See MA Degrees in Sociology in Netherlands 2019

The MA History program Religion and Society focusses on understanding the changing role of religion(s) in society from Antiquity up until the present. Courses deal with questions such as: what is the relationship between religion, politics and society since Antiquity? How can we understand the gradual separation of Church and State and new forms of worship, dissent and devotion since the western Middle Ages? And what has been the impact of broader processes such as secularisation, globalization and colonialism?

Long-standing tradition of expertise

The History department of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam has a strong tradition in teaching and analyzing the role of religion throughout history. Religion is studied in its societal and political contexts and from a long-term perspective, which makes our program unique. Students are trained in the latest interdisciplinary approaches to study religion, including history, cultural anthropology, archaeology, philology and digital humanities. They can improve their knowledge, network and skills by participating in activities of research institutes such as the Amsterdam Centre for Religious History and CLUE+. The program has great societal relevance as topics such as clashes between religion and secularism, the entangled relations between politics and religion and the future of religious heritage are discussed.... [-]

The Master's in Literature, Culture and Society draws on the fields of literature, cultural studies and intellectual history, and provides you with the knowledge and skills necessary to specialise in a major European literature in its broader intercultural contexts.

For centuries, literature has played – and continues to play – an important role in our understanding of how society is continuously being shaped and re-shaped. Literature is often associated with intellectual training and skills, Bildung, and (global) citizenship. In this programme, you are encouraged to creatively explore the field of European literature and culture in a broad sense. We address the role these pieces of literature play in increasingly globalised and transcultural contexts. Europe, in this sense, is not just a designated continent, but rather a specific lens on a set of global relations.... [-]

Why do some posts go viral on social media and others do not? How can social media analysis be used in business and policy decisions? How do platforms like Facebook change how we live and do business?

This MA programme offers a critical exploration of social media within contemporary networked societies and trains students to work with (big) data in a responsible way. Social media have changed the fabric of everyday life and society. This has had important implications for how we inform ourselves, with whom we connect and in which ways, how we organize our daily lives, and how we perform as citizens. Knowledge of the ways these quickly emerging communication infrastructures are fundamentally transforming society is indispensable. At a time when intensive data-gathering and analysis is key for companies and governments, this MA programme’s theoretical approach to social media and their data-driven impact on society helps students in understanding and reflecting on critical issues in order to respond to current societal transformations. From a practical perspective, students are trained to investigate social media data in the context of social, political and economic change.... [-]

The cultural world is in a state of rapid transformation due to technological innovation, urbanization, economic globalization, and an increasingly unpredictable sociopolitical landscape. All facets of the arts – practice, organization, leadership, societal relevance, and internationalization (in Europe and beyond) – are affected by this transformation. Utrecht University's Master of Arts and Society will prepare you to operate as a leading figure in the global arts, media, and cultural sectors of the future.

Our Master’s program is designed to meet the urgent need for arts professionals who possess rigorous theoretical and research skills coupled with practical abilities and an acute awareness of the current state of the sector at the local and global levels. As a student in this program, you will explore, for example, the dynamics and dilemmas within existing mainstream culture and its relationship with a growing number of “alternative” cultural practices, new models of creative production and industry, and the ever-increasing role of the arts in social justice.... [-]