Majors

Majors at EUC

  • At the end of their first year at EUC, students declare their Major, which is a central component of the curriculum. It consist of a comprehensive set of courses (75 EC) that builds a solid foundation in a particular discipline.
  • To follow any Major, you need to be admitted into EUC. Please find admission requirements here. Additionally, some majors have prerequisites that require successful completion of specific courses during the 1st year of study.
  • Each Major will be concluded with a capstone project, in which a Major-related topic of the student's choice will be explored under the guidance of a supervisor.
  • In addition to the Major, students have the option to choose an EUC Minor (30 EC).
  • For detailed information , please see the Course Catalogue. Current students, please always consult the Course Catalogue and ARR of the applicable year. 

At EUC, you can choose from the following Majors:

The major in Philosophy, Politics & Economics (PPE) is intended for students with a keen interest in diverse perspectives on contemporary issues. By combining courses from the departments of Humanities, Economics & Business and Social & Behavioural Sciences, students will gain insight in the various ways in which these respective disciplines frame and analyse, the social, economic and political developments that have shaped societies in the past and will continue to do so in the future. Throughout the major, students address themes that are pivotal to understanding today’s world – from the emergence of industrial societies and the rise of network societies to micro- and macroeconomy and from globalisation and international relations to political economies and policy frameworks. Students also discuss the works of classical scholars such as Plato and Aristotle, Adam Smith and Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim, alongside various other key texts from the disciplines of philosophy, economy and social sciences.

The PPE major thus offers a comprehensive introduction to the core subjects in Politics, Philosophy and Economics, augmented by (interdisciplinary) courses on themes and subjects that cross the boundaries between these fields, as well as skills courses. To reflect this multi- and interdisciplinary nature, students are asked to choose from each discipline the following core courses, as well as 15 EC in electives from within the fields.

Mandatory courses:

  • Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics
  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • Early Modern Political Philosophy
  • Critical Theory
  • Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism
  • Understanding Politics
  • International Relations: Theories, Approaches & Themes
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Intermediate Statistics II
  • or Principles of Econometrics
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • International Economics
  • Contemporary Political Philosophy
  • Politics of Public Policy
  • European Union: Foundations, Policy & Institutions

Additionally, choose from courses within the categories:

Philosophy

  • The Climate Crisis: Ecology, Economy & Politics in the Anthropocene
  • Early Modern Political Philosophy
  • Critical Theory
  • Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism
  • Multiple Modernities: (De)coloniality and (Counter)histories
  • Feminist Philosophy: Bodies, Binaries & Beyond
  • Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South
  • Close Reading bell hooks: Reading (and) Teaching to Transgress
  • Philosophy of Media: Beyond the Image

Politics

  • Understanding Politics
  • International Relations: Theories, Approaches & Themes
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Middle East Politics
  • Islam: A Political History
  • Global Governance & Diplomacy
  • Politics of Public Policy

Economics

  • Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics
  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • Behavioural Economics
  • Applied Game Theory
  • Impact Evaluation
  • Economics of Conflict, Cooperation & Discrimination
  • Economics of Sustainability
  • Political Economy of Contemporary China
  • Global Regimes: Trade, Health & Power

The achievement of sustainability, or ‘the requirement of our generation to manage resources such that the average quality of life that we ensure ourselves can potentially be shared by all future generations’ (Asheim and Brekke, 1993) can be considered one of the main challenges of our times. For sustainability to be achieved, environmental, social and economic aspects all need to be in balance. However, the application of such an interdisciplinary approach to sustainability can be hindered by the mono-disciplinary approach of today’s highly specialised world. In this major, you will acquire the tools to think critically about the most pressing challenges of our time and the skills to find creative solutions for such challenges. Each course is embedded in an interdisciplinary framework that will guide you through different perspectives, from Life Sciences and Social Sciences to Economics and Humanities. In this major, you will develop research-oriented skills with a strong focus on solving complex multi-perspective and multi-disciplinary current issues. In particular, thanks to the emphasis given to the intrinsic relationships between humans and the natural environment, you will learn how natural and ecological systems work, how policies and organisations contribute to sustainability, how the current ethical and historical perspectives influence the climate crisis, how plants are a foundation for people and life on our planet, how to generate prevention plans for health problems, how to include multiple perspectives when developing solutions and, finally, how laws and policies to protect the common environmental are generated.

Mandatory courses:

  • Applied Game Theory
  • Plant Biology & Diversity
  • Food & Nutrition
  • Intermediate Statistics I or Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • The Climate Crisis: Ecology, Economy & Politics in the Anthropocene
  • Principles of Ecology, Biodiversity & Nature-Inclusive Design

Additionally choose from:

  • Intermediate Statistics I or Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses approved by the Examination Board
  • Sustainable Agriculture
  • Epidemiology & Global Health
  • International Environmental & Energy Law
  • Politics of Public Policy
  • Economics of Sustainability or Think Green: Ecological & Economic Perspectives for a Sustainable Environment or Sustainability Transitions
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • EUR minor in the field of Sustainability approved by the Head of the Life Science Department

This major is intended for students who are interested in the health problems of communities and the actions that will protect or improve the lives of large numbers of individuals within communities. The work of public health professionals is distinct from the work of clinical professionals, who typically treat individuals with health problems. Public health actions often involve research and educational and/ or governmental approaches that protect communities, prevent diseases, and address issues such as obesity, smoking, and access to healthcare. The major is especially appropriate for students who wish to pursue advanced studies that would lead to research, project management, and leadership positions in governmental or non-governmental organisations that deal with current and emerging health concerns throughout the world.

Mandatory courses:

  • Food & Nutrition
  • Epidemiology & Global Health
  • Health Psychology: Understanding Health Behaviours
  • Capstone
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Intermediate Statistics II or Principles of Econometrics
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing

Additionally choose from:

  • Principles of Management
  • Organisational Behaviour
  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular & Cellular Biology
  • Human Physiology
  • Micro- & Immunobiology
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses (max 15 EC) approved by the Examination Board
  • Impact Evaluation
  • HR Management
  • Molecular & Clinical Genetics
  • Global Regimes: Trade, Health & Power
  • Rationing Health Care (ESHPM)
  • Value-Based Health Care (ESHPM)
  • Global Challenges for Health & Behavior (ESHPM)
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of Life Sciences Department
  • EUR minor Global Health (Erasmus MC)
  • EUR minor Public Health: de Gezonde Grote Stad (ESHPM)
  • EUR minor Economics of Well-being (ESE)

The major in Business provides students with a solid base of business and economics theories and their applications. Besides gaining insights into the core business disciplines, such as management and marketing, you also learn about the fascinating scientific fields of business strategy, organisational theory and entrepreneurship. In addition, the Business major introduces you to the logic of economic thinking and data analysis, and therefore prepares you well for a future career in business, or a Master’s degree in business. Students that follow this major are in principle eligible for master programmes offered by RSM, except for the master programmes in Accounting & Financial Management, Supply Chain Management and Business Information Management which require additional courses (see link for EUC graduates on RSM’s admission website via their FAQ, search on university college).

Entry requirement

In order to succeed in many courses in the various majors offered by the Economics and Business department, you will need sufficient skill and knowledge in mathematics. Therefore, successful completion of the EUC course INT200 Mathematics is required for all majors offered by the Economics & Business Department.

Mandatory courses:

  • Principles of Management
  • Microeconomics
  • Marketing
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Organisational Behaviour
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • Corporate Finance
  • Intermediate Statistics II or Principles of Econometrics
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Strategy
  • HR Management

Additionally choose from either:

  • another course offered by the ECB department; or
  • off campus course approved by the Head of the Economics & Business Department and the Examination Board

Are you interested in the working of markets or the mechanisms behind economic growth? Or would you like to know more on how consumers and firms make decisions and how these choices affect the economy? And do you have an affinity with mathematics? Then a major or minor in Economics could be the right choice for you.

The major in Economics will give you a thorough understanding of economic theories. In our courses, which were developed in close collaboration with the Erasmus School of Economics, we enable you to further develop your analytical and problem-solving skills. In addition, we provide you with a strong set of tools to identify and analyse problems in and outside the world of economics. This makes students majoring in Economics all-round players: wherever they are, they should feel at home and be ready to think, act and take responsibility based on their economic knowledge and acquired skills.

After successfully completing the major, you are in principle eligible for the many Master programmes in Economics & Business offered by the Erasmus School of Economics, such as Policy Economics, International Economics, Financial Economics, Marketing or Data Science and Marketing Analytics, to name a few.

Mandatory courses:

  • Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics
  • Corporate Finance 
  • Principles of Econometrics
  • Behavioural Economics
  • Applied Game Theory
  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • Intermediate Statistics I 
  • International Economics 
  • Impact Evaluation 
  • Economics of Conflict, Cooperation & Discrimination

Additionally you will choose either:

  • a course offered by the ECB department; or
  • off campus course approved by the Head of the Economics & Business Department and the Examination Board

The major in Economics, Business & Society is designed to provide students with a broad background in the field of economics and business administration and its impact upon and interaction with society. The combination of courses encourages students to take an active interest in exploring the broader world and teaches them the tools to explore relevant events empirically. Students graduating with a major in Economics, Business & Society should be attractive candidates for general master programmes in governance, public management and policy-making, business and society, or political economy. Given the broad set-up of the major Economics, Business & Society, we currently do not propose a predefined minor.

Choose 3 courses from each component:

Economics:

  • Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics
  • Behavioural Economics
  • Applied Game Theory
  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • International Economics
  • Economics of Sustainability
  • Political Economy of Contemporary China

Business:

  • Principles of Management
  • Organisational Behaviour
  • Leadership Studies
  • Entrepreneurship
  • HR Management

Society:

  • Understanding Politics
  • Highlights of Sociology
  • Public International Law
  • Urban Sociology
  • Global Governance & Diplomacy
  • Global Regimes: Trade, Health & Power 
  • Politics of Public Policy

Skills:

  • Principles of Econometrics
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Intermediate Statistics II
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • Impact Evaluation

The major Humanities combines Political Philosophy and Critical Theory on the one hand and Cultural Studies and Medium Analysis (Literature, Arts, Photography, Film, Television, Social Media, etc.) on the other. The curriculum is structured around four recurring themes – technology, economy, culture, and politics – that are combined in innovative courses rooted in our intellectual heritage. Students thus gain extensive knowledge of, and learn to critically reflect on, the historical processes and social developments as well as the institutions and interfaces that have shaped today’s world and continue to shape the 21st century.

The majors and minors in the Humanities Department are designed to educate the critical thinkers, cultural entrepreneurs, ethical managers, and informed citizens of tomorrow. They will open a wide variety of diverse career paths to our students in fields such as academia, the cultural sector, media & communication, or the creative economy.

Moreover, the intellectual versatility, the capacity to reflect on and see through complex problems, and the reading and writing skills acquired in and through the humanities will benefit our students in whatever position they may find themselves later on in their lives. As medical doctors, they will be trained in assessing ethical dilemmas; as managers, they will be able to critically reflect on their own judgments and those of others; as CEOs or entrepreneurs, they will be able to formulate inspiring visions while taking their feasibility into account; and as politicians, they will be able to convincingly convey their message and find flaws in the opponent’s rhetoric. An education in the Humanities is therefore pivotal to any professional in our fast-changing and highly complex 21st century.

Mandatory courses:

  • Critical Theory
  • Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • Intermediate Statistics I

Additionally, choose from below courses:

  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • The Avant-Garde: Experimental Art, Photography & Film
  • Understanding Contemporary Art
  • Early Modern Political Philosophy
  • Revolutions in World History
  • Intermediate Statistics II
  • The Climate Crisis: Ecology, Economy & Politics in the Anthropocene
  • Multiple Modernities: (De)coloniality and (Counter)histories
  • Feminist Philosophy: Bodies, Binaries & Beyond
  • Contemporary Political Philosophy
  • Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South
  • Close Reading bell hooks: Reading (and) Teaching to Transgress
  • Philosophy of Media: Beyond the Image
  • Cheap: A Critique of Capitalism in the Web of Life
  • Analysing Contemporary Culture: Texts, Images, Objects

The major in Cultural Analysis offers students an interdisciplinary approach to the critical analysis of contemporary culture. In the field of cultural studies, culture is defined as a constantly changing set of practices, to which meanings are given by the members of a society or group. These meanings are constructed, and structure the way people behave. Through the study of cultural phenomena, such as works of art and literature, TV & cinema, digital media, and popular culture, as well as the social, economic, political and historical contexts in which they are situated, students learn to analyse culture, with the aim to critically question its implied normativity. The major also provides students with a range of theoretical perspectives from which to approach cultural texts, by drawing from history and medium-specific-, aesthetic-, critical-, post-colonial- and feminist theory. In doing so, this major provides students with the critical tools to read cultural texts, and in addition makes visible the position of the researcher, in this case the students themselves, as situated in a specific cultural context which influences their own meaning making. This is a key skill for critical world citizenship in the twenty-first century. The major in Cultural Analysis prepares students for further studies in the fields of art history and cultural theory, media and cultural studies, and visual culture.

Mandatory courses:

  • Cultural Analysis
  • Critical Theory
  • The Avant-Garde: Experimental Art, Photography & Film
  • Feminist Philosophy: Bodies, Binaries & Beyond
  • Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South
  • Analysing Contemporary Culture: Texts, Images, Objects

Additionally choose from the following options:

  • Understanding Contemporary Art
  • Revolutions in World History
  • Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Qualitative Research through Interviewing
  • Gender Studies
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses (max 15 EC) approved by the Examination Board
  • Multiple Modernities: (De)coloniality and (Counter)histories
  • Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South
  • Close Reading bell hooks: Reading (and) Teaching to Transgress
  • Philosophy of Media: Beyond the Image
  • Cheap: A Critique of Capitalism in the Web of Life
  • Narrating Lives, Narrating Justice: Politics, Law & Literature
  • EUR minor approved by the Head of the Humanities Department

he major Political Philosophy & Critical Theory aims to provide a broad but focused programme that addresses the most relevant traditions in continental political thought of the past 500 years. In addition, it aims to bring into focus the tradition of critical thinking that emerged in the mid-19th century – including its many influences on, and adaptations by, other critical academic disciplines – along with the influence of this kind of thinking on contemporary academic and public debates.

In the courses on political philosophy, the focus is on such diverse issues as the notion of rights, sovereignty, governance, political institutions, freedom and equality, justice, democracy, and many others. Modernity: From Enlightenment to Rationalisation, Early Modern Political Philosophy, and Contemporary Political Philosophy span Western political thought that emerged during the Renaissance up to the most recent and more internationally oriented theoretical perspectives on democracy and politics (i.e., from Machiavelli, Spinoza, Montesquieu, and Rousseau, via Kant, Hegel, and Marx, to Kelsen and Schmitt, Rawls, Habermas, and Mouffe).

The critical theoretical line of this major revolves around the academic traditions that were initiated in the 19th century, with critiques of modern society, industrial capitalism, and its accompanying bourgeois liberal culture (from Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud). We focus on the continuation of this way of thinking in the course Critical Theory in the works of scholars from the Frankfurt School (Adorno, Horkheimer, Marcuse), the French tradition that emerged in Vincennes, Paris (Foucault, Deleuze, Guattari, Rancière), and the Black Liberation movement (Davis, Black Panther Party, the Combahee River Collective). Other lines of critical thought that students will become acquainted with in this major are the perspectives of Feminist Philosophy: Bodies, Binaries & Beyond and Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South, by reading texts from crucial feminist thinkers such as de Beauvoir, Butler, bell hooks, and Haraway; and influential post-colonial authors such as Fanon, Said, and Anzaldúa.

In general, this major prepares students to reflect critically on the history of the present, but also equips them to analyse their own time and their possible immediate future(s). For example, in the course Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism, students critically reflect on pressing issues in the here and now, such as neoliberalisation, precarisation, the debt economy, mediatisation, and the climate crisis.

Mandatory courses:

  • Early Modern Political Philosophy
  • Critical Theory
  • Late Modernity: A Genealogy of Neoliberalism
  • Feminist Philosophy: Bodies, Binaries & Beyond
  • Contemporary Political Philosophy
  • Post-Colonial Theory: Critical Perspectives from the Global South
  • Close Reading bell hooks: Reading (and) Teaching to Transgress
  • Cheap: A Critique of Capitalism in the Web of Life

Additionally choose from:

  • Foundations of Political Economy
  • Understanding Politics
  • The Climate Crisis: Ecology, Economy & Politics in the Anthropocene
  • Multiple Modernities: (De)coloniality and (Counter)histories
  • Philosophy of Media: Beyond the Image
  • EUC course approved by the Head of the Humanities Department
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses approved by the Examination Board and Major Coordinator

The major Life Sciences is a cross-disciplinary programme that features core courses in the fundamental biological sciences (such as molecular and cellular biology, plant biology, microbiology and human physiology) and specialisations that range from genetics to multidisciplinary and applied life sciences, such as ecology and evolutionary biology. One of the most appealing aspects of the major in Life Sciences is its comprehensive nature. The major is highly suited for students interested in a career in the biological sciences in its broadest sense from research to policy-making.

Mandatory courses:

  • Plant Biology & Diversity
  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular & Cellular Biology
  • Molecular & Cellular Biology Lab
  • Human Physiology
  • Micro- & Immunobiology
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Principles of Ecology, Biodiversity & Nature-Inclusive Design

Additionally choose from:

  • EUR minor Think Green: Ecological & Economic Perspectives for a Sustainable Environment
  • EUR minor in the field of Life Sciences that is approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • Molecular & Clinical Genetics
  • Sustainable Agriculture
  • EUC courses/ off campus / exchange courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department and the Examination Board

The major in Molecular & Cellular Biology focuses on the study of molecular structures and processes within the cells and their roles in the function, reproduction and development of organisms. This covers a broad range of specialised disciplines such as biochemistry, microbiology, molecular biology, genetics, cell physiology, cell anatomy and immunology.

Entry requirements

Students are allowed to enter this major when they either have successfully completed a general biology course prior to entering EUC or have passed the EUC course ACC112 Basics of Life in the first year.

Mandatory courses:

  • Molecular & Cellular Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular & Cellular Biology Lab
  • Embryology & Developmental Biology
  • Human Physiology
  • Micro- & Immunobiology
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Molecular & Clinical Genetics

Additionally, choose from these courses:

  • EUC courses approved by the Head of Life Sciences Department
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses approved by the Examination Board
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Epidemiology & Global Health
  • Neuroscience: Cognition, Genetics & Society
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of Life Sciences Department
  • EUR minor Biomedical Research in Practise
  • EUR minor Genetics in Society
  • EUR minor in the field of Molecular & Cellular Biology approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department

The major in Neuroscience offers students a multidisciplinary study of biological subjects that focus on the human central nervous system. The major is designed for students with a strong interest in neurobiology and the way in which the brain governs behaviour.

Mandatory courses:

  • Biochemistry
  • Introduction to programming: Python
  • Molecular & Cellular Biology
  • Human Physiology
  • The Neuroscience of Everything
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Intermediate Statistics I
  • Neuroscience: Cognition, Genetics & Society

Additionally choose from:

  • EUC courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • Off-campus courses or exchange courses approved by the Examination Board
  • EUC courses approved by the Head of the Life Sciences Department
  • EUR minor in the field of Neurosciences

The Pre-Med Major at EUC is a specialization within our Liberal Arts and Sciences Bachelor programme designed to prepare you for medical studies. This programme requires you to earn 90 credits out of the total 180 credits needed for graduation. The remaining credits will be covered by other, elective courses from EUC's curriculum, not only including Life Sciences courses, but also courses in Economics, Social Sciences and Humanities. That’s why EUC’s pre-med programme goes beyond the traditional boundaries of monodisciplinary Bachelor studies and leaves you with a broad foundation of skills and knowledge.

The fields of study include:

  • Fundamental biology, including biochemistry, molecular and  cellular biology, micro- and immuniobiology, human anatomy and physiology.
  • Selected health and disease issues.
  • The medical process and the scientific basis of medicine.
  • Epidemiology and research methodology.
  • Medical statistics.
  • General clinical skills, including anamnesis, physical examination, clinical reasoning, and therapeutic skills.
  • (Medical) professional behaviour.

Entry requirements to EUC

To follow the Pre-Med Major, you need to be admitted into EUC. Please find admission requirements here

Entry Requirements for Pre-Med Major

After being admitted to EUC to enrol in the Pre-Med Major, you need to:

  • pass the EUC course ACC112 Basics of Life in the first year; and
  • have taken and passed the course LSC218 Life Support; and
  • have taken and passed the course LSC216 Medical Ethics; this course may also be taken during the second year, i.e. during the Pre-Med major.

EUC Minors

A minor is more! Combine your major with one minor to explore a different field of knowledge or to specialise within your area of study.

EUC students studying together

Application to EUC

Learn more about our application process

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