Apply with a Dutch academic Bachelor's or Master's degree
Master Communication Science
When you did not study the Communication Science bachelor's programme at the UvA, admission to the Master's programmes of Communication Science is dependent on your previous educational background. Below you will find the admission requirements. If you do not yet meet these requirements we offer a preparatory programme and crash courses after which you will be allowed to enrol in the Master's programmes. More information about these options are detailed on this website. You will also find the online application form below.
On this page:
Admission requirements
Direct entrance to the Master's programmes requires:
- Sufficient knowledge about theories in Communication Science
- Experience with methods and techniques of social science research (on the level of the UvA Bachelor's degree in Communication Science)
After application, the admissions committee will determine the conditions for admission for you individually*.
* Communication Science students with a Bachelor or Master's from some Dutch universities (VU, RUN, Universteit Twente) fulfil these prerequisites and will always be admitted to the Communication Science (one-year) Master's programmes directly. We do require these students to apply as well. Please use the online application form below.
Conditional admission
Do you have basic, but not yet sufficient knowledge in these fields, then you can be conditionally admitted based on a preparatory programme or crash course. This is usually applicable for students with a Bachelor’s degree in:
- Anthropology
- Political Science
- Pedagogical Sciences
- Educational Sciences
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Communication and Information Sciences
- Media studies
- Film and television studies (and other media-related studies)
The admission of students with a Bachelor’s degree in the fields of linguistics, humanities, or economics is heavily dependent on the completed courses, specifically the social scientific content of the completed courses. Do the courses have sufficient social scientific content, then you might be conditionally admissible with a preparatory programme of max. 30 ECTS.
Do you have insufficient social science background, then you are not admissible. In that case, you could opt to enrol in the 60 ECTS minor through the College of Communication Science. Upon completion of this 60 ECTS minor, admission to the Master’s programme has become an option. Please consult the study advisers to discuss this option.
Preparatory programme or crash course
When you are admitted conditionally, this means that you first need to successfully complete a preparatory programme or one (or two) crash course(s).
Preparatory programme
The preparatory programme includes maximum of 30 ECTS and takes one semester
to complete. An academic year at University of Amsterdam is divided in two
semesters: semester I (Sept-Jan) and semester II (Feb-Aug). After completion of
your preparatory programme, the earliest official start of the Master’s
programme is the next semester.
You may be required to complete one, two or all three of the following courses
of the preparatory programme:
| Semester | |||
|
Block 1 |
Block 2 |
Block 3 |
|
|
Research Practice Seminar (6 EC) |
|||
Crash course Communication Science and/or Research Methodology
When you have a broad background in these areas, but do not as yet meet our
admission requirements you may be given the option to complete one or two crash
course(s). The crash courses are intensive 2-week introduction courses in the
area of Communication Science or Research Methodology in social sciences. The
crash courses take place in the month prior to the intended start of the master
programme (August or January). The University of Amsterdam receives no public
funding for these courses. Therefore, you will need to pay an extra fee of
approximately € 600 per course.
For course descriptions of the crash courses see the
course
catalogue.
Starting with preparatory courses during your Bachelor
It is possible to enrol in the preparatory programme during your current Bachelor’s degree. Pay attention that the courses from your Bachelor’s programme and the preparatory programme do not overlap: attendance in the preparatory courses is mandatory. When you cannot meet the attendance requirements, you cannot complete the course. Did you successfully complete all the courses from your preparatory programme and did you obtain your Bachelor’s degree? Then you can start the Master’s programme in the following semester.
Online application form
You can use our online application form to apply for our Master’s programme. Please be aware of our application deadlines. Before you begin your application, make sure that you have digital versions of the following documents:
- Your bachelor’s degree (when already obtained)
- A recent (preferably final) grade transcript
- Your CV
- An empirical research paper (preferably your Bachelor’s thesis)
- Course descriptions of all courses completed in the field of Communication Science and
- Course descriptions of all courses completed in the field of methods & statistics of social science research
- A scan of your passport or ID
Please note that you are asked to send in certified hard copies of your bachelor’s degree and grade transcript after completing the online application form. Below you will find the link to the online form:
You will get notified about your admission within 4 weeks. You will then also receive information on necessary steps to take to complete your enrolment, such as enrolment in Studielink and the course registration.
More information/questions?
Do you have specific questions about admission and application? Please e-mail the admissions officer of the Master’s programme in Communication Science: Ms. Nhu Trang MSc: