More info
Description of the specialisation
Objectives and Achievement Levels
Programme
Master’s thesis and requirements for graduation
Additional programmes
Contact information
Description of the specialisation
The specialisation Philosophy of Psychology has yearly courses (seminars, tutorials, and supervised reading) on key problems in the foundations of psychology and cognitive science. Discussions typically concentrate on metaphysics (nature of the mind, consciousness, supervenience, constructivism, eliminativism), epistemology (perception and cognition, mental content, embodied cognition), and methodology (reduction, explanation, classical vs. neurocomputational approaches).
Although the problems targeted for discussion are traditional, they are addressed from a novel point of view which emphasizes the natural history of the mind. Assuming that the human mind is subject to historical development (as is now becoming increasingly plausible from work in evolutionary psychology, historical psychology, cognitive archaeology, and related disciplines), then a reconsideration of the ‘traditional’ problems and the ‘received’ solutions seems to be called for. Questions about the mind are traditionally raised and answered in an essentialist and a-historic vein. What are the consequences of adding a historical dimension to the problem field?
Objectives and Achievement Levels
The MA Philosophy (120 EC) has the following objectives:
- with respect to knowledge, understanding and their applications
a. to impart scholarly knowledge, insight, methods, and skills in the field of philosophy, building on the foundations laid in the BA-programme in Philosophy of a Specific Discipline, or the pre-master Philosophy);
b. to impart a scholarly attitude, which is characterized by the student’s capacity to:
engage in individual and independent academic thought and action;
analyse complex problems;
write academic reports;
apply specialist skills in an intellectual and social context.
- with respect to a career
to prepare students for a profession in the field of the specific discipline for which philosophical knowledge, insight and skills have added value;
to prepare students for other professions in which philosophical knowledge, insight and skills have added value;
to prepare students to some extent for an academic career and for postgraduate education, in particular for a PhD project;
to prepare students for any non-academic career for which general academic skills such as abstraction skills, heuristic capability and creativity are required.
The following achievement levels apply with regard to the programme:
- Knowledge and understanding and their applications
Students who have completed the programme
have acquired knowledge and understanding of the history, the foundations, the methodology and/or ethics of the specific discipline, that is founded upon and extends that associated with the level of the bachelor’s programme in the philosophy of a specific discipline;
have acquired knowledge and understanding of the social and cultural impact of philosophy in general and of the philosophy of the specific discipline in particular;
have acquired knowledge and understanding of the main parts of the philosophy of the specific discipline, of their problems, methods, and central concepts, that is founded upon and extends that associated with the bachelor’s level, and that provides a basis for originality in developing and applying original ideas and analyses;
know the discussions in the forefront of their field, and are able to take part in them;
are able to contribute to current discussions in philosophy and in new and complex contexts related to philosophy;
are able to contribute to the philosophical-social debate on the basis of their philosophical knowledge and understanding.
- Making judgements
Students who have completed the programme
are able to handle philosophical complexity and to formulate judgments based on information from diverse sources, even if this information is limited or incomplete;
have a realistic view of the tenability and reliability of their own conclusions;
are able to integrate or confront different approaches to philosophical questions.
- Communication skills
Students who have completed the programme
have been trained in giving clear expositions of philosophical problems, ideas, theories, interpretations and argumentations, to specialist and non-specialist audiences, in English, and, in case of students who are Dutch native speakers, in Dutch as well;
are able to write philosophical papers whose quality shows the potential to come close to that of articles in refereed journals in the field.
- Learning skills
Students who have completed the programme have developed the learning skills to allow them to continue their study in a research context in a manner that may be largely self-directed, and to conceive and design a PhD project.
Programme
The MA Philosophy (120 EC) offers six specialisations, in which students are able to combine the study of philosophy with a non-philosophical discipline, varying from natural sciences to humanities and political science. The programme offers both full-time and part-time tuition.
Specialisations
The two-year MA programme in Philosophy (120 EC) offers six specialisations:
Philosophy of Humanities
Philosophy of Law
Philosophy of Medical Sciences
Philosophy of Natural Sciences
Philosophy of Political Science
Philosophy of Psychology
Full-time and part-time
The programme offers both full-time and part-time tuition. The part-time programme is offered as a daytime course. The full-time programme spans two years (including the non-philosophical component), the part-time programme spans three years. The only difference between the two programmes is in the length of time required for their completion; in content they are identical.
Structure
The MA Philosophy (120 EC) consists of five components:
40 EC / MA/MSc courses in the chosen discipline outside philosophy
20 EC / Specialist MA courses in philosophy of the chosen discipline
40 EC / MA courses in philosophy
20 EC / Master’s thesis
Students are expected to hold a bachelor’s degree in the discipline of their specialisation, which enables them to follow the non-philosophical part of their master’s programme at the faculty or department of the chosen discipline. Students who have already obtained a master’s degree in the chosen discipline are normally exempted from this part of the programme.
Full-time programme
First year
Students follow 500-level courses for a total of 30 EC in the chosen specific discipline outside philosophy.
Further, students follow two courses in philosophy, with a workload of 10 EC each. The choice may be made from a cluster of seminars selected from the courses on offer in the one-year MA programme in Philosophy.
Finally, students follow one specialist course in philosophy of the chosen discipline (10 EC). Depending on the number of enrolments these specialist courses will be offered either as a full seminar or as a series of individual tutorial sessions.
Second year
Students take 500-level courses for a total of 10 EC in the chosen discipline outside philosophy.
Students follow two courses in philosophy, with a workload of 10 EC each. The choice may be made from a cluster of seminars selected from the courses on offer in the one-year MA programme in Philosophy.
Further. students follow a second specialist course in philosophy of the chosen discipline (10 EC).
Finally, students complete a master’s thesis of 20 EC..
Please note that the structure and sequence of components of individual MA programmes in Philosophy (120 EC) may deviate from the structure above due to the availability of courses in a particular semester, or the extent to which the non-philosophical part of the programme has been completed.
Students are requested to discuss their progamme with their tutor before the start of their first semester.
Part-time programme
In the part-time programme the various components will be spread over three years:
First year
- MA/MSc courses for a total of 40 EC in chosen discipline outside philosophy.
Second year
Third year
MA course in Philosophy (10 EC).
Specialist course in philosophy of the chosen discipline (10 EC).
Master’s thesis of 20 EC.
Please note that the structure and sequence of components of individual MA programmes in Philosophy (120 EC) may deviate from the structure above due to the availability of courses in a particular semester, or the extent to which the non-philosophical part of the programme has been completed.
Students are requested to discuss their progamme with their tutor before the start of their first semester.
Internship
Students are allowed to include an internship of no more than 10 EC in their MA programme on condition that its job description has a clear relationship to philosophy. The internship will replace one of the four MA courses in philosophy.
Master’s thesis and requirements for graduation
In order to graduate, students must have successfully completed the 120 EC programme and have completed their final thesis as a component of that programme. The master’s thesis is an independent academic contribution to philosophy in the field of the chosen specialisation. The student is required to write a master’s thesis in the second year of the MA Philosophy (120 EC) – normally in the last semester.
Attainment levels
The master’s thesis should clearly show that the student meets the attainment levels which have been set for this programme in terms of knowledge and skills. More specifically, the master’s thesis and the working method for the thesis should demonstrate that the student:
has acquired knowledge of systematic philosophy and its history, and of recent developments in contemporary philosophy, that is founded upon and extends that associated with the bachelor’s level, and that provides a basis for originality in developing and applying original ideas and analyses;
knows the discussions in the forefront of their field, and is able to take part in them;
is able to contribute to current discussions on philosophy and in new and complex contexts related to philosophy;
is able to handle philosophical complexity and to formulate judgments based on information from diverse sources, even if this information is limited or incomplete;
has a realistic view of the tenability and reliability of his/her own conclusions;
is able to integrate or confront different approaches to philosophical questions;
in short, is able to write philosophical papers, whose quality shows the potential to come close to that of articles in refereed journals in the field.
Formal requirements and assessment criteria
The thesis for the MA Philosophy (120 EC) has a workload of 20 ECs, and the length of the thesis is normally approximately 20,000 words. Depending on the subject, the student and the supervisor may agree on a different length. Other formal requirements that the thesis must satisfy are listed in the Protocol Graduation Phase
Agreements and supervision
The agreements relating to the planning and supervision of the writing of the MA thesis are set out in writing by the student and the supervisor in the Agreements relating to the MA thesis form. The agreements include details on the choice of subject of the thesis, on the frequency of sessions with the thesis supervisor and the manner of supervision, and on the phasing of the research leading up to the thesis.
Final examination
The master’s thesis shall be defended as part of the final examination. The grade of the master’s thesis is determined by the examiners after the questioning (defence of the thesis) in the MA examination. The final examination may be held at any time during the academic year. However, graduation within the current academic year is only guaranteed when the final draft of the thesis has been approved of by the supervisor on July 1st at the latest. The grade of the master’s thesis is determined by the examiners after the questioning (defence of the thesis) in the MA examination.
Additional programmes
In addition to their MA programme in Philosophy (120 EC), students are – on certain conditions – qualified to follow the teacher-training in Philosophy: a preparation for a career in high school education or in MBO (intermediate vocational) education in the Netherlands. On completion of this MA programme students obtain a second master’s degree and a high-school teaching qualification (eerstegraads lesbevoegdheid) in philosophy. Generally, students who completed the MA Philosophy (120 EC) need to follow some additional courses in philosophy on BA level before they are permissable to this teacher-training. For more information about admission requirements please contact the Coordinator of Studies. More information about the programme of the teacher-training is available on the website of ICLON
Students awarded a master’s degree are eligible to pursue a doctorate. Information about the PhD programme is available on the institute’s website.
Contact information
Specialisation co-ordinator
Dr. J.J.M. (Jan) Sleutels
Dr. J.J.M. Sleutels
Coordinator of studies
Contact details of the Coordinator of Studies of the Leiden Philosophy Department.
