Masters Degrees in Computer Science, Netherlands

Leiden University offers five different specialisations in the MSc programme in Computer Science:

- Bioinformatics
- Computer Science and Advanced Data Analytics
- Computer Science and Science Communication and Society
- Computer Science and Science-Based Business
- Data Science: Computer Science

Visit the website: http://en.mastersinleiden.nl/programmes/computer-science/en/introduction

Course detail

Leiden University offers five different specialisations in the MSc programme in Computer Science.

Three specialisations are dedicated to the research areas of the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science:

- Computer Science and Advanced Data Analytics
- Bioinformatics
- Data Science for Computer Science

The other two specialisations are more broadly oriented, and combine at least one year of the computer science curriculum with training in which specific career opportunities in science-related professions can be explored:

- Computer Science and Science-Based Business.
- Computer Science and Science Communication and Society

Reasons to Choose Computer Science in Leiden:

- The programme offers stimulating, significant and innovative research in the field of Computer Science, including recent advances in Data Analytics and Natural Computing.

- Research at the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) has an excellent international reputation.

- The strength of the programmes is the individual approach: an individually tailored programme will be designed for each student.

- The researchers and assistants are easily accessible. Students and staff work closely together in a research-oriented environment.

- Students with an MSc in Computer Science are admissible to a PhD programme.

- It provides students with a thorough computer science background that will allow them to pursue careers in research or industrial environments.

Careers

Masters of Science in Computer Science are not only professionally trained, they also have an analytical mind and problem-solving attitude. These qualities ensure a wide variety of career opportunities.

Master of Science students in Leiden work in a multinational environment and are being prepared to operate in international settings.

How to apply: http://en.mastersinleiden.nl/arrange/admission

Funding

For information regarding funding, please visit the website: http://prospectivestudents.leiden.edu/scholarships

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In this Master's specialisation, mathematicians working in areas pertinent to (theoretical) computer science, like algebra and logic, and theoretical computer scientists, working in areas as formal methods and theorem proving, have joined forces to establish a specialisation in the Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science. The programme is unique in the Netherlands and will be built on the excellence of both research institutes and the successful collaborations therein.
The emphasis of the Master's is on a combination of a genuine theoretical and up-to-date foundation in the pertinent mathematical subjects combined with an equally genuine and up-to-date training in key aspects of theoretical computer science. For this reason, the mathematics courses in this curriculum concentrate on Algebra, Complexity Theory, Logic, Number Theory, and Combinatorics. The computer science courses concentrate on Formal Methods, Type Theory, Category Theory, Coalgebra and Theorem Proving.
Within both institutes, ICIS and WINST, there is a concentration of researchers working on mathematical logic and theoretical computer science with a collaboration that is unique in the Netherlands. The research topics range from work on algebra, logic and computability, to models of distributed, parallel and quantum computation, as well as mathematical abstractions to reason about programmes and programming languages.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/mathematics/foundations

Admission requirements for international students

1. A completed Bachelor's degree in Mathematics or Computer Science
In order to get admission to this Master’s you will need a completed Bachelor's in mathematics or computer science that have a strong mathematical background and theoretical interests. We will select students based on their motivation and their background. Mathematical maturity is essential and basic knowledge of logic and discrete mathematics is expected.

2. A proficiency in English
In order to take part in the programme, you need to have fluency in English, both written and spoken. Non-native speakers of English without a Dutch Bachelor's degree or VWO diploma need one of the following:
- TOEFL score of ≥575 (paper based) or ≥90 (internet based)
- IELTS score of ≥6.5
- Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE) or Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE), with a mark of C or higher

Career prospects

There is a serious shortage of well-trained information specialists. Often students are offered a job before they have actually finished their study. About 20% of our graduates choose to go on to do a PhD but most find jobs as systems builders, ICT specialists or ICT managers in the private sector or within government.

Our approach to this field

In this Master's specialisation, mathematicians working in areas pertinent to (theoretical) computer science, like algebra and logic, and theoretical computer scientists, working in areas as formal methods and theorem proving, have joined forces to establish a specialisation in the Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science. The programme is unique in the Netherlands and will be built on the excellence of both research institutes and the successful collaborations therein.

The emphasis of the Master's is on a combination of a genuine theoretical and up-to-date foundation in the pertinent mathematical subjects combined with an equally genuine and up-to-date training in key aspects of theoretical computer science. For this reason, the mathematics courses in this curriculum concentrate on Algebra, General Topology, Logic, Number Theory, and Combinatorics. The computer science courses concentrate on Formal Methods, Type Theory, Category Theory, Coalgebra and Theorem Proving.

Our research in this field

Within both institutes, ICIS and WINST, there is a concentration of researchers working on mathematical logic and theoretical computer science with a collaboration that is unique in the Netherlands. The research topics range from work on algebra, logic and computability, to models of distributed, parallel and quantum computation, as well as mathematical abstractions to reason about programmes and programming languages.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/mathematics/foundations

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A solid, theoretical understanding of computer technology with plenty of attention for the wide range of ICT applications.

The enormous and rapidly growing power of ICT is the main driving force shaping our modern society. This goes beyond the technical and economical aspects. ICT is also essential in research as all sciences benefit from the raw power of software in processing huge quantities of data. But how do we manage and control the complexity of modern software? How can we make the most of the opportunities? And, not to be forgotten, how can we secure the ICT infrastructures we so heavily rely on? The Master’s programme in Computing Science covers all these aspects.

We offer specialisations in each terrain: security, software, data and the mathematics at the base of it all. These are not, however, isolated disciplines. We also look at the interesting interplay between them. For example, by taking privacy into account when dealing with big data. And by doing a thorough analysis of newly designed software to prevent security breaches later. Thanks to a large number of optional courses, you can decide where you want your focus to be.

The job opportunities in computer science are excellent: many of our students get offered jobs before they’ve even graduated and almost all have positions within six months after graduating. Many of our graduates find jobs as systems builders, ICT specialists or ICT managers and a few continue as researchers.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/computingscience

Specialisations

- Cyber Security
You’ll learn to assess the security of existing ICT solutions, and how to develop more secure solutions for the future. This specialisation is offered in collaboration with the Eindhoven University of Technology, meaning you get taught by many of the best cyber security experts in the country.

- Data Science
You’ll learn how to turn real-world data sets into tools and useful insights, with the help of software and algorithms. Radboud University and the iCIS research institute are leading in research on legal and privacy aspects of data science and on the societal and administrative impact of data science.

- Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science
You’ll come to understand the fundamental mathematical concepts of computation and information in order to stretch the boundaries of computer technology. We’re the only specialisation in the country – and one of the few in the world – to focus on the theoretical and abstract playing field linking mathematics and computer science.

- Software Science
You’ll learn how to design high-level software that guarantees safety while controlling its complexity. At Radboud University, we are specialised in model based development. In other words, writing and testing code before they are unleashed in the real world or built into an expensive prototype.

- Societal Master's specialisations
You can either follow one of the above-mentioned research Master's specialisations as a whole (2 years), or you can combine the first year of the research specialisation with an additional year of one of the societal Master’s specialisations, namely:
- Science in Society
- Science, Management and Innovation

Why study Computing Science at Radboud University?

- All of our specialisations are closely related to the research carried out within the Institute for Computing and Information Science (iCIS).
- Our approach is pragmatic as well as theoretical. As an academic, we don’t just expect you to understand and make use of the appropriate tools, but also to program and develop your own.
- There are plenty of high profile companies in the vicinity such as Philips and ASML, where you could do an internship or the research for your Master’s project.
- Exceptional students who choose the Data Science specialisation have the opportunity to do a double degree in Computing Science together with the specialisation in Web and Language Interaction (Artificial Intelligence). This will take three instead of two years.

Career prospects

There is a serious shortage of well-trained information specialists. Often students are offered a job before they have actually finished their study. About 20% of our graduates choose to go on to do a PhD but most find jobs as systems builders, ICT specialists or ICT managers in the private sector or within government.

Our research in this field

The Institute for Computing and Information Science (iCIS) is the research institute that is connected to Radboud University. Within this institute there are three research sections:
- Model Based System Development
- Digital Security
- Intelligent Systems

Within each research section there are different departments/groups that have their own research. On the websites of the research sections you will find more information about their research, publications, the departments/groups and contact information.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/computingscience

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Rapid changes in information and communication technology and its applications over recent years have caused major changes for individuals, organisations and industries. The internet, and information systems and communication technology in general, have radically impacted our personal and professional lives. New business models have emerged, as well as new types of entrepreneurship and new forms of leadership.

This two-year programme aims at providing a deeper understanding of the issues, challenges and opportunities in this area, with a specific focus on the alignment of ICT and management. The programme combines the knowledge and expertise of the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) with those of professionals from the field.

Visit the website: http://en.mastersinleiden.nl/programmes/ict-in-business/en/introduction

Course detail

The ICT in Business programme consists of around 20 courses and a 38ects thesis project. The master’s thesis research project is not necessarily but often based on an in-company project.

The courses cover business fundamentals, core ICT & Business topics, research related courses and electives:

Business Fundamentals
A set of courses that will bring students onto a basic level of business understanding. Examples: Marketing, Finance and Managing People.

Core courses: ICT in Complex Organisations
Advanced courses that focus on the interrelationship between organizational processes, management and ICT. Examples: ICT Architectures, Strategy and Software Engineering.

Research Courses
Courses to develop research skills, necessary for your master thesis research project. This project is not necessarily, but often based on an in-company project in a complex organization like a Governmental Institution, a multinational or a bank. Duration: 6 months.

Electives
The electives allow you to individualize your programme and accommodate special interests. Examples: ICT in the Public sector, legal aspects of ICT and Data Driven Marketing. Taking electives abroad is encouraged.

The programme schedule is intense, allowing participants to complete the programme (regular course load: two academic years) in around 22 months of full-time study.

Reasons to Choose ICT in Business in Leiden:

1. The programme offers a managerial focus on ICT and Business, combining the reputation of the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) with that of the RSM Erasmus University (ranked in the top-3 in Europe)

2. Both the faculty and the department have a strong international focus:

– world-class international faculty and focus on global issues
– small groups (30 students), diverse international student population (50%)
– cross-cultural team work
– study-abroad exchange and in-company research thesis opportunities

3. This master’s offers a seamless transition from most bachelor’s programmes in Computer Science.

4. Graduates of the master’s programme have excellent career opportunities, and typically multiple employment offers upon graduation.

5. Students benefit from the department’s strong links to industry with guest lectures, in-company research projects and placement opportunities.

Careers

After finishing M.Sc. ICT in Business, job opportunities are excellent and diverse, ranging from consultancy to IT management and from entrepreneurship to PhD research. Graduates of our programme are particularly suitable for a career path leading to Chief Information Officer in large organisations. They have found jobs in all the above categories, both within Europe and outside, in industry, government and universities.

How to apply: http://en.mastersinleiden.nl/arrange/admission

Funding

For information regarding funding, please visit the website: http://prospectivestudents.leiden.edu/scholarships

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Game and Media Technology

This Master's programme concentrates on the technological aspects of gaming and multimedia in the context of computer science, with a unique thematic focus for research-minded students.

Gaming and multimedia have assumed an important place in our society, giving rise to a booming industry with turnovers exceeding the entertainment movie industry and leaps in computer software and hardware development. Advances show no sign of slackening with new types of games and hardware reaching the market regularly. Moreover, the value of games as an educational tool is increasingly being recognised and the integration of multimedia tools into everyday life is still continuing, creating fertile grounds for those with a high-level degree in the area of Game and Media Technology.

The research field deals with modelling virtual worlds, creating characters and behaviour, generating effective scenarios, building multi-sensory interfaces and redesigning didactic concepts. Simulating the physics, biology and psychology of the real world and bringing it to life in multi-sensory simulations are major challenges on their own. In this context, media technology plays an important part as it deals with the effective transfer of information using audio, speech, sound, and music, video, 3D objects, interactive virtual environments.

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How can we develop secure and robust software? How can we teach computers to see? How can we make our software easily adaptable to new tasks? How do we improve learning by computers?

If you find these questions fascinating, you should choose the Master's degree programme in Computing Science in Groningen. This programme deals with both the theoretical and the practical aspects of computing.

You will develop and increase your in-depth knowledge within the areas of Distributed Systems, Software Engineering, Intelligent Systems, Computational Science and Visualization. Most courses offer insightful lectures covering both theory and practice. Apart from acquiring core computer science skills, mathematics and research methodology are also important.

In student colloquia research and presentation skills are developed. For those aiming to go into business rather than academia, project management and related topics are also offered. All skills acquired are actively used in research projects, either within the university or during business and industrial internships.

Because computer science is pivotal in many areas of research, students can easily participate in one of many research collaborations with other fields, such as bioinformatics, medicine and astronomy. In addition, contacts with many businesses facilitate internships in a variety of fields, matching the interests of most students.

Why in Groningen?

- Excellent computing facilities: Virtual Reality Cube, 12000+ processor, STELLA Blue-Gene type supercomputer, world's biggest touch screen
- Also offers Computational Science and Visualisation, in particular 3-D medical imagining

Job perspectives

Having completed the Master's degree programme in Computing Science, you will be spoilt for choice regarding future employment. There are hardly any areas of business or research which do not require computer scientists, either software engineers and architects, or researchers. Usually our students are offered suitable jobs within one month of graduating (or even before graduating).

After graduating, most of our alumni move on to software companies (or found their own) or to academia, usually by entering into PhD programmes.

Those in industry are generally promoted to managerial roles after a few years and, for example, become project managers.In academia the usual path is from PhD via post-doctoral researcher to university staff member, though quite a few of our successful PhD students have moved on to industry as well. Many MSc and PhD students have gone into the field of medical imaging, either at various universities or in the research labs of large companies. More and more are moving into bioinformatics.

Job examples

- PhD research position
- Work for a software company
- Medical imaging
- Bioinformatics

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Computing Science

Students will be provided with a strong foundation in the concepts, analysis techniques, and design methods underlying the development of modern information and software systems.

Tracks

Within the programme, you can select one of four tracks:
-Programming Technology
-Algorithm Design and Analysis
-Advanced Planning and Decision Making
-Algorithmic Data Analysis

Graduates qualify for PhD studies in the areas of the thematic focus areas and in a broad range of other subareas of computer science. Next to this our graduates are also in demand and find jobs in a great variety of industries and companies, such as:

KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines)
Google and
Philips.

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Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence

Are you interested in applications of Artificial Intelligence in communication techniques? Are you triggered by the question of how human reasoning can be represented in computer systems? Would you like to work for a company like Google or Philips? Then our interdisciplinary Master’s track Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence is your right choice!

The CSAI program draws on breakthrough discoveries and insights in the two closely related scientific disciplines Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence. Cognitive Science is the study of human reasoning, emotions, language, perception, attention, and memory. Artificial Intelligence is the study and design of computers and software that are capable of intelligent behavior.

Are you interested in applications of Artificial Intelligence in communication techniques? Are you triggered by the question of how human reasoning can be represented in computer systems? Would you like to work for a company like Google or Philips? Then our interdisciplinary Master’s track Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence is your right choice!

The CSAI program draws on breakthrough discoveries and insights in the two closely related scientific disciplines Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence. Cognitive Science is the study of human reasoning, emotions, language, perception, attention, and memory. Artificial Intelligence is the study and design of computers and software that are capable of intelligent behavior.

Career Prospects Communication Design

Graduates will be able to contribute to advancements in working fields like artificial intelligence and robotics, data science, data mining, knowledge technology and decision support systems.

This is a small selection of positions you may apply for after you have completed your programme:

•Intelligent Software Developer

•Web Analyst

•Social Media Analyst

•Data Journalist

•Social Robot Developer

•Web Data Entrepreneur

•E-Health and Healthcare Quality Analyst

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Learning how to turn real-world data sets into tools and useful insights, with the help of software and algorithms.

Data plays a role in almost every scientific discipline, business industry or social organisation. Medical scientists sequence human genomes, astronomers generate terabytes of data per hour with huge telescopes and the police employ seismology-like data models that predict where crimes will occur. And of course, businesses like Google and Amazon are shifting user preference data to fulfil desires we don’t even know we have. There is therefore an urgent need for data scientists in whole array of fields. In the Master’s specialisation in Data Science you’ll learn how to turn data into knowledge with the help of computers and how to translate that knowledge into solutions.

Although this Master’s is an excellent stepping-stone for students with ambitions in research, most of our graduates work as data consultants and data analysts for commercial companies and governmental organisations.

Why study Data Science at Radboud University?

- This specialisation builds on the strong international reputation of the Institute for Computing and Information Sciences (iCIS) in areas such as machine learning, probabilistic modelling, and information retrieval.
- We’re leading in research on legal and privacy aspects of data science and on the impact of data science on society and policy.
- Our approach is pragmatic as well as theoretical. As an academic, we don’t just expect you to understand and make use of the appropriate tools, but also to program and develop your own.
- Because of its relevance to all kinds of different disciplines, we offer our students the chance to take related courses at other departments like at language studies (information retrieval and natural language processing), artificial intelligence (machine learning for cognitive neuroscience), chemistry (pattern recognition and chemometrics) and biophysics (machine learning and optimal control).
- The job opportunities are excellent: some of our students get offered jobs before they’ve even graduated and almost all of our graduates have positions within six months after graduating.
- Exceptional students who choose this specialisation have the opportunity to study for a double degree in Computing Science together with the specialisation in Web and Language Interaction (Artificial Intelligence). This will take three instead of two years.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/datascience

Admission requirements for international students

- A proficiency in English
In order to take part in the programme, you need to have fluency in English, both written and spoken. Non-native speakers of English without a Dutch Bachelor's degree or VWO diploma need one of the following:
- TOEFL score of >550 (paper based) or >213 (computer based) or >80 (internet based)
- IELTS score of >6.0
- Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE) or Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE), with a mark of C or higher

Career prospects

A professional data scientist has fine problem-solving, analytical, programming, and communication skills. He or she applies those skills to analyse a problem in the light of the available real-world data:
- To come up with a creative and useful solution.
- To find or program the right tool to turn the data into knowledge.
- To communicate the obtained findings to others.

By combining data, computing power and human intellect, data scientists can make a real difference to help and improve our society.

The job perspective for our graduates is excellent. Industry desperately needs data science specialists at an academic level, and thus our graduates have no difficulty in find an interesting and challenging job. A few of our graduates decide to go for a PhD and stay at the university, but most of our students go for a career in industry. They then typically either find a job at a larger company as consultant or data analysis, or start up their own company in data analytics.

Examples of companies where our graduates end up include SMEs like Orikami, Media11 and FlexOne, and multinationals like ING Bank, Philips, ASML, Capgemini, Booking.com and perhaps even Google.

Our approach to this field

Data nowadays plays a role in almost every scientific discipline as well as industry and is rapidly becoming a key driver of scientific discoveries, business innovation, and solutions for societal challenges such as better healthcare. Medical scientists are sequencing and analysing human genomes to uncover clues to infections, cancer, and other diseases. With huge telescopes, astronomers generate terabytes of data per hour to study the formation of galaxies and the evolution of quasars. Businesses like Google and Amazon are sifting social networking and user preference data to fulfill desires we don't even know we have. Police employing seismology-like data models can predict where crimes will occur and prevent them from happening.

It is then with good reason that data science has been called the sexiest job of the 21st century. Many companies complain about the difficulty to find skilled data scientists and predict this to be even harder in the future. A professional data scientist has fine problem-solving, analytical, programming, and communication skills. He or she applies those skills to analyse a problem in the light of the available real-world data, to come up with a creative and useful solution, to find or program the right tool to turn the data into knowledge, and to communicate the obtained findings to others. By combining data, computing power and human intellect, data scientists can make a real difference to help and improve our society.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/datascience

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Overview

What happens in the world of business and public administration? How is innovation managed in company strategies? How does government design policy? How can innovation and policy address sustainability, health, energy and IT security issues?

Both the public sector and businesses struggle with the question of how to address sustainability, health, energy and IT security issues. Many of the challenges that society faces are rooted in the natural or computer sciences but have strong links to other disciplines. Solutions require scientists with an additional understanding of the societal aspects of these problems, and the ability to speak the language of and work with all possible stakeholders like scientists, civil servants and politicians.

In the Master's in Science, Management and Innovation you will broaden your scientific knowledge and learn the skills you can use to make a direct contribution to society.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/science/smi

Flexible and specialised

This specialisation is available in the Master's in Biology, Chemistry, Computing Sciences, Mathematics, Medical Biology, Molecular Life Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, and Science. Students gain advanced knowledge in their preferred science, and also choose a theme to structure their programme to gain specialised skills in one aspect of science management and innovation.

Career prospects

Master’s students who complete this specialisation end up in a number of different positions, such as government policy officer, Research & Development manager in a company, Sales manager in a company, or Project manager at a research institute or knowledge centre.

Skills that you acquire could also prepare you for a career in a large consultancy company, such as Accenture or McKinsey. Several of our graduates have gone on to become entrepreneurs and start their own company, but others work for civil society organisations or applied research for society.

Our research in this field

During your research project, you’ll work outside of the university in a company or organisation on a real-world research problem in your chosen theme.

The Nijmegen approach

The first thing you will notice as you enter our Faculty of Science is the open atmosphere. This is reflected by the light and transparent building and the open minded spirit of the working, exploring and studying people that you will meet there. No wonder students from all over the world have been attracted to Nijmegen. You study in small groups, in direct and open contact with members of the staff. In addition, Nijmegen has excellent student facilities, such as high-tech laboratories, libraries and study ‘landscapes'.

Studying by the ‘Nijmegen approach' is a way of living. We will equip you with tools which are valuable for the rest of your life. You will be challenged to become aware of your intrinsic motivation. In other words, what is your passion in life? With this question in mind we will guide you to translate your passion into a personal Master's programme.

Quality Label

Radboud University was rated Best General University in the Netherlands in the Keuzegids Masters 2017 (Guide to Master's programmes)

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/science/smi

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Learn how to create artificial information systems that mimic biological systems as well as how to use theoretical insights from AI to better understand cognitive processing in humans.
The human brain is a hugely complex machine that is able to perform tasks that are vastly beyond current capabilities of artificial systems. Understanding the brain has always been a source of inspiration for developing artificially intelligent agents and has led to some of the defining moments in the history of AI. At the same time, theoretical insights from artificial intelligence provide new ways to understand and probe neural information processing in biological systems.
On the one hand, the Master’s in Computation in Neural and Artificial Systems addresses how models based on neural information processing can be used to develop artificial systems, probing of human information processing in closed-loop online settings, as well as the development of new machine learning techniques to better understand human brain function.
On the other hand it addresses various ways of modelling and understanding cognitive processing in humans. These range from abstract mathematical models of learning that are derived from Bayesian statistics, complexity theory and optimal control theory to neural information processing systems such as neural networks that simulate particular cognitive functions in a biologically inspired manner. We also look at new groundbreaking areas in the field of AI, like brain computer interfacing and deep learning.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/computation

Why study Computation in Neural and Artificial Systems at Radboud University?
- Our cognitive focus leads to a highly interdisciplinary AI programme where students gain skills and knowledge from a number of different areas such as mathematics, computer science, psychology and neuroscience combined with a core foundation of artificial intelligence.

- Together with the world-renowned Donders Institute, the Behavioural Science Institute and various other leading research centres in Nijmegen, we train our students to become excellent researchers in AI.

- Master’s students are free to use the state-of-the-art facilities available on campus, like equipment for brain imaging as EEG, fMRI and MEG.

- Exceptional students who choose this specialisation have the opportunity to study for a double degree in Artificial Intelligence together with the specialisation in Brain Network and Neuronal Communication. This will take three instead of two years.

- This specialisation offers plenty of room to create a programme that meets your own academic and professional interests.

- To help you decide on a research topic there is a semi-annual Thesis Fair where academics and companies present possible project ideas. Often there are more project proposals than students to accept them, giving you ample choice. We are also open to any of you own ideas for research.

- Our AI students are a close-knit group; they have their own room in which they often get together to interact, debate and develop their ideas. Every student also receives personal guidance and supervision from a member of our expert staff.

Our research in this field

The programme is closely related to the research carried out in the internationally renowned Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour. This institute has several unique facilities for brain imaging using EEG, fMRI and MEG. You will be able to use these facilities for developing new experimental research techniques, as well as for developing new machine learning algorithms to analyse the brain data and integrate them with brain-computer interfacing systems.

Some examples of possible thesis subjects:
- Deep learning
Recent breakthroughs in AI have led to the development of artificial neural networks that achieve human level performance in object recognition. This has led companies like Google and Facebook to invest a lot of research in this technology. Within the AI department you can do research on this topic. This can range from developing deep neural networks to map and decode thoughts from human brain activity to the development of speech recognition systems or neural networks that can play arcade games.

- Brain Computer Interfacing
Brain computer interfaces are systems which decode a users mental state online in real-time for the purpose of communication or control. An effective BCI requires both neuro-scientific insight (which mental states should we decode?) and technical expertise (which measurement systems and decoding algorithms should be used?). A project could be to develop new mental tasks that induce stronger/easier to decode signals, such as using broadband stimuli. Another project could be to develop new decoding methods better able to tease a weak signal from the background noise, such as adaptive-beam forming. Results for both would assessed by performing empirical studies with target users in one of the EEG/MEG/fMRI labs available in the institute.

Career prospects

Our Artificial Intelligence graduates have excellent job prospects and are often offered a job before they have actually graduated. Many of our graduates go on to do a PhD either at a major research institute or university with an AI department. Other graduates work for companies interested in cognitive design and research. Examples of companies looking for AI experts with this specialisation: Google, Facebook, IBM, Philips and the Brain Foundation. Some students have even gone on to start their own companies.

Job positions

Examples of jobs that a graduate of the specialisation in Computation in Neural and Artificial Systems could get:
- PhD researcher on bio-inspired computing
- PhD researcher on neural decoding
- PhD researcher on neural information processing
- Machine learning expert in a software company
- Company founder for brain-based computer games
- Hospital-based designer of assistive technology for patients
- Policy advisor on new developments in neurotechnology
- Software developer for analysis and online visual displays of brain activity

Internship

Half of your second year consists of an internship, giving you plenty of hands-on experience. We encourage students to do this internship abroad, although this is not mandatory. We do have connections with companies abroad, for example in China, Sweden and the United States.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/computation

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Overview

Understanding naturally intelligent systems, building artificially intelligent systems, and improving the interactions between humans and artificial systems.

As humans, we may be intrigued by the complexity of any daily activity. How do we perceive, act, decide, and remember? On the one hand, if we understand how our own intelligence works, we can use this knowledge to make computers smarter. On the other hand, by making computers behave more like humans, we learn more about how our own cognition works.

The AI Master’s programme at Radboud University has a distinctly cognitive focus. This cognitive focus leads to a highly interdisciplinary programme where students gain skills and knowledge from a number of different areas such as mathematics, computer science, psychology and neuroscience combined with a core foundation of artificial intelligence.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai

Scientific and practical applications

Slowly the human brain has been revealing its mystery to the scientific community. Now that we are actually able to model and stimulate aspects of cognition, AI researchers have gained a deeper understanding of cognition. At the world-renowned Donders Institute, the Max Planck Institute and various other leading research centres, we train our students to become excellent researchers in this area.

At Radboud University we also teach students how to develop practical applications that will become the next generation of products, apps, therapies and services. Our department has been awarded several prizes for its pioneering role in bringing innovations from science to society, e.g. in Assistive Technology for people with disabilities. You’ll be taught the skills needed to conduct and steer such innovation processes. Many Master’s research projects have both a scientific and a practical component.

Specialisations

Computational modelling is the central methodology taught and used in this programme. Depending on the area of study, the computational models can range from behavioural models of millions of individuals interacting on the web, to functional models of human or robot decision-making, to models of individual or networks of artificial neurons. At Radboud University we offer the following three specialisations (on campus simply known as Computation, Robot and Web):

- Computation in Neural and Artificial Systems
Learn how to create artificial information systems that mimic biological systems as well as how to use theoretical insights from AI to better understand cognitive processing in humans.

- Robot Cognition
Understand all aspects of Human-Robot interaction: the programming that coordinates a robot’s actions with human action as well the human appreciation and trust in the robot.

- Web and Language Interaction
Learn how to build the intelligence used to power the future of the Web.

Research project and Internship

To finalise your AI master's programme, you have the choice of either an Internship (18EC) and Research Project (30EC) or a single larger Extended Research Project (48EC). During the internship you have the chance to acquire additional AI relevant skills either at a research lab or at a company. During the Research Projects phase, you get to put what you have learned during your master's programme into practice. You can perform your research work in the AI department, at other research departments at the University (e.g. the Behaviour Science Institute or Donders Institute) or at an external company (such as Philips or TNO). You are also encouraged to go abroad for your internship and/or research project (previously students have gone to Stanford University in California and Aldebaran Robotics in Paris). To help you decide on a thesis topic, there is an annual Thesis Fair where academics and companies present possible project ideas.

Job opportunities

Our Artificial Intelligence graduates have excellent job prospects and are often offered a job before they have actually graduated. Many of our graduates go on to do a PhD either at a major research institute or a university with an AI department. Other graduates have started their own companies or work for companies interested in cognitive design and research.

Find out how to apply here http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai

Meet Radboud University

- Information for international students
Radboud University would like to meet you in your country (http://www.ru.nl/meetus) in order to give all the information you need and to answer any questions you might have about studying in the Netherlands. In the next few months, an advisor of Radboud University will be attending fairs in various countries, always accompanied by a current or former student.
Furthermore, we understand if you would like to see the Radboud Campus and the city of Nijmegen, which is why we organise an Master's Open Day for international students (http://www.ru.nl/openday) which will take place on 5 March 2016.

- Information for Dutch students
Radboud University offers students in the Netherlands plenty of opportunities to get more information on your programme of choice, or get answers to any questions you might have and more. Apart from a Master's Evening and a Master's Day, we also organise Orientation Days and a Master’s Afternoon for HBO students.

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Understanding all aspects of Human-Robot interaction: the programming that coordinates a robot’s actions with human action as well the human appreciation and trust in the robot.
At present, there are many sensors and actuators in every device – so they may become embedded in a physical reality. For robots that move around in a specific setting there is a pressing need for the development of proper methods of control and joint-action. The embedded, embodied nature of human cognition is an inspiration for this, and vice versa. Computational modelling of such tasks can give insight into the nature of human mental processing. In the Master’s specialisation in Robot Cognition you’ll learn all about the sensors, actuators and the computational modelling that connects them.
Making sense of sensor data – developing artificial perception – is no trivial task. The perception, recognition and even appreciation of sound stimuli for speech and music (i.e. auditory scene analysis) require modelling and representation at many levels and the same holds for visual object recognition and computer vision. In this area, vocal and facial expression recognition (recognition of emotion from voices and faces) is a rapidly growing application area. In the area of action and motor planning, sensorimotor integration and action, there are strong links with research at the world-renowned Donders Centre for Cognition.
At Radboud University we also look beyond the technical side of creating robots that can move, talk and interpret emotions as humans do. We believe that a robot needs to do more than simply function to its best ability. A robot that humans distrust will fail even if it is well programmed. Culture also plays a role in this; people in Japan are more open to the possibilities of robots than in, for example, the Netherlands. We will teach you how to evaluate humans’ attitudes towards a robot in order to use that information to create robots that will be accepted and trusted and therefore perform even better.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/robot

Why study Robot Cognition at Radboud University?

- We offer a great mix of technical and social aspects of robot cognition.

- This programme focuses on programming robot behaviours and evaluating them rather than building the robots themselves. We teach you to programme robots that will be used in close contact with human beings, for example in healthcare and education, rather than in industry.

- Our cognitive focus leads to a highly interdisciplinary AI programme where students gain skills and knowledge from a number of different areas such as mathematics, computer science, psychology and neuroscience combined with a core foundation of artificial intelligence.

- This specialisation offers plenty of room to create a programme that meets your own academic and professional interests.

- Together with the world-renowned Donders Institute, the Max Planck Institute and various other leading research centres in Nijmegen, we train our students to become excellent researchers in AI.

- To help you decide on a research topic there is a semi-annual Thesis Fair where academics and companies present possible project ideas. Often there are more project proposals than students to accept them, giving you ample choice. We are also open to any of you own ideas for research.

- Our AI students are a close-knit group; they have their own room in which they often get together to interact, debate and develop their ideas. Every student also receives personal guidance and supervision from a member of our expert staff.

Our research in this field

The programme is closely related to the research carried out in the internationally renowned Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour. This institute has several unique facilities for brain imaging using EEG, fMRI and MEG. You could also cooperate with the Behavioural Science Institute and work in its Virtual Reality Laboratory, which can be used to study social interaction between humans and avatars.

An example of a possible thesis subject:
- Engaging human-robot interactions in healthcare for children and/or the elderly
Social robots are often deployed with 'special' user groups such as children and elderly people. Developing and evaluating robot behaviours for these user groups is a challenge as a proper understanding of their cognitive and social abilities is needed. Depending on the task, children for example need to be engaged and encouraged in a different way than adults do. What are effective robot behaviours and strategies to engage children and/or elderly people? How can these robot behaviours be evaluated in a proper way?

Career prospects

Our Artificial Intelligence graduates have excellent job prospects and are often offered a job before they have actually graduated. Many of our graduates go on to do a PhD either at a major research institute or university with an AI department. Other graduates work for companies interested in cognitive design and research. Examples of companies looking for AI experts with this specialisation: Philips, Siemens, Honda, Mercedes, Google. Some students have even gone on to start their own companies.

Job positions

Examples of jobs that a graduate of the specialisation in Robot Cognition could get:
- PhD Researcher on Cognitive-Affective Modelling for Social Robots
- PhD Researcher on Automatic analysis of human group behaviour in the presence of robots
- PhD Researcher on Automatic analysis of affective quality of conversations in human-robot interaction
- Advisor and innovation manager in the healthcare industry
- Social robotics and affective computing for robots expressing emotions
- Developer of control algorithms for using optic flow in drones
- Advisor for start-up company on developing new uses for tactile displays
- Team member in design of emotion recognition and training for autistic children

Internship

Half of your second year consists of an internship, giving you plenty of hands-on experience. We encourage students to do this internship abroad, although this is not mandatory. We do have connections with companies abroad, for example in China, Finland and the United States.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/robot

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Learning how to build the intelligence used to power the future of the Web.
The Web has provided us with novel ways to maintain our social networks, rapidly search for information, and make purchases from the comfort of our own home. Most of us take these technologies for granted. However, for the Web to function as it does numerous problems had to be solved: which pages should surface given your search query? Which status updates will you enjoy most? Or, how do we make sure you find the products that you where looking for?
These questions are solved using a combination of machine learning, and an understanding of users. As our use of the Web steadily grows, new questions are continuously emerging. Smarter and faster solutions to empower an intelligent Web are needed. In the Master’s specialisation in Web and Language Interaction you’ll learn the building blocks you’ll need to answer resolve future problems that arise on the Web. In this you’ll learn to understand the psychological, technical and statistical aspect of data science and other Web issues.
The key course in this specialisation is the new AI at the Webscale course, in which AI techniques are studied in the context of streaming and massive data. This course is complemented by the App-Lab course, aimed at understanding how Apps are set-up, built and evaluated. Covering human cognition, a choice of courses in psycho-linguistics is offered in line with the broad expertise within the Donders Institute.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/web

Why study Web and Language Interaction at Radboud University?

- Our cognitive focus leads to a highly interdisciplinary AI programme where students gain skills and knowledge from a number of different areas such as mathematics, computer science, psychology and neuroscience combined with a core foundation of artificial intelligence.

- This specialisation offers plenty of room to create a programme that meets your own academic and professional interests.

- Exceptional students who choose this specialisation have the opportunity to study for a double degree in Artificial Intelligence together with the specialisation in Data Science. This will take three instead of two years.

- Together with the world-renowned Donders Institute, the Max Planck Institute and various other leading research centres in Nijmegen, we train our students to become excellent researchers in AI.

- To help you decide on a research topic there is a semi-annual Thesis Fair where academics and companies present possible project ideas. Often there are more project proposals than students to accept them, giving you ample choice. We are also open to any of you own ideas for research.

- Our AI students are a close-knit group; they have their own room in which they often get together to debate and develop their projects. Every student also receives personal guidance and supervision from a member of our expert staff.

Our approach to this field

Language Information and Communication Technology lies at the basis of innumerable innovations in our society and has provided remarkable new services (like social media) and new products (like smart phones and tablets). Traditionally, applications of Artificial Intelligence used to be limited to micro worlds and toy systems. The horizon has now been widely extended to distribute mass applications of AI techniques. These developments are supported by a general availability of computation power and connectivity in the form of the web, social media, big data, wireless, and mobile platforms with input and output in many modalities.

Human-human and human-computer communication can be found in natural language applications like in the speech driven free-text systems such as Watson, and Siri, in brand sentiment detection and epidemic monitoring from tweets. But communication is also crucial for web applications and Apps that personalise information and make it accessible with other means. Examples thereof are voter guides, recommendation systems, click stream analysis, crowd sourcing and demand aggregation, e-therapy, e-inclusion, avatars with speech synthesis and recognition, gesture and emotion. Technical issues are e.g. map/ reduce architecture for massive data processing and emerging technologies like the semantic web.

Career prospects

Our Artificial Intelligence graduates have excellent job prospects and are often offered a job before they have actually graduated. Many of our graduates go on to do a PhD either at a major research institute or university with an AI department. Other graduates work for companies interested in cognitive design and research. Examples of companies looking for AI experts with this specialisation: Booking.com, Webpower, Google, Facebook, Philips, Booking.com, Philips, Rabobank. Some students have even gone on to start their own companies.

Job positions

Examples of jobs that a graduate of the specialisation in Web and Language Interaction could get:
- PhD researcher, for example, on enhancing speech recognition using semantic knowledge or in user interaction design for patient doctor communication in a virtual hospital
- Data Scientist in a web start-up
- Developer for Computer Aided Language Learning
- EU R&D programme leader on machine translation of natural language
- Developer of intelligent software for music studios

Internship

Half of your second year consists of an internship, giving you plenty of hands-on experience. We encourage students to do this internship abroad, although this is not mandatory. We do have connections with companies abroad, for example in China, Finland and the United States.

See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/ai/web

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Cyber security is a topic of growing importance, as ICT affects ever more aspects of our daily lives Businesses and government rely on ICT to an ever larger degree. Both assessing the security of existing ICT solutions and developing more secure solutions for the future pose major scientific and societal challenges.

This Master specialisation covers a broad range of topics that is important for computer security. This includes topics in computer science (software, computer networks, and hardware, esp. smart-cards and RFID), but also mathematical aspects (cryptography and security protocols), as well as organisational and management issues, legal aspects, and societal issues (in particular privacy).

Master's specialisation in Cyber Security

The Digital Security group at Radboud University is the largest research group in computer security in the Netherlands, with a strong international reputation. Several times, research by the group made the news headlines. For example, in 2008 students revealed security flaws in the chipcard used for public transport in the Netherlands (the ov-chipkaart) and as the London Oyster card. In 2013, two researchers of the Digital Security group found security vulnerabilities in car immobiliser systems used by various car manufacturers.
This master specialisation is offered in a collaboration with the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and the University of Twente (UT), through a virtual institute called the Kerckhoffs Institute (http://www.kerckhoffs-institute.org/). Mandatory courses offered at the TU/e and UT can be followed by video connections, but following optional courses at these institutes may require traveling to Eindhoven or Enschede. Such courses are always scheduled back-to-back at one location to minimise travel time. While this does incur a cost in time and travel expenses, it does offer a unique opportunity to choose courses from the broad range of specialties at the three universities.
Cyber Security is a specialisation in the Master's programme in Computing Science and available for students with a Bachelor's degree in Computing Science or Mathematics.

Admission requirements for international students

1. A completed Bachelor's degree in Computing Science or related area
In order to get admission to this Master’s you will need a completed Bachelor’s degree in Computing Sciences or a related discipline.
2. A proficiency in English
In order to take part in the programme, you need to have fluency in English, both written and spoken. Non-native speakers of English without a Dutch Bachelor's degree or VWO diploma need one of the following:
- TOEFL score of >575 (paper based) or >232 (computer based) or >90 (internet based)
- IELTS score of >6.5
- Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE) or Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE), with a mark of C or higher

Career prospects

ICT security is a hot topic, with excellent job opportunities. Some students join companies that specialise in security, such as security evaluation labs, consultancy companies, or ICT companies that develop security solutions. Students with security expertise are also in strong demand by the (growing) number of organisations that heavily rely on ICT security, both in the private and public sector. Finally, some graduates go on to pursue a career in scientific or industrial research.

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