Master of Arts (MA)

Get the big picture: politics, philosophy, and law in the mix. Learn the craft of digging into the early modern period, get experience abroad and across the disciplines, and shape the lively debate.

The Erasmus Centre for Early Modern Studies organises symposia and seminars and regularly hosts experts in the field. It also supports cutting-edge research in legal history, the history of political thought and the history of philosophy.

Work under the expert supervision of top faculty and study abroad, perhaps, at other prestigious institutions in Europe. Partners include Trent University and the University of Verona, in Italy, and the University of York and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, in the UK.

Contribute to rigorous and high-quality scholarly debate as you do specialised research in one of the three subfields.  Become an expert in crafting new research problems based on the understanding you get of the state of the art. 

What has this programme got to offer me?

• A strong focus on the interaction of early modern history of political thought, philosophy, and early modern legal history in context
• Preparation for active research and scholarly debate of the highest standard as well as the opportunity to study at one of EUR’s partner institutions in this field
• Advanced knowledge and research skills in Legal History, History of Philosophy and History of Early Modern Political Thought in order to enable the students to pursue advanced research in any one of them.
• Expert supervision by EUR teaching staff and, as applicable, by colleagues in partner institutions
• A strong interdisciplinary character
• These characteristics distinguish this research master from ordinary masters and other research masters.
  
  

Education objectives

• Technical and theoretical knowledge on sources providing the basis of research skills.
• An overview of important systematic issues and debates in the three interrelated subfields.
• The ability to understand and work with technical terms in the sources related to the three subfields.
• The ability to understand and work with texts in Latin, being a main part of the relevant source material.
• Expertise in formulating original and innovative research problems based on a solid understanding of the state of the art in their area of specialization.
• Expertise in applying their knowledge and skills in new and possibly multidisciplinary contexts.
  
  

Career prospects

Alumni will be prepared for performing PhD research or performing other related research activities in junior research positions in the Netherlands and abroad. They will also be able to serve in various functions in society where the international and interdisciplinary character of the curriculum will give them a particular advantage.

Target Audience

This Research Master’s Programme is open to excellent and highly motivated students with a BA Degree in Philosophy, Law, History or Sociology.

Admission Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, Law, History or Sociology
• Grade for the BA thesis is at least 8
• Average grade of the BA is at least 7
• Alternatively: Master’s degree in any of the above disciplines
• Proficiency in English (TOEFL 600/250/100 or IELTS 7.0)
• Proficiency in two other modern languages
• Satisfactory letter of intent

Admission and Application

The application deadline is 1 June. Please fill out the form "Request for Admission Research Master Programmes".