Groningen, Netherlands
DURATION
1 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline *
EARLIEST START DATE
01 Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
EUR 18,700 / per year **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* Dutch, EU/EEA and non-EU/EEA students 15.08.2025
** for Non-EU|for EU/EEA EUR 2,530
Key Summary
Introduction
This track studies the role of the arts in culture from a multi-disciplinary perspective, drawing on cognitive sciences, hermeneutics, narrative & critical theory, discourse analysis & arts sociology.
Culture can be understood as a complex cognitive process through which humans articulate and negotiate their individual and collective consciousness, identities, values and understanding of the world. The arts have always played an important part in this process.
The interdisciplinary Arts, Cognition and Criticism track focuses on how culture is transmitted, innovated and critiqued through the arts, with course topics such as the arts and reflective imagination; value-negotiation through storytelling; or social and political functions of the arts. Students are trained in methods from the cognitive sciences, hermeneutics, narrative and critical theory, discourse analysis and art sociology. They develop a keen theory-based insight into the role of the arts in cultural dynamics, and hands-on capacities for critical analysis and interpretation of art-works, debates and developments in the arts, in connection to their social background.
Our enthusiastic staff has an international research reputation and excellent connections to arts and culture institutions. This makes this an attractive track for students who want to work or pursue their research in the arts and culture field.
Why study this programme in Groningen?
The ACC track in Groningen offers
- a stimulating international environment in a typical Dutch city with a strong cultural infrastructure
- motivated international staff with a high research reputation and links to national/international art worlds
- a cutting-edge interdisciplinary program with a range of methods
- choices that allow you to connect the critical approaches to your own art discipline(s) and shape your profile as a critical researcher and professional
Admissions
Curriculum
Year 1
During the first semester, you acquire core theories, methods and concepts to study the role of the arts in culture. Courses focus on The Arts and the Public Sphere, Arts and Brain in Culture, Narrative Arts as Value Laboratory, and Media, Materials, and Makers: Art and/as Research. Alongside you choose one or two electives (10EC total). In the second semester, you demonstrate your knowledge and research skills in a thesis and prepare for the professional world in a placement.
Courses
- Arts and the Public Sphere (5 EC)
- Cinema, Capital, and Climate Change (5 EC, optional)
- Classical Music in the Digital Age I (5 EC, optional)
- Dramaturgy (5 EC, optional)
- Gender and Sexuality in Popular Music (5 EC, optional)
- Performance Mediality & Materiality (5 EC, optional)
- The Grotesque as a Dominant Format (5 EC, optional)
- Media, Materials, Makers (10 EC)
- Adaption Theory and Practice (5 EC, optional)
- Arts, Narrative and Identity (5 EC)
- Arts and Brain in Culture (5 EC)
- Arts Sociology (5 EC, optional)
- Capita Selecta in Arts Education (5 EC)
- Classical Music in the Digital Age II (5 EC, optional)
- Digital Film Forensics (5 EC, optional)
- Documentary and Global Crises (5 EC, optional)
- Music, Politics and Resistance (5 EC, optional)
- Music, Theatre and Sound (5 EC, optional)
- The Beautiful in Film (5 EC, optional)
- The Global/Local Cultural Leader (5 EC, optional)
- Ma Internship (10 EC)
- Master's Thesis (20 EC)
This is a one-year MA track (60 EC). In semester 1 you follow:
- 4 compulsory 5 EC modules (20 EC total);
- 10 EC from the other tracks within the Arts and Culture MA program (Music, Theatre and Performance Studies; Film and Contemporary Audiovisual Media; Arts, Policy and Cultural Entrepreneurship).
In semester 2 you write your MA thesis (20 EC) and finish with an internship/traineeship (10 EC). The latter can be replaced by another course or a tutorial.
Programme options
- Master's placement (specialization)
Study abroad
- Study abroad is recommended
- Students are encouraged to do their placement (which may also consist of additional courses) in an international context.
Gallery
Career Opportunities
In the ACC Ma-program, you have been trained as a generalist. The program provides you with the academic knowledge and skills required for a variety of jobs in the cultural field.
Job prospects
You may think about working as a culture journalist, critic, or host in a variety of media, doing consulting work in organizations for arts and culture education, contributing to cultural policy development on various levels of government, or facilitating art and artists in both profit and non-profit organizations. If you want to pursue an academic career, you apply for a research master's program.
Job examples
- Arts and Culture Critic
- Cultural Journalist
- Advisory and consultancy functions in the areas of Arts and Culture Education, and Arts and Culture policy.
- Art Event Organizer and Programmer