Do you have a bachelor’s degree from a university of applied sciences (HBO) or another university, and are you interested in taking the Master’s in European studies? In some cases, you may first need to complete a pre-master’s before being admitted.
What is a pre-master's?
The Pre-Master’s is a bridging programme which will give you the knowledge and skills you need to embark on your Master’s studies successfully. Following completion of the Pre-Master’s you will be admitted to the Master’s in European studies. HBO students can take the Pre-Master’s following completion of their Bachelor’s degree or incorporate the Pre-Master's into their Bachelor’s studies. In general check your HBO-university transfer opportunities.
Start date
You can start the Pre-Master’s in September or February. The Master's only has a starting date in September.
Programme
For a typical graduate from a university of applied sciences (HBO), the English-taught Pre-Master’s will comprise 30 credits with a strong focus on research skills and any subjects that are underrepresented in your previous studies. Courses include:
First semester | Second semester |
5 EC Research methodology and descriptive statistics | 5 EC Research methodology and descriptive statistics |
5 EC Academic Writing | 5 EC Academic Writing |
5 EC Introduction to European Studies | |
Admission
If you have a bachelor’s degree in European Studies from a Dutch or reputable foreign university, you will receive direct admission to the master’s programme. If your bachelor’s degree is in a related subject or from a university of applied science, then it will be up to the admissions committee to decide if you are eligible for admission. You may need to complete a pre-master’s before you can join the master’s. Following completion of all components of the pre-master’s, you will be granted admission to the master’s programme. Additional information about admission.
Rules of the pre-master's
The pre-master’s is designed not only to address any deficiencies in your prior knowledge, but it is also an efficient way to find out whether studying at a research university in the field of European Studies is right for you. To this end, a couple of rules apply:
- We ask you to fulfil the requirements of the pre-master’s within one year. Since 30 credits is equivalent to half a year of full-time study, this should not pose a problem.
- You must also earn sufficient marks with a maximum of one re-sit per course. This means you need to take the pre-master’s seriously.
You cannot expect to be successful in the pre-master’s if you approach it half-heartedly: it is meant as a half-year, full-time programme of study. That said, in practice almost all motivated students complete the programme in the allotted time.
Pre-master's Application route
The application process for the pre-master's depends on your personal situation (application during or after your bachelor's ) and your previous education (e.g. university of applied sciences or university background).
Keep an eye on the application deadlines and check them prior to your application (pre-master and master deadlines are most of the times identical). However, the deadline for University of Applied Sciences (hbo) students depends on the route you chose. For a pre-master's during an HBO bachelor's programme – the so-called transfer minor – the deadline is earlier than the deadline for a pre-master's after the HBO programme.
More information about the application route check and our pre-master's.