Admission

The master Societal Transitions is tailored for talented and motivated students. Your background may be in any discipline, from social sciences or humanities, to beta studies.

Diploma requirements

You can apply if:

1. You have a university bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.
2. You have a university pre-masters degree.

Students who have not yet obtained their degree may already apply if they expect to graduate before starting with this master.

English proficiency

1.  You meet the English proficiency requirement if:

• you have a Dutch ‘vwo’ grade of 7 or higher in English;
• you hold an International Baccalaureate diploma including English Standard Level (A) or English Higher Level (A or B);
• you hold a European Baccalaureate diploma including English as 1st or 2nd language;
• you obtained at least 2,5 years of English language secondary education in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South-Africa, The USA, the UK or Ireland.

2. If you do not meet one of the above requirements, you may demonstrate proof of proficiency in English through any of the following tests:

• IELTS Academic (International English language Testing System) with a minimum score of 7.0 overall. All sub scores should at least be 6.5.
• TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language) with a minimum score of 100. All sub scores should at least be 23.
• ITP-TOEFL (Institutional Testing Programme) offered by the Language & Training Centre at the EUR, or any other Dutch University. Minimum requirement: 627.
• Cambridge C1 Advanced or Cambridge C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of at least 185.

3. Deadlines for submitting proof of English proficiency:

• non-EEA applicants: before 1 May
• EEA applicants: before 1 August

Please take the test well in time to meet the deadline. Allow some time to re-take the test, if necessary!

4. English tests must not be older than two years at the time of application. If you have not yet taken a test, we recommend IELTS or TOEFL.
5. For graduates of recognised academic programmes taught entirely in English, the obligation to take a language test may be dropped after considering their academic performance.
6. Applicants with a Dutch academic bachelor diploma, who do not yet meet the English language requirements are recommended to take an English language test to demonstrate their command of the language. We would like to point out that having a solid command of the English language will greatly benefit the applicant’s study success. We expect students contribute to our lectures and group discussions, as well as being able to speak, read and write in English. An insufficient command of the English language will affect their study success negatively. Students to whom this applies, are eligible for a refund under the following conditions:
   1. Students are to take the ITP-TOEFL at EUR’s Language and Training Center;
   2. Test should be taken anywhere between October 2020-August 2024;
   3. A full refund will only be granted if the student completes the enrolment for the programme for which (s)he has taken the test;
   4. Students shall inform the Admissions Coordinator about the planned test date;
   5. Students are eligible for one refund;
   6. Students who have finalised their enrolment and have started with the programme will be informed on how to get the refund in September.

Personal motivation

A personal motivation for enrolment is required in which you explain why you find this master's interesting and why you think you are suited for it. This is particularly important because the curriculum places high demands on your involvement and commitment.

Promising candidates who do not meet all entry requirements can contact philosophy@esphil.eur.nl or vannucci@esphil.eur.nl. The office of the Erasmus School of Philosophy can help you make a request to the Examination Board to override certain entry requirements.