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MA Philosophy: Pre-master

Pre-Master

Admission to the pre-master's programme

The pre-master’s programme in Philosophy is intended for students with a bachelor’s degree from a research university, equivalent to the level of a Dutch academic Bachelor’s degree, who do not fulfil the entry requirements regarding the knowledge, understanding and skills in the field of philosophy. It provides a bridging programme for students who have applied for the MA Philosophy 60 EC or 120 EC, but who, according to the Board of Admissions, still have deficiencies in philosophy.

During the pre-master's you will gain the knowledge, understanding and philosophical skills needed for successful participation in the Master’s programme. Upon successful completion of the pre-master's programme students will be granted unconditional admission to the relevant specialisation of the MA Philosophy 60 EC or 120 EC.

Please note

A pre-master's programme is not an independent study programme, therefore students cannot apply for admission to the pre-master Philosophy, only for admission to one of the specialisations of the MA Philosophy 60 EC or MA Philosophy 120 EC. Upon receiving your application the Board of Admission will decide whether you are eligible for admission to the master's or the pre-master's programme. This decision depends largely on your academic background and skills.

Applicants with a degree from a Dutch University of Applied Sciences (HBO) are not eligible for admission to the MA Philosophy or pre-master's in Philosophy.

Structure and duration of the pre-master's programme

The pre-master's in Philosophy offers four packages. Depending on the MA specialisation that you have applied for, one of these packages will have been (wholly or partially) prescribed.

Package A

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Modern European Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy of Humanities

Package B

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Moral and Political Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Philosophical Perspectives on Politics and the Economy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy of Law, Governance, and Politics

Package C

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Philosophy of Knowledge

Package D

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Global and Comparative Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy in World Traditions

Structure

The pre-master consists of a package of courses at BA level with a total course load of 60 EC's. The exact stucture and the choice of components of the pre-master depends on the chosen specialisation of the Master's programme.

  • compulsory introductiory courses of 5 EC each (level 100-200)

  • optional course of 5 EC (level 100-200), if applicable

  • advanced seminar(s) at third-year BA level of 10 EC each (level 300-400)

Students can start a pre-master's programme in September and in February.

Duration

Depending on your educational background, the pre-master’s programme will constitute a course load of max. 60 EC (1 year). The requirements for the pre-master will consist of a package of courses selected from the BA programme in Philosophy. Students who have completed relevant philosophy courses during their bachelor's may be exempted from a part of the pre-master's programme by the Board of Admissions.

The prescribed pre-master's programme must be completed within the nominal duration plus one semester (in case of a pre-master’s programme of 30 ECTS-credits or less) or within the nominal duration plus one study year (in case of a pre-master’s programme of more than 30 ECTS-credits).

Holders of an academic bachelor's degree from a research university or an equivalent diploma with no more than 15 credits of deficiencies, may be admitted to the MA programme woth a deficiency. This means that you will need to complete the deficient pre-master's courses during your enrolment in the MA Philosophy. You cannot graduate without successfully having completed the required pre-master's courses.

Tuition fee

Information on the tuition fee for a pre-master's is available on the student website.

Package A

Package A

Package A of the Pre-master's in Philosophy is intended for students who are in possession of an admission statement and have been registered as a pre-master's student for one of the following MA specialisations:

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Modern European Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy of Humanities

Requirements

Package A of the pre-master's programme consists of the following components:

  • 7 mandatory introductory courses of level 100-200, each 5 EC (35 EC in total)

  • 1 optional course of level 100-200 (5 EC)

  • 2 advanced seminars of level 300-400, each 10 EC (20 EC in total), to be selected from the list of seminars on offer.

Students who have completed relevant philosophy courses during their bachelor's may be exempted from a part of the pre-master's programme by the Board of Admissions.

Please note that English-taught mandatory courses are available for international students, and that some of the advanced seminars on offer are taught in Dutch.

Timetables

The pre-master's courses are part of the BA Filosofie and/or the BA Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives.
Timetables are to be found through the links at the right-hand side of this page. For the introductory and optional courses see under first-year and second-year courses; for the advanced seminars see under third-year courses.

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Mandatory introductory courses (Dutch students)
Cultuurfilosofie 5
Ethiek 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie I 5
Griekse en Romeinse filosofie 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Core Course: The World as Problem 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie II 5

Mandatory introductory courses (international students)
Ethics 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Philosophy of Culture 5
World Philosophies: Greek and Roman Antiquity 5
Continental Philosophy from a Global Perspective 5
Core Course: The World as Problem 5
World Philosophies: Modern Europe 5

Optional courses
Comparative Philosophy 5
Concepts of Selfhood 5
Medieval Philosophy 5

Advanced seminars
Metaethics 10
Philosophy of Perception 10
Questions in Phenomenology 10
Virtue Ethics 10
Continental Approaches to Time and Truth 10
Heidegger and his Critics 10
Nietzsche and Post-Nietzschean Aesthetics 10
Buddhism: Topics 10
Political Obligation 10
Philosophy of Technology 10
Philosophy of Play 10
Modal Logic 10
Pragmatism as Anti-Authoritarianism 10
Decolonisation and Modern Asian Thought 10
Feminist Theories in Asian Philosophy 10
Korean Confucian Philosophy 10
Moral Psychology 10

Package B

Package B

Package B of the Pre-master's in Philosophy is intended for students who are in possession of an admission statement and have been registered as a pre-master's student for one of the following MA specialisations:

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Moral and Political Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Philosophical Perspectives on Politics and the Economy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy of Law, Governance, and Politics

Requirements

Package B of the pre-master's programme consists of the following components:

  • 7 mandatory introductory courses of level 100-200, each 5 EC (35 EC in total)

  • 1 optional course of level 100-200 (5 EC)

  • 2 advanced seminars of level 300-400, each 10 EC (20 EC in total), to be selected from the list of seminars on offer.

Students who have completed relevant philosophy courses during their bachelor's may be exempted from a part of the pre-master's programme by the Board of Admissions.

Please note that English-taught mandatory courses are available for international students, and that some of the advanced seminars on offer are taught in Dutch.

Timetables

The pre-master's courses are part of the BA Filosofie and/or the BA Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives.
Timetables are to be found through the links at the right-hand side of this page. For the introductory and optional courses see under first-year and second-year courses; for the advanced seminars see under third-year courses.

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Mandatory introductory courses (Dutch students)
Ethiek 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie I 5
Griekse en Romeinse filosofie 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Politieke Filosofie 5
Core Course: Advanced Moral and Political Philosophy 5
Epistemologie 5

Mandatory introductory courses (international students)
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Ethics 5
Metaphysics 5
Political Philosophy 5
World Philosophies: Greek and Roman Antiquity 5
Core Course: Advanced Moral and Political Philosophy 5
World Philosophies: Modern Europe 5

Optional courses (Dutch students)
Cultuurfilosofie 5
Comparative Philosophy 5
Logica 5
Wetenschapsfilosofie 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie II 5
Medieval Philosophy 5

Optional courses (international students)
Comparative Philosophy 5
Logic 5
Philosophy of Culture 5
Philosophy of Science 5
Medieval Philosophy 5

Advanced seminars
Philosophy of Perception 10
Questions in Phenomenology 10
Virtue Ethics 10
Continental Approaches to Time and Truth 10
Heidegger and his Critics 10
Nietzsche and Post-Nietzschean Aesthetics 10
Buddhism: Topics 10
Political Obligation 10
Philosophy of Technology 10
Philosophy of Play 10
Modal Logic 10
Decolonisation and Modern Asian Thought 10
Feminist Theories in Asian Philosophy 10
Korean Confucian Philosophy 10
Moral Psychology 10

Package C

Package C

Package C of the Pre-master's in Philosophy is intended for students who are in possession of an admission statement and have been registered as a pre-master's student for the following MA specialisation:

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Philosophy of Knowledge

Requirements

Package C of the pre-master's programme consists of the following components:

  • 8 mandatory introductory courses of level 100-200, each 5 EC (40 EC in total)

  • 2 advanced seminars of level 300-400 (20 EC in total), to be selected from the list of seminars on offer.

Students who have completed relevant philosophy courses during their bachelor's may be exempted from a part of the pre-master's programme by the Board of Admissions.

Please note that not all mandatory courses are available in English. International students will have to take some of the required courses as an supervised literature study.

Timetables

The pre-master's courses are part of the BA Filosofie and/or the BA Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives.
Timetables are to be found through the links at the right-hand side of this page. For the introductory and optional courses see under first-year and second-year courses; for the advanced seminars see under third-year courses.

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Mandatory introductory courses (Dutch students)
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie I 5
Logica 5
Metaphysics 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Philosophy of Mind 5
Wetenschapsfilosofie 5
Core Course: Naming and Necessity 5
Epistemologie 5

Mandatory introductory courses (international students)
Language and Thought 5
Logic 5
Metaphysics 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Philosophy of Mind 5
Philosophy of Science 5
Core Course: Naming and Necessity 5
World Philosophies: Modern Europe 5

Advanced seminars
Philosophy of Perception 10
Questions in Phenomenology 10
Virtue Ethics 10
Continental Approaches to Time and Truth 10
Nietzsche and Post-Nietzschean Aesthetics 10
Buddhism: Topics 10
Political Obligation 10
Philosophy of Technology 10
Philosophy of Play 10
Modal Logic 10
Decolonisation and Modern Asian Thought 10
Feminist Theories in Asian Philosophy 10
Korean Confucian Philosophy 10
Moral Psychology 10

Package D

Package D

Package D of the Pre-master's in Philosophy is intended for students who are in possession of an admission statement and have been registered as a pre-master's student for the following MA specialisation:

  • MA Philosophy 60 EC: Global and Comparative Philosophy

  • MA Philosophy 120 EC: Philosophy in World Traditions

Requirements

Package D of the pre-master's programme consists of the following components:

  • 9 mandatory introductory courses of level 100-200, each 5 EC (45 EC in total)

  • 1 optional course of level 100-200 (5 EC)

  • 1 advanced seminar of level 300-400 (10 EC), to be selected from the list of seminars on offer.

Students who have completed relevant philosophy courses during their bachelor's may be exempted from a part of the pre-master's programme by the Board of Admissions.

Please note that English-taught mandatory courses are available for international students.

Timetables

The pre-master's courses are part of the BA Filosofie and/or the BA Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives.
Timetables are to be found through the links at the right-hand side of this page. For the introductory and optional courses see under first-year and second-year courses; for the advanced seminars see under third-year courses.

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Mandatory introductory courses (Dutch students)
Cultuurfilosofie 5
Ethiek 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie I 5
Griekse en Romeinse filosofie 5
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
World Philosophies: China 5
World Philosophies: Middle East 5
Core Course: Intercultural Philosophical Hermeneutics 5

Mandatory introductory courses (international students)
Philosophical Skills (pre-master) 5
Ethics 5
Geschiedenis van de moderne filosofie I 5
Philosophy of Culture 5
World Philosophies: China 5
World Philosophies: Greek and Roman Antiquity 5
Core Course: Intercultural Philosophical Hermeneutics 5
World Philosophies: Middle East 5

Optional courses
Concepts of Selfhood 5
Language and Thought 5
Metaphysics 5

Advanced seminars
Metaethics 10
Philosophy of Perception 10
Questions in Phenomenology 10
Virtue Ethics 10
Continental Approaches to Time and Truth 10
Heidegger and his Critics 10
Nietzsche and Post-Nietzschean Aesthetics 10
Buddhism: Topics 10
Political Obligation 10
Philosophy of Technology 10
Philosophy of Play 10
Modal Logic 10
Pragmatism as Anti-Authoritarianism 10
Decolonisation and Modern Asian Thought 10
Feminist Theories in Asian Philosophy 10
Korean Confucian Philosophy 10
Moral Psychology 10