transformation. Utrecht’s Master of Arts and Society will prepare you to operate as a leading figure in the global arts, media, and cultural sectors of the future.
Our Master’s programme is designed to meet the urgent need for arts professionals who possess rigorous theoretical and research skills coupled with practical abilities and an acute awareness of the current state of the sector at the local and global levels. As a student in this programme you will explore, for example, the dynamics and dilemmas within existing mainstream culture and its relationship with a growing number of “alternative” cultural practices, new models of creative production and industry, and the ever-increasing role of the arts in social justice.
Our Master’s programme is unique in many ways:
With a Master in Arts and Society you will:
Our Master’s programme prepares a new generation of creative critical thinkers and doers for the global cultural sector: cross-sector cultural partnerships (i.e. between arts and healthcare or arts and development), transitional processes of conventional cultural institutions looking for new audiences, research into the social and intrinsic value of art, and intercultural and international collaborations. Read more about possible career prospects.
Financial markets play a key role in the stability and prosperity of economies, governments and organisations, with profound effect on the individual and society as a whole. Are you fascinated by the dynamic context of today’s financial markets, and do you want to make a positive impact on the future of international finance and banking? Then the Master’s in Banking and Finance at Utrecht University School of Economics (U.S.E.) is the programme for you.
Based on Utrecht University’s research expertise, this unique and state-of-the-art Finance Master’s gives you a deep understanding of the interaction between the economic environment, economic policy, financial markets and financial institutions.
In the Master in Banking and Finance you will focus on:
Read more about the study programme.
The MSc programme in Banking and Finance is part of the CFA® Institute University Recognition Programme. As such, this Master’s programme is a good choice for students interested in enrolling in the CFA® Programme and obtaining the CFA® charter, the designation of excellence in the investment community. U.S.E. can offer scholarships to outstanding master students to undertake CFA® exams at a special price.
This MSc in Banking and Finance provides you with:
Upon completion of the MSc in Banking and Finance you are prepared for a wide range of positions in (international) financial institutions: central and commercial banks, consulting firms, investment funds, hedge funds, insurance firms, pension funds or financial market regulators. Read more about possible career prospects.
Why do people not always act as rational economic decision makers? How can we apply mathematics and psychology to improve our economic models? Contrary to assumptions in traditional economics, people do not automatically choose the optimal course of action, even if given proper incentives. Intrigued? Our Behavioural Economics programme brings you the skills to optimise strategies and policies by including the framing and context that affect people’s choices.
The skills-based specialisation addresses the psychology of decision making. In both mainstream and behavioural economics courses you will acquire both a deep understanding of economics and the skills to adapt strategies and policies to deviations from rational behaviour.
Few universities offer this increasingly popular stream in economics. If Behavioural Economics is your programme of choice, Rotterdam, frontrunner in economics, makes perfect sense. Select the curriculum that suits you best, study among ambitious and inquisitive co-students and benefit from the expertise of the internationally renowned Behavioural Economics Group.
Countries like the US, UK, and the Netherlands, and companies worldwide increasingly use the insights from Behavioural Economics to shape their policies. With this specialisation you can either help improve products, marketing policies, negotiation procedures, contracts, and financial portfolios in business, or design and improve public economic policies and strategies. It’s up to you. Careers are possible in many sectors, including:
The MSc Behavioural Economics programme offers you a solid training in economics, complemented with psychological insights. Our students particularly appreciate the interactive nature of this programme. We gladly share their stories with you here.
Download the brochure here.
Bio inspired design and science are used for innovations that support a transition to a sustainable, circular economy. The Master’s programme Bio Inspired Innovation (BII) offers a unique blend of knowledge and skill training that will support the search for and development of circular business-models and bio inspired research & innovations.
Nature evolves solutions for the societal challenges we face today. Many birds and butterfly species for example, like peacocks, use light-interacting structures to produce colours and patterns. With the discovery of this biotechnology, scientists and engineers have been able to produce colour through structure. BII is aimed at students with a Bachelor’s degree in Science who want to innovate services, products and production systems, and are interested in using bio inspired design and science. You can become the biologist at the design table and facilitate innovations that take their lessons from nature. You will become a professional that contributes to the transition to a circular economy with Bio Inspired Innovations..
This Master’s programme builds on the excellent research at the Faculty of Science and links research findings to solve societal and business challenges.
First year
The first year is research based, while the second year focuses on the use of research knowledge in innovation. In the first year you will be part of an advanced research environment linking to your area of expertise (major research project). You learn to set up and execute research and discuss and report its outcomes. Moreover you will start to explore and learn about multi-disciplinary innovation, collaborative business modelling and design. You will attend seminars and workshops, some of which you will organise yourself, that allow you to prepare yourself for the second year.
Second year
In the second year you will get in depth knowledge of Biomimicry and other design and innovation methods through courses and an internship.
Although BII is a new Master's programme, it has already attracted a lot of interest. For example, the programme appeared in an item on Dutch television. See the press release with the item (in Dutch). Also, our Master's student Brigit van Brenkwon the 'Changemaker Challenge' with her research on using fungi to breakdown waste in wastewater.
Study 3D printing technology with a biomedical approach. Biofabrication combines advanced fabrication techniques with biological systems to prepare designed tissue constructs. You will be equipped with a toolbox to innovate within this multidisciplinary field, and become an expert with thorough understanding as well as operational experience of processes such as 3D bioprinting, biomaterials, 3D cell culturing, computer models and imaging.
Broaden your knowledge in a diverse range of fields such as physics, biology, medicine, robotics and computer science. Few researchers entering the biofabrication field have been trained in such a diverse range of subjects. Do you want to become a truly multidisciplinary researcher? Biofabrication is a perfect fit.
We offer the opportunity to obtain a double degree in Australia by following courses and a research project in your second year, or to gain international experience at various international research institutions across the globe.
