Applicants with a non-EU/EEA nationality
1 March 2021

Applicants with a Dutch or other EU/EEA nationality
15 May 2021

Please note: if you are an applicant with an EU/EEA nationality and wish to apply for housing, you must submit your application by 1 March.

If you are interested in a scholarship, you need to apply for both the Master's programme and the scholarship before 15 January. Learn more at:

The Master's programme in Philosophy is open for application to all students with:

A university Bachelor’s degree

You may be admitted to the Master's in Philosophy if you meet one of the following three conditions:

1. You have a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy from an accredited university;
2. You completed  the extended minor in Philosophy (60 ECTS) at the University of Amsterdam;
3. You completed 60 ECTS or equivalent in philosophy courses and can show that these jointly meet the following requirements:

• The course topics covered at least two philosophical sub-disciplines (i.e. Logic, Ethics, Philosophy of Language, Political Philosophy, Aesthetics, Philosophy of Science, etc.).
• Some of the philosophy courses followed were of an advanced academic level.
• At least one course required the writing of a thesis or an academic paper of at least 3,500 words.

If you want to be admitted on the basis of requirement 3) above, we ask you to provide additional information through the application form (see step 4 below).

Hbo-bachelor not eligible

It is not possible to apply to this programme with a degree from a Dutch University of Applied Sciences (hbo). We do not offer a preparatory programme (schakelprogramma) for this MA.

English language requirements

New Master's students should be able to speak, read, write and understand English at an advanced academic level. Please check carefully whether you already meet the English language requirements or whether you need to arrange to take an official English language test. See the English language requirements on the Graduate School of Humanities website.

All students applying will need to start their application by submitting an enrolment request in Studielink, the Dutch online system for students applying for a degree programme at a Dutch university.

You need to submit an enrolment request in Studielink for the Master's in Philosophy 60 EC or Filosofie 60 EC. 

It is extremely important that you register in Studielink at least 48 hours before the application deadline (see above). This is to ensure that you receive your login information (UvAnetID) in time to fill in your UvA application in MyInfo (see next step).

Are you a student of the Bachelor's in 'Filosofie' at the UvA and do you graduate before the start of the new academic year? Then you do not need to submit an application via MyInfo. Your enrolment will become definitive as soon as the Education Desk has recorded your graduation in SIS. Your graduation date must be no later than 31 August in order to be able to start the Master's programme on 1 September. This means that you must have submitted your graduation application before 1 July.

After enrolling in Studielink, you will automatically receive an email with a link to your MyInfo UvA application form. To log in to MyInfo you need your UvAnetID. Please fill out the application form, upload the required documents and submit your MyInfo application form before the application deadline.

Application fee

All applicants holding a nationality outside the EU/EEA are required to pay an application fee of €100 per Studielink enrolment before submitting your MyInfo application form. You will find payment instructions on your application form.

Application documents

As part of your application in MyInfo, you are required to upload transcripts, diplomas, a motivation form (PDF), a CV/resume, and proof of English language proficiency. 

Programme-specific document

If you cannot be admitted on the basis of a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy or having followed the extended minor in Philosophy at the University of Amsterdam, you will need to demonstrate that you have completed 60 EC or equivalent in philosophy courses that jointly meet the following requirements:

• Please indicate in the motivation form which subjects you see as a suitable background for the Master's in Philosophy. Motivate this by inserting course descriptions or links to the University's Course Catalogue. If a course has not been taught in a Philosophy department, specify which philosophical literature you have read for the course; and
• Add a proof of writing in the form of an academic philosophical paper in which mastery of academic skills such as source reference, correct representation of literature, and the ability to set up a philosophical argumentation is demonstrated. The piece must have a length of at least 3,500 words and philosophical sources must have been used.

If you did obtain a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy or completed the 60 EC minor in Philosophy at the UvA, you do not have to provide this additional information.

Please collect and prepare all necessary documents before starting your application. You can find detailed information and guidelines on the Graduate School of Humanities website: