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Every programme at the Graduate School of Humanities has its own entry requirements, application procedure and deadlines. Please be sure to carefully follow the steps below.

Application deadline

The application deadline for this selective Master's programme is 1 March 2025, 23:59 CET (register in Studielink before 23 February, see step 4).

Application process

Please make sure to follow the steps of the application process carefully to ensure that your application can be processed.

  • 1. Check entry requirements: prior education

    You are eligible to apply for admission if you hold an academic Bachelor's degree from an accredited research university in the Humanities or Social Sciences with a minimum of 30 ECTS (equivalent to a full-time semester of academic studies) taken in the field of art history, musicology, theatre and performance studies or cultural studies. You are expected to have an awareness of basic theoretical notions in the above fields.

    The Artistic Research specialisation is also open for application to students with a Bachelor's degree from an Arts Academy or accredited university with a focus in the Arts/Culture, such as Art History and Curatorial Studies.

    The academic specialisation (Art and Performance Studies specialisation) is not open to students with a degree from a Dutch University of Applied Sciences (hbo). We do not offer a preparatory programme (schakelprogramma) for this Master's.

    If you obtained your degree outside the Netherlands, the minimum level of your diploma should be at least equivalent to or comparable to three years of a Dutch research-oriented university. The assessment of whether your degree is considered equivalent will be completed by professional diploma evaluators according to the guidelines set forth by Nuffic, the independent organisation for internationalisation in education in the Netherlands. More information on this assessment can be found on the Graduate School of Humanities website.

  • 2. Check entry requirements: language proficiency

    New Master's students should be able to speak, read, write and understand English at an advanced academic level. Please check carefully on the page below whether:

    • you already meet the English language requirements based on your prior education; or
    • you need to arrange to take an official English language test. If you have serious reasons to believe you should be exempted from taking an official English language test, you will need to file a strongly motivated, official exemption request at the Graduate School of Humanities’ Examinations Board. Please note that there is a strict deadline in place for such a request, which is one month prior to the Master's application deadline.
  • 3. Check entry requirements: selection criteria

    This is a selective Master's programme, which means that apart from having to meet the entry requirements, you also need to meet the selection crtieria. Because of the limited number of places available, prospective students are subject to a selection process, where we will compare your file to that of other applicants. The selection criteria are as follows.

    Grade average

    A/3.6 (American system)
    2.1 HONS (an upper second class honours degree in the British system)
    B (ECTS-system), or 
    7.5 (Dutch system)

    If you obtained a lower grade average you can still apply, particularly if you obtained a sufficient grade average for the courses related to the research master’s programme and/or courses taken in the advanced phase of your prior education. Please include an explanation in your Motivation form.

    Motivation Statement

    You must submit a completed motivation form as part of your application. In your statement, be sure to explain:

    • Why you want to pursue this particular master's programme, and which elements of the programme are of particular interest to you.
    • How this programme fits with your career goals and future ambitions.
    • How your previous education (and possible work experience) relates to the programme's focus areas and objectives.
    • If you wish to pursue the Artistic Research specialisation, please mention this in the motivation form. Include details of your autonomous artistic practice, any previous education in the arts (e.g. an art academy), and your familiarity with techniques, methods, processes, and practices in your art discipline. You may also include links to your works presented in professional contexts. 

    Make sure your motivation aligns with the structure and objectives of the programme.

  • 4. Register for the Master's in Arts and Culture - research Master's

    All students applying will need to start their application by submitting an enrolment request in Studielink, the Dutch online system for students applying for a degree programme at a Dutch university.

    Applicants for Art and Performance Research Studies need to register in Studielink for Arts and Culture - research Master's or Kunst- en cultuurwetenschappen - research master. When asked, select Art and Performance Research Studies as the track you intend to follow. 

    It is extremely important that you register in Studielink at least 48 hours before the application deadline (see above). This is to ensure that you receive your login information (UvAnetID) in time to fill in your UvA application in MyInfo (see next step).

  • 5. Pay the application fee (international prior education only)

    All students applying for a Master’s degree programme with an international bachelor’s diploma are required to pay a non-refundable €100 application fee*. You can do so via SIS. 

    Only after you have paid this fee, you can access the MyInfo portal and submit your application. It can take up to 24 hours for your fee payment to be processed by SIS. Because of this, make sure to pay your application fee at least 24 hours before the application deadline of your programme**.

    You do not have to pay the application fee:

    • If you have or will obtain a bachelor’s degree from a Dutch research university or university of applied sciences (HBO).
    • If you have already applied and have paid the application fee for another master’s programme at the UvA for the academic year 2025-2026.

    Please note that the application fee is non-refundable. You are not entitled to a refund even if you do not submit your application form, if you submit an application form after the deadline (which will not be taken into consideration) or if you submit an incomplete application.

    **You can pay your €100 application fee by credit card (Mastercard, Visacard), GooglePay, ApplePay, Bancontact or iDEAL.

  • 6. Submit your UvA application form

    After enrolling in Studielink, you will automatically receive an email with a link to your MyInfo UvA application form. To log in to MyInfo you need your UvAnetID. Please fill out the application form, upload the required documents and submit your MyInfo application form before the application deadline.

    Please make sure that in Studielink (step 4) you have selected Art and Performance Research Studies as the track you intend to follow, and it is the selected track in your MyInfo application. Applications for selective programmes that have been selected as a second track will not be processed.

    Important: the programme Art and Performance Research Studies has two separate specialisations. Please indicate on the motivation form which specialisation you intend to pursue. As an answer to question 1, please fill in either "Art and Performance Research Studies" or "Art and Performance Research Studies - specialisation Artistic Research". For Artistic Research, please explain in question 4 how your previous education and work experience relate to this specialisation. For more details, see step 3.

    Application documents

    Make sure you are well prepared before you start your application, and you have all necessary documents ready. You are asked to upload the following documents:

    • curriculum vitae;
    • proof of language proficiency (if required, see language requirements);
    • transcript of records, up-to-date and issued by your home institution (if you are already a student at the UvA, a screenshot from SIS is sufficient);
    • diploma (if already obtained)* or list of courses yet to complete;
    • translation of your diploma and transcript of records (if they are not in English, Dutch, German or French);
    • motivation form (PDF).

    *Please note: If you have not yet obtained your diploma but are in possession of all other application documents, you may proceed with your application - as long as you obtain your Bachelor's degree before 1 September. If you have a non-Dutch prior education, please bear in mind that you must submit your certified documents before 1 August.

    This programme does not require any other documents, such as a reference letter. Only the above-mentioned documents are taken into consideration by the Admissions Board.

After submitting your application

Because this is a selective programme, applications will be evaluated by the Admissions Board after the application deadline has passed. You will be notified of whether you have been admitted to the programme after this time.

If you are admitted to the programme, you will receive a letter of conditional acceptance. In order to proceed with your enrolment, you must accept this offer at your earliest convenience. Read more about the steps you need to take after (conditional) acceptance on the website of the Graduate School of Humanities:

Frequently Asked Questions
  • What knowledge, insight and skills should I have?

    As a student in the Master’s programme in Art and Performance Research Studies you are interested in inter-, intra- and cross-disciplinary themes and propositions, in an active dialogue between art theory and art practice, and in the role of the arts within society. Furthermore, you are expected to have the following knowledge, insight and skills. 

    For the Art and Performance Studies specialisation:

    • You are able to set up and conduct research and know how to formulate consistent research questions, collect and select material, apply theory, plan, structure and write a thesis.
    • You are familiar with contemporary theoretical/methodological debates within your original discipline;
    • You are interested in inter-, intra- and cross-disciplinary themes and propositions, in an active dialogue between art theory and art practice, and in the role of the arts within society.

    For the Artistic Research specialisation:

    • You have an autonomous practice as an artist, and/or you have had a previous education in the arts, and you are acquainted with techniques, methods, processes and practices in your art discipline.
  • Do I need to specify the specialisation in my application?

    Yes, please clearly state whether you are applying for the Art and Performance Studies or Artistic Research specialisation in your motivation letter.

  • Do I need an art school degree to apply for the Artistic Research specialisation?

    Yes, this is a regular requirement. You need to evidence that you have developed an independent artistic practice. An art school degree provides such an evidence. Exceptions must be discussed with the coordinator.

  • Can I apply for more than one Master's programme?

    Yes, you can apply for up to a maximum of four Master’s programmes. Some Master’s programmes offer different tracks. You indicate in Studielink which track you want to follow, and for this you submit an application file via MyInfo. It is possible to submit a second preference for a track within the same master via the contact form (option 'My online application' and then 'Adding a second track choice'). Please note that we will not process the track of your second choice if you are (conditionally) admitted to the track of your first choice.

    Due to the selection procedure, it is not possible to enter a selective track as your second choice. If you are interested in a selective track, then this is the track you should register for in Studielink. You can then submit a second, non-selective track via the contact form above.

  • Can I apply before having completed my Bachelor's?

    Many applicants to Master's programmes have not finished their previous education when they apply. If this applies to you, then you can upload a transcript of records with the courses and grades obtained so far. Make sure to also include a list of courses from your Bachelor's that you still need to complete. This applies to the scholarship applications as well.