Faculty of Science
If you choose to do a major, it will comprise the whole second year of your Master's programme. If you choose to do a minor, it will fit into one semester of your second year.
Doing a major or minor means that your study programme is slightly different from the standard programme. When planning for your major or minor, please check which courses you need to take in the first year so you are prepared for the major or minor in your second year.
Do biomedical innovations not only raise scientific questions for you, but also ethical, legal and social questions? Then the major Science in Society might be for you.
The Master's major Science in Society:
If you are admitted to a Master’s programme in which this major is available, you are automatically admissible to the major. In your first year you will take the courses of your chosen Master’s programme. To start the major in your second year, you will have to have completed 48 EC of your first year’s courses.
1 August
Are you considering a career in secondary or professional education? The major Teaching gives you the opportunity to achieve the first-level teaching qualification within your Master’s programme.
The major Teaching:
If you are admitted to a Master’s programme in which this major is available, you are automatically admissible to the major. In your first year you will take the courses of your chosen Master’s programme. To start the major in your second year, you will have to have completed 48 EC of your first year’s courses.
Additionally to start the teacher training, you need to have enough subject knowledge. This will be determined during an entrance interview. In general a Bachelor’s diploma related to the subject will suffice.
For the start in September you have to register before 1 November.
For the start in February you have to register before 1 May
Do you see yourself working as a science journalist at a newspaper or at a popular science magazine? Or do you aspire to be a communication adviser at a biomedical company, a content manager at a science museum or a PR-manager at an environmental organisation? With the Science Communication Master's major specialisation you can combine your interest in the natural sciences with gaining knowledge and skills within the field of science communication.
The major Science Communication is designed for students who have a broad interest in current events, societal issues and the public debate on the position of the natural sciences in society. It:
If you are admitted to a Master’s programme in which this major is available, you are automatically admissible to the major. In your first year you will take the courses of your chosen Master’s programme. To start the major in your second year, you will have to have completed 48 EC of your first year’s courses.
1 August
Read more about the major Science Communication on the VU website (Scroll down to the Science Communication tab)
Biomedical research is developing fast, especially due to the use of 'omics' technologies that generate large data sets, such as Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) and Mass Spectrometry (MS). Big (omics) data analysis and interpretation becomes ever more important, as biomedical research becomes more and more data-driven.
The goal of this Major program is to teach students how to handle, analyze and interpret big omics data sets, in order to investigate biomedical research questions. The programme is intended for those who aspire a research career in a university or research institute, as well as for those who want to do R&D, in for instance a pharmaceutical or life-science company.
The major consists of three 6-EC courses and a 42-EC internship. The content of the three courses will be subsequently: Genomics, Transcriptomics and Proteomics/Metabolomics. During the internship you will work and participate in a biomedical research group, such as in the Amsterdam Medical Centre or the Netherlands Cancer Institute NKI, to work on a research project.
For whom?
This major is intended for students that want to be able to analyze omics big data themselves. This is useful in research and for life sciences companies. For instance, when you are interested in genes that are involved in complex diseases, you may want to analyze all 4 to 5 million sites in the genome where differences between humans exist. This will lead to a big data set. The major is designed to teach students the skills required to analyze, visualize, and interpret such data.
Programme
The Big Biomedical Data Analysis programme starts with three compulsory 6 EC courses that teach you enough skills in scripting (such as Linux bash, R, Python), bioinformatics tools, analyses approaches, statistics and machine learning methods to be prepared for your internships. In addition, various applications of the sequencing and mass spectrometry technologies will be discussed, such as single cell sequencing, ChIP-sequencing, and targeted and non-targeted (LC)-MS approaches. The content of the courses will be: September: Genomics, October: Transcriptomics, November: Proteomics/ Metabolomics.
Internships
The internships are organized according to a new concept. You will work in a biomedical research group or company to participate in their research. Given that the goal of the Major program, a Major internship is typically a drylab project, allowing you train your data analysis skills in research practice. The emphasis of the internship must be on a bioinformatic (big data) analysis, and the central hypothesis must be researched and tested with a bioinformatic approach.
Entry requirements
If you are admitted to a Master’s programme in which this major is available, you are automatically admissible to the major. In your first year you will take the courses of your chosen Master’s programme. To start the major in your second year, you will have to have completed 48 EC of your first year’s courses. The major Big Biomedical Data Analysis starts once a year in September.
To register for this major, please contact major coordinators dr. Martijs Jonker or Selina van Leeuwen (Major-BBDA-fnwi@uva.nl). Please note that there is a restriction on the number of students that can participate.
Registration deadline
1 June
Contact
For questions about this major, please contact major BBDA coordinators dr. Martijs Jonker or Selina van Leeuwen (Major-BBDA-fnwi@uva.nl) or the Majors manager Kelly van Leeuwen (k.vanleeuwen2@uva.nl).
Do you want to work on a real business case in a multidisciplinary team? The Collective Futures project is characterised by an interdisciplinary and unconventional focus on utilising science knowledge in real life environments. During the intensive programme students will attend lectures by speakers from within and outside of academia, participate in a range of skills trainings, are responsible for the organisation of part of the minor and work in small groups on a project for an external partner (company).
To be able to start the Collective Futures minor, you have to have completed 48 EC of the obligatory research part of your Master’s programme, including the (first) research project. Furthermore, the Collective Futures minor has limited space (24 participants) and is a selective programme. This means that not all applicants will be granted admission.
1 June
Science for Sustainability is a minor for science Master’s students who want to make a connection between their scientific background and the societal challenge to enhance a sustainable future. You learn to combine scientific and transformational knowledge with insights in economics and politics. The final aim is to come to science-based solutions for pressing issues such as climate change, the need to safeguard our environment, and the global demand for energy, water and food.
To be able to start the minor Science for Sustainability, you have to have completed 48 EC of the obligatory research part of your Master’s programme, including the (first) research project. Additionally, an interview is part of the application, in order to ensure a good match between your individual learning goals and the aims of the programme.
Students who already have the second-degree teaching qualification (Dutch: tweedegraads bevoegdheid), for example by having completed the Educatieve Minor in the Bachelor’s programme, can obtain the first-degree teaching qualification by following a reduced 30 EC programme at ILO (Instituut voor Lerarenopleidingen). You can register for the second half of the ‘Major Teaching’.
For the start in September you have to register before 1 November.
For the start in February you have to register before 1 May.
The professional Master's majors and minors are available within these two-year Master’s programmes of the UvA Faculty of Science.
If you are considering doing a major, make sure to always contact the Majors Manager. You are also advised to contact your Track Coordinator or Study Adviser to discuss the planning of your complete study programme, as choosing a major influences the contents of your programme in the first year.
The required study programme in case of a major or minor are laid down in the Teaching and Examination Regulations of your programme.
For more specific questions about the professional Master's majors, please contact the Majors Manager.
Kelly van Leeuwen
Email: gradschool-LES-FNWI@uva.nl