Program and courses Philosophy of Contemporary Challenges

You will follow 1 signature course (6 ECTS)

• Justice and Inequality (6 ECTS)

You take 2 common courses (12 ECTS in total) with the other Philosophy master tracks:

• Ethics (6 ECTS)
• The Canon and Beyond (6 ECTS)

You will follow 7 track-specific courses (21 ECTS):

• Migration, Refugees and Human Rights (3 ECTS)
• Science and Public Policy (3 ECTS)
• Populism and Active Citizenship (3 ECTS)
• Sustainability and Environmental Ethics (3 ECTS)
• Bioethics, Technology and the Body (3 ECTS)
• Identity, Race and Gender (3 ECTS)
• Philosophy of Big Data and Society (3 ECTS)

The Master Seminar (0 ECTS) offers a theoretical and practical deepening and enrichment of the Master's program. For the seminars, philosophers and professionals from relevant fields are invited.

Choose 1 course of 6 ECTS or 2 courses of 3 ECTS from the curriculum of the following tracks:

• Philosophy of Humanity and Culture
• Philosophy of Mind and Psychology
• Philosophy of Data and Digital Society 
• Ethics of Business and Organization (in Dutch)

In the first semester, you will receive practical information about the process of writing your Master's thesis and then get to work choosing a topic, developing an outline, and finding a supervisor. In the second semester, you get to work on writing your thesis.

Thesis procedure (in short):

• You can freely choose the subject of your thesis. The topic must be philosophical in nature and consistent with the content of the program. 
• You are matched with a supervisor based on content expertise and availability.
• You have the opportunity, under conditions, to write your thesis in response to a research question from a company or organization.
• The thesis is an academic and philosophical piece of writing and thus the research expected is philosophical in nature (conceptual, argumentative, literature review).

Examples of subjects are:

• Is the possibility of optional war: A defence of moral options in warfare.
• Competitive society and mental disorders: A philosophical examination.
• The importance of critical thinking in democracy: Participatory democracy requires educating students in critical thinking and active citizenship.
• Affective injustice in positive reactive attitudes: The demand for women’s gratitude.
• Introducing the Well-Tempered Science Ideal: On ensuring objectivity by means of inclusion.

Part-time students usually take two years to complete the master (instead of one year), and three years for pre-master plus master. However, a higher or lower study tempo in the master is also negotiable.

As a part-time student, keep the following in mind:

1. The courses from the Master's are scheduled in such a way that the program can be followed partly in the evening hours as a part-time student.
2. Evening lectures start at 17.45h (or later) and are given on one or two regular evenings during the week. They usually take place on Monday and/or Thursday evening. Lectures that start before the evening (e.g., 16.45h) and end in the evening do not count as evening classes.
3. As a part-time student you will also encounter lectures that are given during the day. These lectures can take place on all working days (Monday up to and including Friday). 
4. Lecturing schedules are drawn up per semester and are usually announced one or one and a half month before the start of the semester.
5. Since lectures can be scheduled every day of the week, during the day as well as in the evening, it is important to have some flexibility in your working schedule when you want to combine this study with a job.
6. The average study load when studying part-time is 20-25 hours per week. This includes lectures, exams and preparation for the lectures and exams.
7. Attendance during the working lectures is not mandatory for part-time students, but it is highly recommended.