Application and admission: Methods and Statistics track - national procedure

In order to be accepted directly to our Research Master's program in Social and Behavioral Sciences, you must have the following academic background:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree, which provided (under)graduate training in a relevant discipline: Psychology, Sociology, Organizational Sciences, Human Resources, or Leisure Studies).
• Average score of 7.5 (75%) for the courses in the second- and third-year of a Dutch Bachelor's program or an equivalent score in the Master's program.
• Strong motivation, excellent skills and talent for carrying out scientific research, which you should demonstrate in your motivation letter and other application documents.

Required educational background for hbo students:

The Research Master in Social and Behavioral Sciences does not offer its own pre-Master's program. However, you can be eligible for admission to the Research Master in Social and Behavioral Sciences if you successfully complete one of the following pre-Master's programs from Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences:

• Sociology
• Organization and Management Studies
• Human Resource Studies

Please note that the other admission requirements and application procedures still apply.

You must prove your proficiency in English by submitting the results of one of these tests:

• Academic IELTS with a minimum overall score of 7.0 and a minimum score of 6.5 for each section.
• TOEFL iBT with a minimum score of 100 for the traditional TOEFL iBT test at a test center or the TOEFL iBT Paper Edition. Please check in our corona FAQ whether the TOEFL iBT Home Edition will be accepted for the intake of your choice.
  • The TOEFL institutional code for Tilburg University is 9860.
  • Please note: we do not accept the TOEFL Institutional Testing Program (TOEFL ITP)
• Cambridge English test results: C1 advanced (formerly CAE) or C2 proficiency (formerly CPE).
  • For C1, we accept a score of A or B.
  • For C2, we accept a score of A, B, or C.

Please note

• The test results must not be older than two years at the time of application.
• If you do not have your test results at the time of application, you must confirm your test date in your application.

An English proficiency test is not required if one of the following applies to your situation:

• You hold a passport from one of the following countries:
  Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, or the United States of America.
• You have studied and completed your entire Bachelor's or Master's program in English.

Note for Tilburg University students from a Dutch language program

In order to actually achieve admission, a student must satisfy several requirements, one of which is the English language proficiency (proof by e.g. TOEFL test, IELTS test, CAE test). Students who apply on the basis of a Dutch language program at Tilburg University are offered the opportunity to participate in an institutional English Language Proficiency test online.

Note that the level of this test is equivalent to the TOEFL / Cambridge tests, but it can only be used for Tilburg University students as an entry requirement for the Research Master’s program in Social and Behavioral Sciences Research Master’s program and the Research Master’s program in Psychology: Individual Differences and Assessment. As a consequence, the test is not recognized elsewhere.

• The test will be delivered on Tuesday July 5, 2022 from 09:00 until 12:30 hrs in Canvas. Once we know who will participate, you will be added to the Canvas page in question about a day before the test.
• The price for the test is: € 50,- per student.
• To register for this test:  
  Sign up using this form. You are given the option to pay through IDEAL there. Please sign up no later than Monday June 27,  2022, 09:00 hrs.

After Monday June 27, you will receive an email with more information about the test itself, how to prepare for it and practical information about accessing Canvas.

After your registration in Studielink, Tilburg University will contact you by e-mail and list all the required documents you must provide to the Admissions Committee. The Admissions Committee of the Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences will then assess your application on a case-by-case basis. For an overview of the required documents, see below.

Bachelor’s students of Tilburg University

Please submit the following documents:

• Curriculum Vitae;
• Letter of motivation (min. 300, max. 600 words in English);
• English language test results if you are not exempted.
  You can check the requirements above under the heading 'English language requirements'. Please note that it is not obligatory to have completed the English language test before application. In our online application system you can indicate the type of test you intend to take and the approximate test date.
• A complete statement of your courses and results and, if applicable, subjects still to be completed;
• A Bachelor's or Master's thesis - or a comparable essay from the Bachelor's or Master's degree.
  Please upload a copy of your Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis or a paper completed during your studies.
  • In case it is not written in English, please upload your thesis or paper in the original language accompanied with a summarizing essay in English. The summarizing essay must consist of not more than 1,000 words maximum; the following points must be clear: the research question and motivation, a sketch of the theory, the method used, a condense description of the findings, and the conclusion.
  • In case you have not written your thesis yet, please upload a dedicated writing sample in English, e.g., an academic essay or research proposal on the topic of your interest.

Bachelor’s students of another Dutch university

Please submit the following documents:

• A certified copy of your degree certificate;
• A certified copy of the official statement of higher education courses taken and marks/grades received;
• Certified copies of the personal data page of your passport or ID-card (and residence permit, if applicable);
• Curriculum Vitae;
• Letter of motivation (min. 300, max. 600 words in English);
• English language test results if you are not exempted.
  You can check the requirements above under the heading 'English language requirements'. Please note that it is not obligatory to have completed the English language test before application. In our online application system you can indicate the type of test you intend to take and the approximate test date.
• For undergraduates:
  - A complete statement of your courses and subjects still to be completed, an enrollment certificate or statement by the higher education institution specifying the exams taken and grades obtained.
  - A statement from your mentor or supervisor at the university, which states his/her motivated confidence in the timely completion of your studies;
• A Bachelor's or Master's thesis - or a comparable essay from the Bachelor's or Master's degree.
  Please upload a copy of your Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis or a paper completed during your studies.
  • In case it is not written in English, please upload your thesis or paper in the original language accompanied with a summarizing essay in English. The summarizing essay must consist of not more than 1,000 words maximum; the following points must be clear: the research question and motivation, a sketch of the theory, the method used, a condense description of the findings, and the conclusion.
  • In case you have not written your thesis yet, please upload a dedicated writing sample in English, e.g., an academic essay or research proposal on the topic of your interest.

After your application is complete, it will be assessed to determine whether your academic background meets our admission requirements.

You will receive the decision of the Admissions Committee by e-mail. In general, we aim to assess your application within six weeks.

There are three possibilities:

• (Conditionally) accepted to the Research Master's program
  If you are conditionally accepted, this means that you are admitted to our Research Master's program, provided that you send the originals or certified copies of your documents.
• (Conditionally) accepted to the pre-Master's program
  It is possible that you do not completely fulfill the requirements. If this is the case, we may offer you a pre-Master's program to prepare you for the Research Master's program, provided that you send the originals or certified copies of your documents.
• Rejected
  If you do not meet the admission requirements, your application will be rejected. We will e-mail you the reasons for the rejection personally.

Congratulations on being admitted to Tilburg University, either conditionally or unconditionally! 

You may be wondering what the next steps are. To ensure a smooth (and stress-free) start of your studies, we have prepared a timeline to give you an overview of the things you need to arrange before the start of your studies. 

On the timeline you can find information about:  

• Completing your enrollment  
• Paying your tuition fees 
• Tips on finding accommodation (if applicable) 
• Books and schedule 
• Introduction activities like TOP week and your (mandatory) Study Program Introduction

Go to the Welcome page