University College Tilburg: Liberal Arts and Sciences

Program 

The Bachelor’s program in Liberal Arts and Sciences offers you a broad and interdisciplinary spectrum of courses. 

• In your first year you will get acquainted with various scientific disciplines within the social sciences and humanities: law, business, economics and management, psychology and sociology, culture, history, literature, philosophy and religion.
• In the second year you specialize by choosing one of five majors: Business and Economics, Law in an International Context, Social Sciences: Human Behavior, Arts and Humanities: Past – Present – Future, or Cognitive Neuroscience: Brain and Cognition. Additionally, you will choose several elective courses, enabling you to customize your study program and to specialize in a field of interest.
• The curriculum of your third year depends on the major and elective courses you choose. In the first semester of the third year, you will choose three minor courses. In addition, you will take online classes. Most of our students use the first semester of the third year to study abroad at one of our renowned partner universities. In the second semester, you will write your Bachelor's thesis. Your degree (Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science) depends on the major you choose. 

Typical courses are:

• European History: Politics and Culture 
  In this course you will discuss the historical development of European and Western civilization from the Roman Empire up to the present day. 
• Mind and Brain: Introduction to Neuroscience 
  In this course you will gain basic knowledge about the brain and the nervous system. What are the building blocks of our brain? In addition, you will study topics related to cognitive neuroscience, such as: How can we perceive the world? And what causes emotional and motivated behavior? 
• Imagining Justice: Introduction to Law and Humanities 
  Based on a number of canonical works in literature and philosophy, you discuss core questions in the fields of law and the humanities, both in their historical context and in relation to their relevance for contemporary society. 
• Individuals and Collectives: Introduction to Business & Management and Social Sciences  
  A combination of theories from the fields of sociology and psychology provides valuable insights in human social behavior. You will look at the role and functioning of organizations from a business and management perspective. 

More on the program and courses

Study Liberal Arts and Sciences in Tilburg

• You learn how to approach societal challenges from a multitude of perspectives.
• You become part of a stimulating, open, diverse and supportive community that includes students from 40+ different countries and diverse social and cultural backgrounds.
• Team Teaching. Several courses in the program are team-taught, with two lecturers from different fields jointly teaching the course, demonstrating how you can approach a question or issue from different angles. Students very much enjoy this teaching method since it triggers interaction, makes them feel involved and makes the classes exciting and dynamic.
  Two lecturers and one of our students give you more insight in our Team Teaching approach (video - 1:31 min).
• The program offers small-scale and intensive education as officially acknowledged by The Accreditation Organization of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). Classes are deliberately kept small to stimulate interactive classroom dynamics.
• Our students are very satisfied with the program, as can be seen in the Keuzegids Universiteiten 2018 rankings. The Bachelor’s program in Liberal Arts and Sciences has scored 82 out of a 100 points, and has therefore been awarded the ‘top program’ quality label – as in previous years. 
• We teach you the skills needed to make your ideas happen! Launch and develop your own project or business idea and put it into practice in our Social Innovation Project . 
• We offer you opportunities to explore and develop other relevant skills and tools, such as debating skills (in the Moot Court as part of the Criminal Law in Context course), entrepreneurial skills (in the Social Innovation Project) and tools to deal with failure and adversity (in the Resilience Project).
• Our University College is located on the campus of Tilburg University. This means that you profit from the safe harbor of a small-scale community while being surrounded by approximately 18.000+ students from other programs and all facilities of a Research University. 
• Freedom to choose where you want to live. You are free to rent a student room in one of the student housing options in the city of Tilburg. There is no mandatory living on campus. 

What to expect when coming to Tilburg

• Why Tilburg University?
• Student life in Tilburg
• International student support
• Study in Holland

Beyond your Bachelor: Extracurricular Activities

• Become an active member of study association Extra Muros, which organizes a range of academic as well as cultural and social activities for the Liberal Arts and Sciences community. 
• Challenge yourself by participating in one of the Honors programs. 
• Broaden your horizon by studying a semester abroad - an experience of a lifetime! 

View all extracurricular activities

Pursue a Master's degree

You can choose to do your Master’s at a prestigious university abroad, for example the London School of Economics and Political Science or Columbia University.   You can also choose from a wide variety of Master's programs offered by renowned universities in the Netherlands, such as Tilburg University. You can, depending on your major, opt for, among others, one of the following Master’s programs:

Check out all applicable Master's programs

Career prospects

After graduating in Liberal Arts and Sciences, you will have received a well-rounded education, including academic skills that employers commonly cite as highly desirable. You will have the ability to adapt to a variety of tasks and changing work environments. 

Depending on your interests, focus and the Master's program you choose, you will then have a wide variety of options. Graduates of Liberal Arts and Sciences at University College Tilburg pursue successful careers in the private, public, and non-profit sectors, as well as in research institutes.

 Read more about your career prospects

Admission requirements

Dutch students can check their eligibility in the application procedure for Dutch students.

If you have completed, or are about to complete a study program abroad, please make sure that you meet the following requirements before applying for the Bachelor’s program in Liberal Arts and Sciences:

• You have obtained or are going to obtain a secondary school diploma that is equivalent to the Dutch VWO diploma. Examples of diplomas which are accepted are the IB, EB, Abitur, Swiss Maturité, etc. You can find out here whether your diploma meets our admission requirements. 
• Since the Liberal Arts and Sciences program is taught entirely in English, you need to prove your English language proficiency. Tilburg University accepts one of the following tests, which cannot be older than 2 years at the time of your application:
  • an IELTS Academic overall score of > 6.0, all four sub-scores > 5.5;
  • a TOEFL iBT total score of ≥80 (TOEFL institutional code of Tilburg University is 9860);
  • Cambridge English test results: C1 advanced (formerly CAE) or C2 proficiency (formerly CPE). For both C1 and C2, we accept a score of A, B or C.

Go to application and admission

Tuition fees for international students

Information about tuition fees

Monthly cost of living

Living in Tilburg is relatively inexpensive compared to other student cities in the Netherlands, such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Utrecht. An indication for your monthly cost of living (including rent, food and drink, books, and insurance), of course depending on your lifestyle:

Related Bachelor's programs

• Global Management of Social Issues
• Online Culture: Art, Media and Society
• Psychology