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Media Studies

Pre-Master’s programme

The pre-Master’s programme Media Studies is aimed at students who have a degree from a University of Applied Sciences (HBO) or an academic Bachelor’s degree that does not grant direct access to the tracks of the Master’s programme Media Studies. This pre-Master's programme is taught in English.

Grants access to:

This pre-Master’s does not grant access to the Research Master’s Media Studies.

If you successfully complete the pre-Master’s programme within a year, you will automatically be admitted to the Master’s programme you wish to pursue. However, you do need to complete the programme within one year, as you cannot start the Master's without fully meeting the entry requirements. After completing the pre-Master's programme you will not receive a diploma or certificate.

Programme

Please note: If you have obtained an academic Bachelor’s degree, you do not need to take the two Academic Skills courses (2 x 6 ECTS), which means that the programme will comprise 30 ECTS instead of 42 ECTS. Below you see the programme of the current academic year; the courses in the coming academic year may differ slightly. The Course Catalogue for the new academic year will be published in May.

You will follow one of the programmes listed below. All of them give access to all of the one-year Master’s programmes, but we strongly recommend that you choose the variant that corresponds with the Master’s you are looking to do. For access to one of the Dual Master’s programmes, it is mandatory to follow the corresponding programme.

 

Pre-Master's Film Studies

Recommended for the tracks Film Studies
Mandatory for the tracks Documentaire en fictie and Preservation and Presentation of the Moving Image

COURSES SEM 1 SEM 2 SEMESTER 1 SEMESTER 2 EC
  • Academic Skills pre-Master's
    Period 1
    Period 3
    12
  • Media Aesthetics
    Period 1
    Period 2
    12
  • Media and Culture: Media Culture in Transformation
    Period 2
    6
  • Media Theory
    Period 4
    6
  • Media, Time and Space
    Period 4
    6
UvA Course Catalogue: Pre-Master's Media Studies

Pre-Master's New Media and Digital Culture

Recommended for the tracks Cultural Data & AI and New Media and Digital Culture
Mandatory for the track Journalistiek en media

COURSES SEM 1 SEM 2 SEMESTER 1 SEMESTER 2 EC
  • Academic Skills pre-Master's
    Period 1
    Period 3
    12
  • Analysing Digital Culture
    Period 1
    Period 2
    12
  • Media Theory
    Period 4
    6
  • Histories of Digital Culture
    Period 5
    Period 6
    12
UvA Course Catalogue: Pre-Master's Cultural Data & AI / New Media and Digital Culture / Journalistiek en media

Pre-Master's Television and Cross-media Culture

Recommended for the track Television and Cross-media Culture

COURSES SEM 1 SEM 2 SEMESTER 1 SEMESTER 2 EC
  • Academic Skills pre-Master's
    Period 1
    Period 3
    12
  • Television Analysis
    Period 1
    Period 2
    12
  • Media and Culture: Media Culture in Transformation
    Period 2
    6
  • Media Theory
    Period 4
    6
  • Media, Time and Space
    Period 4
    6
UvA Course Catalogue: Pre-Master's Television and Cross Media Culture

Pre-Master's Archival and Information Studies

Mandatory for the track Archival and Information Studies

COURSES SEM 1 SEM 2 SEMESTER 1 SEMESTER 2 EC
  • Academic Skills pre-Master's
    Period 1
    Period 3
    12
  • Archives, Information and Society
    Period 1
    Period 2
    12
  • Restricted-choice electives
    Period 4
    6

    Choose from: - Media Theory - Philosophy of the Humanities 1 (Media Studies)

  • Free choice elective: in History or Law
    Period 2
    Period 5
    12

    You can choose an elective in History or Law. For questions, please contact the Master coordinator of Archival and Information Studies, dr. Annet Dekker (A.Dekker@uva.nl).

UvA Course Catalogue: Pre-Master's Archival and Information Studies

Application deadlines

Please check the deadlines below very carefully, because they are strict. Missing one of the deadlines means that your application cannot be processed. 

  • Regular Master's (60 EC)

    Deadline for applicants with a Dutch nationality

    Register in Studielink (see step 1 of the application process)
    8 May 2024, 23:59 CET

    Submit complete application (see step 2)
    15 May 2024, 23:59 CET

    Deadline for applicants with an EU/EEA-nationality

    If you wish to apply for housing
    Register in Studielink (see step 1 of the application process)
    23 February 2024, 23:59 CET

    Submit complete application (see step 2)
    1 March 2024, 23:59 CET
     

    If you do NOT wish to apply for housing
    Register in Studielink (see step 1 of the application process)
    8 May 2024, 23:59 CET

    Submit complete application (see step 2)
    15 May 2024, 23:59 CET

    Deadline for applicants with a non-EU/EEA nationality

    Register in Studielink (see step 1 of the application process)
    23 February 2024, 23:59 CET

    Submit complete application (see step 2)
    1 March 2024, 23:59 CET

  • Dual Master's (90 EC)

    The application deadline for selective tracks is 1 March 2024, 23:59 CET.

    Please make sure to register in Studielink before 23 February (see step 1).

     

Application procedure

Your application to the Graduate School of Humanities always starts by submitting an enrolment request in Studielink and MyInfo application for the Master's programme you wish to pursue, even if you think you are eligible for the pre-Master’s programme.

An enrolment request in Studielink for the pre-Master’s programme alone is not sufficient and will not be taken into consideration.

  • 1. Submit an enrolment request in Studielink for the Master's Media Studies 60 EC or Media Studies 90 EC
  • 2. Pay the application fee (international prior education only)

    All students applying for a (pre-)Master’s programme with a non-Dutch degree must pay a non-refundable application fee of €100. The UvA cannot start processing your application until this fee has been paid. You can pay the application fee by credit card (Master or Visacard) or iDEAL.

    You do not have to pay the application fee:

    • If you have obtained or will obtain a Bachelor’s degree from a Dutch research university or university of applied sciences (HBO);
    • If you have already applied and paid the application fee for another Master’s programme at the UvA for the academic year 2024-2025;
    • If you have already applied and paid the application fee for a Master's programme at the Graduate School of Humanities for the academic year 2023-2024;
    • If you have started a UvA Master’s programme in 2021, 2022 or 2023.
  • 3. Submit a complete application in MyInfo

    Complete all of the steps of the application process for the Master's programme, including the application in MyInfo and the submission of all required application documents. This includes proof of English/Dutch language proficiency that meets our requirements.

  • 4. Wait for the admission decision

    The Admissions Board will assess your prior education and determine whether you are directly admissible to the Master’s programme, admissible to the Master’s programme after first completing the pre-Master’s programme, or not admissible to the (pre)Master’s programme.

    Important: Are you applying to a selective Master’s? Then you must first complete the selection procedure for that Master’s programme. The selection committee can then admit you to the Master’s on the condition that you finish the pre-Master’s within a year. If you succeed at this, you are automatically admitted and will not have to go through the selection procedure again the following year. This procedure applies to all (dual) Master’s programmes that comprise 90 ECTS. For Master’s programmes that comprise 60 ECTS, no selection procedure applies.

  • 5. After admission decision

    If you are admissible to the pre-Master’s programme, you will receive a letter of conditional admission with the steps you need to take to become fully enrolled.

    Please be aware that all pre-Master’s programmes offered by the Graduate School of Humanities must be completed within one academic year. Extensions are not possible.

Important information regarding visa

If you need a visa for your stay in the Netherlands, please note that the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) only issues visas to pre-Master's students for the duration of one year. If you do not complete the programme in one year, you cannot continue your studies anywhere in the Netherlands.

Costs

The tuition fee rate for a pre-Master’s programme in the academic year 2024-2025 is €42.17 per ECTS, with a maximum of €2,530. This means that for a 42 ECTS pre-Master’s programme, the fee is €1,771; for a 30 ECTS programme, the fee is €1,265.

Facts & Figures
Mode
Full-time
Credits
30/42 ECTS, 12 months
Language of instruction
Dutch, English
Conditions for admission
University of applied sciences degree (HBO)
Academic/research university degree (WO)
Starts in
September