Study programme

Our programme comprises 60 EC and consists of two semesters, running from September until January and from February until June. A semester is divided into two study periods. 

Curriculum

The programme consists of compulsory courses, an elective, an internship and a Master's thesis. Check the study schedule (PDF). 

Semester 1 | Courses

  • In Researching Arts & Society I, you are introduced in several methods that can be used to conduct research within the domain of A&S.
  • In Researching Arts & Society II you write your their thesis proposal, supported by e.g. group meetings and feedback sessions with peers and supervisors.
  • In the courses Thinking Arts & Society and Curating Arts & Society a selection of current concepts is explored in depth. These concepts are introduced and explored in the Thinking-course, and are further developed using a more practical and experimental approach in the Curating-course.
  • In Exploring Arts & Society, you engage in an active conversation with partners in the field, and explore various ways of mapping that field and its dimensions.
  • The elective offered by A&S (Arts & Society: fieldwork) focuses more exclusively on ethnographic research, exploring experimental forms of researching and reporting. You can also choose another elective offered by the Department of Media and Culture Studies.

Semester 2 | Internship and thesis

In the second semester, you will do your internship and work on your Master's thesis. It is highly recommended that the thesis be completed before students proceed to their internships. Examples of thesis titles:

Picture: Tim Vermeire

Educational methods

  • lecture (10%)
  • seminar (20%)
  • practical (20%)
  • group work (10%)
  • self-study (20%)
  • internship (20%)

Students usually spend most of the time outside of contact hours reading and preparing for class.

Individual research is encouraged so as to develop your personal trajectory throughout the MA. We encourage students to think about their research interests and to lay the groundwork for thesis research from the very beginning of the programme.

Due to the workload, we encourage students who need to work alongside their studies to opt for a 2-year part-time trajectory.

Internships

Students in the Master’s programme in Arts and Society find internships in a variety of cultural organisations, some of which are cultural partners with active partnerships with faculty at our department. Here is a list of organisations our students have interned at in previous years:

The Dutch Council for Culture | The Netherlands Performing Arts Fund | Prince Claus Fund | Dutch Culture | International Community Arts Festival (ICAF) | Eye Film Institute | International Film Festival Rotterdam | City Theatre Amsterdam | The Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra | TivoliVredenburg | Sharing Arts Society | Café Theatre Festival​ | LKCA | Impakt Festival | Framer Framed | Casco | Tropenmuseum | Tweetakt Festival | Monnik | Setup | De Ceuvel | De Appel | Kunsthal Rotterdam | Staatslieden Art Community

Keep in mind that most organisations in the Netherlands use Dutch as their working language. However, you can also do an internship abroad, at a research project at a university or at an international organisation.

Examinations

  • oral and audiovisual presentations
  • portfolio
  • peer feedback and assessment
  • essays, reports and final thesis

Extra opportunities

For students looking for an extra challenge in addition to their Master's, there are several options. Utrecht University offers several honours programmes for students looking for an extra challenge. Honours education is followed on top of your regular Master's programme and goes beyond the regular curriculum. Honours programmes are available at interdisciplinary level and allow you to work on projects that transcend your own discipline.

Read more about the honours programmes