Our tracks

Tailored education for ambitious and motivated bachelor students: what do you want to develop yourself on?

To tailor your Honours experience to your personal development and interests, the Bachelor Honours programme is divided into 6 different tracks that each focus on a different field. Within the programme, you have to choose one track to follow from start to end. You can find an overview of the different tracks we offer below, or you can take a look at our interactive flyer highlighting the key elements of each track.

Each track takes 1.5 years and has 6 courses, of which the first one starts in quartile 3 (with selection for the Bachelor Honours programme taking place in January-February each year). You may enrol for the Honours programme either in the first or second year of your Bachelor study.

Students participating in 'fishbowl' discussion sessions

Entrepreneurship & Business Development

The Entrepreneurship & Business Development track trains students to become real-time entrepreneurs. Different from start-up accelerators, the Honours Entrepreneurship & Business Development track helps develop the fundamental insights needed for sustainable entrepreneurial endeavours. The focus is on different ways students can run their own companies and how they can ensure that their businesses are relevant to society. We work in close cooperation with Novel-T to support students in their ventures and the track is focused on the student’s personal growth as entrepreneurs. The main perspective of the Entrepreneurship and Business Development track is the effectuation approach - a relatively new way to look at entrepreneurship. In the more traditional approaches, starting your business is a stepwise, planned action mostly focused on writing a business plan. However, expert entrepreneurs hardly follow this approach in practice. Effectual entrepreneurs work with the means available to them and are actively searching for partners to cooperate and share risks by pre-commitment to the new venture. Co-creation is important; it is not a one-way trajectory but together with partners you will establish two-way cooperation where means are exchanged to create synergy. You will, therefore, focus a lot on networking and working together with your fellow entrepreneurs.

Mathematics

The Mathematics track goes far beyond equations and variables by teaching students how to solve problems using a mathematical approach. Aside from delving deeper into challenging and engaging mathematical topics (ranging from fundamental to applied), students will develop skills that go hand-in-hand with mathematics such as computer coding and signal processing. During the track, students will develop a structured yet creative way of problem-solving. The track will deepen and broaden your understanding and knowledge of mathematical skills. It is partly aligned with the mathematics curricula of engineering studies at the University of Twente but also includes new and challenging disciplines in this field of science, such as Coding Theory and Geometry. We offer this track through (guest) lectures and tutorials alongside challenging assignments and final projects.

Please note that specifically for the Mathematics track we also take your grades for the UT mathematics courses into account during our selection. Students outside of the engineering Bachelor studies are allowed to apply to this track, but we do ask those students to highlight in their motivation letter what their background in mathematics is and how this background would enable them to take on the level of mathematics provided in this track. For any questions on this required level of mathematics, please reach out to the coordinator, dr. Felix Schwenninger.

Processes of Change

The Processes of Change track teaches you to understand change and to promote it in practice. Change will be investigated at multiple levels ranging from society at large, to the organisational level as well as the individual level, as innovation and reform often imply change at various levels. Each course discusses a specific subject, but it also aims at improving your skills. We will enhance your personal development throughout the track courses as well as coaching sessions. We will teach you presenting skills, stimulate independent thinking and creativity and we will open you up to your leadership potential. All courses provide you with valuable insights and skills that can be put into practice in an individual change project at the end of the track, the results of which are presented during a final seminar. Hence, the track teaches you how to use your abilities to let yourself, others, and the groups and organisations that you are part of, turn to new views, attitudes, behaviours, and policies. When you have completed the Processes of Change track, you are ready to start new movements!

Philosophy

For students specialising in engineering, managerial or behavioural sciences, an apprenticeship in the broad scope of philosophy as provided by our Philosophy track is a valuable prerequisite to keep High Tech in touch with the Human Touch. After all, philosophy and its major representatives can be considered as best practices of creative and self-critical thought that proved its fecundity in science, ethics, politics, literature and art. The Philosophy track guides students into an encounter with philosophic primary sources. It is not an introduction to applied ethics or philosophy of a specific discipline, but it aims at students acquiring a Socratic attitude. Socratic wisdom entails the insight that if one asks long enough about the presuppositions, legitimations and consequences of current scientific, ethical and political ideas, they turn out to be apt for philosophical reflection. In this track you will encounter many questions, and maybe sometimes some answers.

Shaping the Future

Curiosity, engagement and impact are the keywords of this track! In Shaping the Future, students investigate ground-breaking scientific endeavours and breakthroughs to determine how these developments still affect our current ways of thinking. Our track combines both scientific rigour and design thinking as core values to let you explore topics outside of your regular curriculum. At the same time, you will focus on developing your multidisciplinary perspective and your investigative and communication skills. This track encourages students to develop and use a unique way of problem-solving that incorporates multidisciplinarity and diversity as key elements - skills that are essential for anyone looking to make an impact in their future career. Using this mindset, students gain hands-on experience in complex and multidisciplinary problem-solving in a large innovation project. With engaging guest lecturers, innovative education and the freedom to shape your own development, this track is meant for curious minds wanting to develop and broaden their skills alongside like-minded peers.