This Master's specialisation was previously called History of Philosophy and Science. For the February 2026 intake, please apply under the former name. The current name is applicable for applications for the September 2026 intake and onwards.
Admission & Application
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Application period
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Please select your previous education to view the application periods.Application period
September intake
February intake
Application period
September intake
February intake
Application period
Please select your previous education to view the application periods.Application period
September intake
February intake
Application period
September intake
February intake
Application period
Please select your previous education to view the application periods.Application period
September intake
February intake
Application period
September intake
February intake
Dutch degree
Admission requirements
To be admissable to the programme, you must have a completed bachelor's degree in Philosophy (or Philosophy, Politics and Society), or a completed master's degree in Philosophy.
Moreover, your weighted grade-point average in philosophy in the combined 2nd and 3rd year of your bachelor's programme, must be the equivalent of 7.5 or more (on the Dutch scale of 10). If you apply based on a master’s degree, the average of all of your master’s grades must meet this requirement.
In rare cases students with degrees in a field other than philosophy may be admitted, though they will only be considered for admission if they have completed at least 60ECs in philosophical course work. If you consider applying based on a degree other than philosophy, contact the programme coordinator first via philosophyrm [at] ru.nl
Radboud University does not offer a premaster's programme that will give admission to this research master's. If you do not meet the requirements and wish to enrol in this programme your best option is to get a bachelor's degree in Philosophy. At Radboud University we offer a Dutch-taught bachelor's in Philosophy and an English-taught bachelor's programme called Philosophy, Politics and Society.
Research skill and motivation
You must demonstrate to the board of admissions that you have serious research interests and skills. You must do this by writing a motivation letter and submitting a writing sample. In your motivation letter, make sure to explain why you want to do a research master's as opposed to a regular master's, and why you are applying to the particular specialisation you have chosen. Make clear to the board of admissions what your research interests are, and how they connect with the research that is being done in the department in which your specialisation is embedded.
Language requirements
You must demonstrate your proficiency in English by means of a well-written motivation letter and convincing writing sample. Non-native speakers of English* without an English Bachelor's or Master's degree will in any case pass the language requirement of they possess one of the following certificates:
- A TOEFL iBT or ≥100 overall, with subscores of ≥22;
- An IELTS score of ≥7.0, with subscores of ≥6,5;
- A Cambridge C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency: Grade C or higher.
* Applicants are considered to be a native speaker of English if they are from Australia, Canada (with exception of Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand, UK or USA.
Additionally, if you are applying to the specialisation Metaphysics and Philosophical Anthropology the board of admissions also considers the extent to which you proficient in the German or French language, but this is not a tested requirement.
Non-Dutch degree
Admission requirements
To be admissible to the programme, you must have a completed bachelor’s degree in Philosophy (or Philosophy, Politics and Society), or a completed master’s degree in philosophy.
Moreover, you must have completed your degree with merit or distinction, or equivalent. That is: your weighted grade-point average in philosophy in the combined 2nd and 3rd year of your bachelor's programme, must be the equivalent of 7.5 or more (on the Dutch scale of 10). If you apply based on a master’s degree, the average of all of your master’s grades must meet this requirement. If you hold a degree from an institution outside of the Netherlands, you will find an indication of how that compares to your grades on the page Conversions of international grades.
In rare cases students with degrees in a field other than philosophy may be admitted, though they will only be considered for admission if they have completed at least 60 ECs in philosophical course work. If you consider applying based on a degree other than philosophy, contact the programme coordinator first via philosophyrm [at] ru.nl (philosophyrm[at]ru[dot]nl).
Radboud University does not offer a premaster’s programme that will give admission to this research master’s. If you do not meet the requirements and wish to enrol in this programme your best option is to get a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy. At Radboud University we offer a Dutch-taught bachelor's in Philosophy and an English taught bachelor's programme called Philosophy, Politics and Society.
In order to take part in this programme, you need to have fluency in both written and spoken English. Non-native speakers of English* without a Dutch Bachelor’s degree must either have obtained a higher diploma from an English-teaching institution or be in possession of one of the following certificates:
- A TOEFL iBT or ≥100 overall, with subscores of ≥22
- An IELTS score of ≥7.0, with subscores of ≥6,5
- Cambridge C1 Advanced of C2 Proficiency: Overall minimum score 185, minimum component score 176
* Applicants are considered to be a native speaker of English if they are from Australia, Canada (with exception of Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, UK, USA or South Africa.
Additionally, if you are applying to the specialisation Metaphysics and Philosophical Anthropology the board of admissions also considers the extent to which you are proficient in the German or French language, but this is not a tested requirement.
Research skill and motivation
You must demonstrate to the board of admissions that you have serious research interests and skills. You must do this by writing a motivation letter and submitting a writing sample. In your motivation letter, make sure to explain why you want to do a research master's as opposed to a regular master's, and why you are applying to the particular specialisation you have chosen. Make clear to the board of admissions what your research interests are, and how they connect with the research that is being done in the department in which your specialisation is embedded.
Application procedure
You must first make sure you meet the admission requirements of the Master's programme you would like to apply for. To apply for a programme, you need to submit an enrolment application in Studielink before the application deadline and follow the steps below.
Steps
Step 1: Submit an enrolment application in Studielink
You can apply for a Master’s programme at Radboud University via Studielink. You can apply for a programme for the following academic year from 1 October onwards.
Step 2: Complete the digital questionnaire
If your previous education needs to be assessed by the Admissions Committee, you will receive login details for a digital questionnaire, OSIRIS Application, at the email address that you provided in Studielink. You will need to log in to the questionnaire, and once you have completed it you will need to upload the requested documents.
Please make sure that you complete the questionnaire and upload the documents before the application deadline. If you do this after the deadline, there is no guarantee that we will be able to process your application for admission in time. You can find the application deadline at the top of the Admission & Application page of the Master's programme.
Step 3: Keep an eye on your inbox
Your completed questionnaire will be processed. Within approximately 3 weeks after you have submitted the digital questionnaire, Student Admissions will inform you by email about the admission decision. There are three possible outcomes:
- You are admitted to the placement procedure.
- You are admitted to the placement procedure under certain conditions. There are conditions that you will need to fulfil before you will be able to enrol in the study programme.
- You will not be admitted to the placement procedure. Your application in Studielink will be withdrawn. You will receive further details by email about why your application was rejected.
The details of this outcome will be sent to the email address that you provided in Studielink.
Step 4: Participate in the placement procedure
Have you been admitted to the placement procedure? Then you will receive an email from the Master's programme about what the placement procedure looks like and what actions are expected of you. Based on the placement procedure, it will be assessed whether you will be selected for the Master’s. There are two possible outcomes:
- You are offered a place in the Master’s.
- You are not offered a place in the Master’s. Your application in Studielink will be withdrawn and, unfortunately, you cannot enrol for this programme.
Have you been offered a place in the Master's programme?
Go to the enrolment procedure and follow the steps to enrol.
Links
Application procedure
In order to apply you must first make sure you meet the admission requirements of the Master's you would like to apply for. The application procedure then consists of three steps: creating an enrolment application in Studielink, uploading documents in OSIRIS, then the placement procedure.
Steps
Step 1: Create an enrolment application in Studielink
To apply for a Master’s programme, you have to create an account and an enrolment application in Studielink (the national online registration system for Dutch universities). First you will be asked to fill in your previous education, then select the programme you wish to apply for in the list that appears. In order to submit an enrolment request in Studielink, you will need the following:
- Your own DigiD account. If you do not (yet) live in the Netherlands, you cannot use DigiD and you will need to log in with a Studielink username and password. Do you live in the Netherlands but do not have a DigiD account? Make sure that you apply for an account well before the application deadline. It usually takes 5 working days for a DigiD account to be activated.
- Contact information, such as your phone number and email address.
Step 2: Upload documents in OSIRIS Application
After you have created an enrolment application in Studielink, you will receive an email with personal login details for OSIRIS Application. You have a maximum of 56 days or until the application deadline to upload your documents and submit a complete application. After this period, if you have not submitted your application, it will be automatically cancelled.
You will be asked to upload the following documents:
- Bachelor’s diploma or equivalent
In OSIRIS Application, list the full, official name of the diploma that you have or will receive. Use the language and name in which the diploma is issued. If you have graduated, we require you to upload your diploma.
- An official transcript of your Bachelor's degree or equivalent
If you have not obtained your degree, upload the list of grades received so far. If you have obtained your degree, upload your full and complete transcript of grades. Also, upload the description of the grading scale on the overleaf page of your transcript (if applicable).
If you have already graduated from your previous education and are currently still studying please upload transcripts and diplomas from all degrees (post-secondary school).
- Sworn translations of diploma and transcript
Translations need to be made by an officially recognised translator. Official translations are not required if your diploma and transcript are originally in Dutch, English or German. If your school provides English versions of your documents, upload those along with versions of the documents in the original language.
- Course description for unfinished courses
If you have not yet completed your degree, upload a list of the courses that you are currently taking or still need to take, including the course content, the number of hours and the literature used per course, see example below in downloads. Be sure to include information about research courses, practical work and a thesis/internship (if applicable).
- Course description for finished courses
Upload a list of all the philosophy courses you have taken during your degree, including the course content, the number of hours and the literature used per course, see example below in downloads. Be sure to include information about research courses, practical work and a thesis/internship (if applicable).
- Personal statement/motivation letter (depending on programme)
Your personal statement should contain, at least, a brief description of why you have chosen this specific Master's programme and how it fits your previous education.
For the motivation letter please describe your future plans and what you would like to learn and research at Radboud University. What are the topics of the research you would like to do? Please be specific about your ambitions and explain how your previous education prepared you for this specific Master's programme. This will allow us to find out if your previous education is appropriate. Last but not least, include your interest in studying at Radboud University (specific disciplines, facilities or other considerations).
- Writing sample
A writing sample is any essay, thesis or article that demonstrates your ability to write an academic philosophical text. The writing sample should be in English and preferably in the field of your chosen specialisation.
- Curriculum vitae
Please upload an overview that contains, in chronological order, information about your education and knowledge/experience acquired during an internship, training, or work. It must also contain the name and email address of two academic referents, and specify your relationship with them (e.g. you took a course with them, or they supervised your thesis). You agree that we may approach them to vouch for (parts of) the credentials you provided.
- English language certificate
You are permitted to apply without a language certificate. However, if you are admitted to the programme and a language certificate is listed as a requirement in your admission email, you will be required to provide proof of proficiency before the enrolment deadline. If you can prove English proficiency through your previous education, a certificate is not required. Visit the language requirements website for full details.
- Handling fee
Non-EU/EEA applicants must pay a handling fee before their application can be processed. Visit the handling fee page for full details and how to pay.
Step 3: Participate in the placement procedure
After you have completed your application in OSIRIS Application, the Admission Board will assess your application. Keep in mind that next to eligibility you must also participate in a placement procedure.
Have you been admitted to the placement procedure? Then you will receive an email from the Master's programme about what this placement procedure looks like and what actions are expected of you. Based on the placement procedure, it will be assessed whether you will be selected for the Master’s. There are two possible outcomes:
- You are offered a place in the Master’s.
- You are not offered a place in the Master’s. Your application in Studielink will be withdrawn and unfortunately you cannot enrol for this programme.
You will receive the outcome via the email address you entered in Studielink.
Have you been offered a place in the Master's?
Congratulations! Then go to the enrolment procedure and follow the steps to enrol.
Example of a detailed course description of all the courses taken during your degree, including the course content, the number of hours and the literature used per course.