Programme
PROGRAMME @ LUC
The academic programme at Leiden University College The Hague (LUC) consists of the following components, amounting to the 180 ECTS required for graduation within three years:
For more information on these programme components, please click on the appropriate links.
OVERVIEW
For information on the first-year programme, please refer to the Year 1 page.
In the second and third year at LUC, students will take 15 ECTS worth of courses every block. You will take courses that are part of your chosen Major and courses that are part of your desired Minor and the Global Citizenship component of the programme. Moreover, there is the possibility of a semester abroad at a foreign university, comprising 30 ECTS, which can contribute towards the Major, Minor, or Global Citizenship components.
Please note:
While a standard course at LUC is worth 5 ECTS and spans one block, language courses are worth 10 ECTS and span one semester (Blocks 1+2 or Blocks 3+4).
A semester abroad is optional; students would ideally go abroad in their fifth semester (Year 3, Semester 1).
TAGS
To maximise student choice and ownership of their individual programme of study, LUC operates a system of ‘tags’ to designate how a particular course can be used and for which parts of the programme it can be counted as credit. Given the overall educational themes at LUC and its interdisciplinary approach, the tagging system means that many courses are cross-listed into more than one part of the LUC programme–while this implies that every course could in principle count towards more than one programme component, note that it can in fact only be used to satisfy the requirements of one such part. In consultation with their personal tutors, responsible and imaginative students should be able to make creative use of the tagging system to assemble a trajectory tailored to their own interests and ambitions, whilst satisfying the requirements of rigorous academic progression and development in particular areas.
In summary: courses can often be used towards the completion of more than one programme component (but note a course can only be used once). In this e-Prospectus, course tags are always mentioned in the course outline. An example: the course Introduction to Gender Studies has the following tags: GWS, HI. This means this particular course can be used towards the Gender & Women’s Studies Minor or towards the completion of a Human Interaction Major or Minor.
OVERVIEW OF TAGS
Majors
Minors
Tracks
Others
Year 1
YEAR 1 @ LUC
In their first year at LUC, students take several compulsory courses that are part of the General Education and Academic Skills and Literacy components of the programme. In addition, students select one elective course every block. One of these electives should be Introduction to Area Studies, a compulsory course in the Academic Skills and Literacy component. This course is offered in Block 3 and Block 4.
The courses of the first year:
Block 1: a) Global Challenges: Peace, b) Academic Writing, c) History of Philosophy, d) Elective course
Block 2: a) Global Challenges: Earth, b) Academic Writing, c) History of Philosophy, d) Elective course
Block 3: a) Global Challenges: Justice, b) Numeracy, c) Designing Academic Inquiry, d) Elective course / Intro to Area Studies
Block 4: a) Global Challenges: Environmental Change, b) Numeracy, c) Designing Academic Inquiry, d) Elective course / Intro to Area Studies
As their elective course(s), first-year students may select any of the available 100-level courses. Please note it might also be possible for students to enroll in 200-level or even 300-level courses, if they meet the entry requirements.
Please find below an overview of 100-level courses. Depending on the tags of these courses, they have also been linked on the Major, Minor, and/or Global Citizenship page(s).
Global Citizenship
GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP @ LUC
The courses in the Global Citizenship component offer students various options to develop their cross-cultural communication and reflection skills, and increase a student’s appreciation of cultural and social diversity. This can be done by learning another language or by studying the literature, art, or linguistics of a particular region. Both paths aim to increase the understanding of and communication with people from other cultures. Courses that fall within the Global Citizenship component are all electives; students may choose any course tagged with Global Citizenship towards the completion of this programme component.
Languages
Studying languages at LUC is an intensive and immersive experience, with contact hours spanning a full semester and delivered by experts in language acquisition and cultural learning. LUC provides tuition in the following official languages of the United Nations:
Arabic
Chinese
French
Russian
Spanish
The English-speaking educational environment at LUC also promises fluency and proficiency in the remaining UN language, English.
Cultures
To bolster students’ cultural awareness and understanding, LUC offers a rich array of cultural courses such as World Art, World Literature, Media and Communications, and Sociolinguistics. From Representations of Culture to World Regional Geography, with themes and case studies from around the globe, LUC students gain a firm footing in global citizenship.
Please find below the courses that have been tagged as part of the Global Citizenship component.
Majors
MAJORS @ LUC
There are many ways for students to navigate a path through their degree programme at LUC. The college offers a flexible and versatile curriculum framed by pressing questions of peace, justice and sustainability; these questions are nuanced and developed through a matrix of individual courses that can be sequenced together into a coherent, progressive curriculum, which are then combined to form Majors, Minors, and Tracks that determine the exit trajectory of LUC graduates. In general, LUC Majors are thematically rather than disciplinarily oriented, but because of the nature of academic progression student should expect to see (and seek) clear development in theoretical and methodological sophistication as they move from 100 to 200 to 300 level courses. Advice on choosing courses, qualifying for Majors and Minors can and should be sought from a student’s personal tutor. At the end of their first year of study, students should declare their intention to qualify for a particular Major. Although this choice need not be set in stone, it does help to focus and organize student choices and experiences over the course of the second part of their programme.
Majors
LUC offers the following majors. Please following the links for more information on the majors and to find out which courses have been tagged as part of these majors.
Global Justice (GJ)
Global Public Health (GPH)
Human Interaction (HI)
International Development (ID)
Policy Science (PSc)
Political Arts (PA)
Sustainability (S)
World Politics (WP)
Requirements
A regular major consists of 80 ECTS:
45 ECTS – nine 5 ECTS courses, at least three at 300-level
10 ECTS – two methodology courses
5 ECTS – one 300-level integrative course*
10 ECTS – two optional courses in related fields
10 ECTS – Capstone project
*Please note that the integrative course can be any 300-level course tagged with your Major (and a related field). Please see your tutor for more information; s/he will also have the integrative course approval form.
It is also possible to do a double major:
- Double major: 160 ECTS (graduate with 240 ECTS)
Minors
MINORS @ LUC
Of the 180 ECTS of the regular LUC programme, 30 ECTS has been reserved for a Minor.
Minor
LUC offers the following pre-structured Minors. For more information about a specific Minor and the courses tagged as part of that Minor, please click on the appropriate link below:
- Economics
- Entrepreneurship
- Gender & Women’s Studies
- Journalism
- Rhetoric & Argumentation
If you are interested in graduating with one of these Minors, make sure to take all courses tagged with this specific Minor. Students may also compose their own minor in a single language or with a cluster of courses from an LUC Major (other than the one you are graduating in). For example, if you take 30 ECTS worth of Global Justice courses, this cluster of courses could function as a Global Justice Minor.
No Minor
One does not need to do a Minor; you may also take any combination of LUC courses, as long as they add up to a total of 30 ECTS and two of those courses are at the 300-level. It would also be possible to take courses at Leiden University or any other university in The Netherlands. Many students use this 30 ECTS for a semester abroad at a foreign university.
Tracks
TRACKS @ LUC
LUC offers several predefined tracks, which are composed of three sequenced courses (one 100-level, one 200-level, and one 300-level). One track amounts to 15 ECTS. Depending on the (other) tags of the courses in a track, tracks can be used towards a student’s Major, Minor, or can be part of students’ electives.
To find out more about a specific track and its courses, please click on the appropriate link below:
- Diversity & Integration
- Law, Society, & Development
- Mathematical Modelling
- Psychology
Capstone
CAPSTONE @ LUC
The goal of the LUC Capstone is for students to complete an independent research project within the students major. The Capstone draws from each students unique curriculum and range of scholarly experiences encountered while at LUC. The Capstone (bachelor thesis) is a product of specialized research that serves to prepare LUC students for competitive graduate programs or employment in government or industry. The research and writing is overseen by a supervisor and a reader, one of which must be based at LUC. Students may develop an individual thesis topic or work on a larger project in small groups coordinated by their supervisor. If the latter approach is adapted each student is required to develop and produce a distinct thesis. The thesis is completed during a required Capstone course (10 ECT) that all students enroll in during their final semester of residence at LUC. Bachelor theses at LUC are theoretically or conceptually motivated and exhibit high levels of creativity, rigorous enquiry, and professional production.
Please use the following link to access the Capstone Program Overview:
Capstone Overview 2014.
Tutorial Guidance
TUTORIAL GUIDANCE @ LUC
The academic autonomy afforded by a liberal arts and sciences environment, while stimulating, also requires individualised attention and advice to ensure that students’ intellectual and personal development at LUC is well-conceived, well-integrated, and fruitful. To this end, LUC has a unique tutorial support system which pairs each student with a member of the academic staff for regular contact and guidance through the three years of your BA or BSc programme.
For more information, please visit this link: Tutorial Guidance @ LUC.
Information
INFORMATION @ LUC
Timetables
As soon as they are available, the timetables of 2013-2014 will be published here.
Semester 1, Block 1
Semester 1, Block 1 – Examinations
Semester 1, Block 2
Semester 1, Block 2 – Examinations
Semester 2, Block 3
Semester 2, Block 3 – Examinations
Semester 2, Block 4:
Semester 2, Block 4 – Examinations
Course Catalogue
Please find the Course Catalogue 2013-2014 here. Please refer to the course descriptions for updated tags.
OER
Please find below the “Course and Examination Regulations” (Onderwijs- en Examenregeling) of the Bachelor’s Programmes Liberal Arts & Sciences: Global Challenges (BA and BSc) of the academic year 2013-2014.
Course and Examination Regulations.
Contact hours at LUC
Please access the overview of scheduled contact hours in the first year (propedeuse) of the BA/BSc Liberal Arts & Sciences: Global Challenges programme here.
LUC Attendance Policy
Please find the LUC Attendance Policy here.
LUC Grading Policy
Please find the LUC Grading Policy here
LUC Honour Code
Please find the LUC Honour Code here.
