Testimonials
Angelique den Hartog, Student
What makes this programme unique in your eyes?
The freedom to choose from a wide range of courses; the flexibility to shape the programme to your own interests. For example; I am enthusiastic about theoretical computing science and am able to take courses at the MasterMath programme which offer mathematical courses on topics like Discrete Optimization.
If you had to tell something about the programme you know now, but what you didn’t know before you started, what would you tell?
When I had friends from other universities attend a lecture of a course I was following, they remarked that the lecturers are more approachable compared to their home university. It is common to have friendly chats about research and subjects of the course in the breaks and after the lecture. The approachability of professors is something I appreciate about Utrecht University.
And thinking ahead… to PhD or not to PhD?
I think I would enjoy working and specializing in an area for some more years after my masters. Some friends have started their PhD and I’ve seen the hard work that is required. If the opportunity is there I would have a hard time justifying not at least trying.
Anything else you would like to share with prospective students?
Check out the wide variety of courses on offer at Utrecht University. Envisioning which courses I would take if I were to do my Master’s here helped me pick between different universities.
Read what current and former students say about their study choice and experiences with the programme.
Maaike Koninx, student
I was looking for a Master's that combines a challenging theoretical background with real-world implementations.
After finishing my Bachelor's in Mathematics at the University of Amsterdam, I wanted to continue with a Master's that offered a clear data science component. I compared many programmes from different universities, but they all seemed either too broad or lacked practical assignments. I was looking for a Master's that combines a challenging theoretical background with real-world implementations. The Computing Science programme in Utrecht offered me exactly that combination!
Since I came from a different background, I had to learn C# and Haskell during a premaster course in order to catch up. Also within the Master's programme, some technical courses (that I personally find less intersesting) are mandatory, such as program language design and program design. Luckily, some professors will allow you to submit assignments in any programming language you prefer, as long as it is rightly executed. I am still very happy with my choice for this Master's and with my progress so far.
I am currently doing my thesis internship at a company where I model attention in artificial neural networks.The prospects for a Computing Science graduate are very good. Many companies are looking for data scientists to analyze and optimize certain processes. Personally, I would like to continue specializing towards artificial neural networks, which are behind the most state-of-the-art classification and generation (e.g. automated image captioning/coloring) models.
Vali Georgescul, alumnus
"People were very friendly and helpful when I arrived"
Warm Welcome
I got my BSc in Computer Science in Romania, and then started looking for a place to do my Master’s degree. For me, the most important thing was to study at an excellent university. I checked the rankings to find the best universities in Europe, and Utrecht came out very high. It’s also a lot less expensive to study here than in the UK. What’s more, I got a very early response, which made it easy to plan the move.
People were very friendly and helpful when I arrived. I was a little sceptical that there might be too much emphasis on exotic programming languages, but I needn’t have worried. Although it can be challenging to master a high-level language such as Haskell, it’s totally worth the effort. It’s much more natural to design applications by using higher-level abstractions as compared to the explicit step-by-step manner at the heart of many imperative approaches.
I was pleasantly surprised by the informality of the contacts with the teaching staff. For example, we had weekly colloquia at which students, teachers, and sometimes representatives of companies share ideas. Students and teachers have lunch together afterwards. There are also outside events, like the Dutch Haskell User Group, where enthusiasts (students, teachers, as well as outsiders) meet once a month in a social setting over a beer. I felt connected very soon. There’s no need to learn Dutch, but it’s useful if you want to integrate.