Are you a current student? For the programme of this academic year, check the course guide.
Curriculum of Particle and Astrophysics
The Master’s specialisation in Particle and Astrophysics has a course load of 120 EC (two years). The programme consists of compulsory courses, supplemented by electives. You end the programme by writing a Master's thesis.
About this study curriculum
The course overview is an indication of the study programme of the academic year 2025-2026. If you are a current student, please consult the online course guide for your course overview.
Course overview
The list below illustrates the basic organisation of the Master's specialisation Particle and Astrophysics, which consists of the following elements:
- Compulsory courses (23 EC)
- Elective courses (24 EC)
- Free electives (13 EC)
- Master's thesis (60 EC)
- P1
- P1
- P1
- P2
- P1
- P2
- P3
- P4
The compulsory courses form the core of the specialisation. They consist of five speciliastion courses, a philosophy course and a seminar.
Professional Preparation
This course equips you with essential career skills such as job interview preparation, CV composition, and self-reflection on your professional abilities and employment preferences. Attendance and assignment completion are mandatory. It can be followed in specific periods, please check the course guide for current information.
- P1
- P1
- P2
- P1
- P2
- P1
- P2
- P1
- P2
- P1
- P2
- P2
- P2
- P2
- P3
- P2
- P3
- P2
- P3
- P3
- P3
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P3
- P4
- P4
The compulsory courses are supplemented by a set of specialisation electives. You need to choose at least 24 EC worth of electives from the Physics and Astronomy Master's courses. In the list above are suggested elective courses for the Particle and Astrophysics specialisation.
You can also choose to do a synergy track Computational and Data Science or Gravity+. You can find more information about this track at the bottom of this page.
You can select free electives from other Master's specialisations or programmes, not limited to Physics and Astronomy. You are also allowed to follow courses at other faculties or universities. This gives you the chance to specialise even further, or broaden your programme as you find fitting.
A significant part of this specialisation involves one or two research internships, which can be completed at the Donders Institute, companies like Philips, or other universities in the Netherlands or abroad. You can also apply for a grant to intern at the prestigious Max Planck Gesellschaft in Germany. The number, focus, and length of internships depend on your specific Master’s curriculum.
Specialisations
Data science and computational methods play an increasing important role in modern science as well as in industry and society. This is why we offer a synergy track Computational and Data Science (15 EC) in this Master's programme, where we use the synergy of different disciplines in the Faculty of Science that are engaged in computational modeling and data science.
About this study curriculum
This track intersects with the Master's specialisations in Particle and Astrophysics, Physics of Molecules and Materials, Neurophysics, Physical Chemistry and Mathematics.
The synergy track consists of a 9 EC core curriculum, that covers fundamental aspects of computing and data science. This core curriculum should be supplemented by dedicated electives based on your specialisation. Please check the course guide for the current information.
- P1
- P2
- P3
Note: Depending on your specialisation, you can extend this programme based on your interests.
The synergy track Gravity+ reflects the unique Radboud expertise on the role of gravity in the universe, from the largest to the smallest length scales. This track brings together the worlds of physics, mathematical physics and astronomy, covering a wide range of topics that encompasses classical and quantum gravity, the mathematical foundations of general relativity, and (observational) astrophysics.
About this study curriculum
This track can be followed as part of the Master's specialisations in Mathematics and Particle & Astrophysics. The aim is to bring our students to the forefront of international research in gravity, to which the Radboud research programme is a key contributor, exemplified by the recent breakthroughs in black-hole imaging through the Event Horizon Telescope.
The synergy track consists of a 15 EC core curriculum, which you extend with dedicated electives based on your interests.
- P1
- P2
- P3
Choose one of the following:
Total number EC: 6 EC- P1
- P2
- P3
- P4
- P1
- P2
- P2
- P3
- P2
- P3