Testimonials

While the Master's programme is certainly challenging, I was able to deepen my methodological and theoretical knowledge to an extent that I hardly thought possible for such a short time. This is also reflected in my master’s thesis: applying Weberian and Foucauldian theory as well as social and cultural anthropological methods, I examined female employees’ practices and experiences of modernity in the Weimar Republic. For all my assignments, I drew on source types that were less covered in my Bachelor’s degree, including diaries, advertisements, and pop songs.

My positive experience was largely due to the in-depth seminars taught by dedicated lecturers, who made the Master's interesting and accessible despite the Corona requirements, and with whom there was eye-level interaction and communication. Especially the discussions with my thesis supervisor were very helpful and led to many precious new ideas.

I also particularly liked the fact that an internship was part of the Master's degree. As I am especially interested in the communication of history and the work of museums, I did my internship at an exhibition agency. I not only learned how to design exhibition concepts and write semantically optimised texts, but also how to apply for tenders. The 'Public History' course provided me with valuable theoretical background knowledge.

Today I am a PhD student at the European University Institute in Florence, for which the Master's programme Cultural History of Modern Europe prepared me very well.

"These questions invite easy responses – ‘yes’, ‘yes’, ‘yes’ – but are moreover merely a slightly inconvenient side effect to a beautiful experience. I know this, because I interned as a Research Assistent at the Hiphop Archive and Research Institute (HARI) at Harvard University. This is also where I wrote my thesis on representations of Kendrick Lamar and its implications for the transnational perception of hiphop culture.

HARI was founded by professor Marcyliena Morgan in 2002, she decided it was time to understand hiphop as more than a temporary subculture expressed by angry, aggressive, hedonistic, criminal, lewd men. Hiphop as a movement grew out of a minority position, often subjected to severe criticism based on stereotypes and racism, penetrating popular culture at large. The line between hiphop and pop/youth culture has been effectively blurred. So, how do we research hiphop? We measure its potential and we challenge its public perceptions. We try to gauge what hiphop culture expresses in lyrics, samples, dance, graffiti, fashion, etc. I hardly thought of the nuances, idiosyncrasies, or scope of hiphop culture before my internship – and I considered myself a connoisseur. 

HARI provided me with an opportunity to academically engage with something I am passionate about. In the process, I got to meet a ton of interesting people with interesting views on hiphop culture, music, art, politics, you name it. It gave me a chance to temporarily participate in one of the world’s top universities, which is simultaneously an elitist, absurd, isolated, educative, and absolutely wonderful experience. So to anyone who asks you: ‘What will cultural history get you?’ It will get you to Harvard. It will make you find yourself conceptualizing and understanding the things you love the most. It allows you to make your own plan and develop your own skills. Cultural history is everywhere you decide to uncover it. So why not apply it to your passion?”

"In the museum my main job was being a curatorial intern. I was assisting the chief curator of the museum with preparing exhibitions and lectures. For the preparing of an exhibition I had to connect objects to tell a historical story. In this sense my work as a future cultural historian was very practical with selecting and handling historical objects. Also the stories behind the objects gave me a broader view on the history of the Soviet Union states during the Cold War. In this sense I learned more about the citizens of the Soviet Union, because also everyday objects were available and presented in the archive. This made the past and the people in the past more tangible, because the material was used by the people.

During my internship I worked four days a week in the museum, so I also had time to experience the city of Los Angeles a little bit more. Except from the nice weather and the beautiful beaches, Los Angeles has a lot of nice other museums to offer. Especially nice modern art museums. It is interesting to see that in the Netherlands, and I think in whole Europe the focus is more on historical museums, but in Los Angeles the focus is more on modern art museums. This says a lot about the cultural differences in the world and gave me an interesting view on the diversity and focus on museums around the world.

I am really grateful for this experience and it did change my view on history and also on culture in general. The internship really gave me the opportunity to experience some practical skills as a historian, but it also changed my view on history, in a more multi-prospective way.”