Summer Course in Human AI
Online Netherlands
DURATION
2 Weeks
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
01 May 2025
EARLIEST START DATE
Jul 2025
TUITION FEES
EUR 1,360 / per course *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* Students, PhD candidates and employees of VU Amsterdam, Amsterdam UMC or an Aurora Network Partner €765 Students and PhD candidates at partner universities of VU Amsterdam €1035 Students and PhD candidates at non-partner universities of VU Amsterdam
Introduction
Human processes of all kinds are complex and adaptive. Mental, social, and health-related processes can all change and adapt over time to human behaviour. Thought-based processes can change as a result of learning, social interactions can evolve over time, and health-related processes are susceptible to change too.
This course will present theories and findings from a wide range of disciplines, including various branches of cognitive, social, health and neuroscience, to gain insight into underlying mechanisms of human processes that can be exploited in human-AI modelling and simulation. The various scientific theories form a factual basis for modelling the processes. We can understand these often adaptive mechanisms through causal relations and causal pathways, which we can model as networks. Using this theoretical framework and the software provided, students can easily simulate a variety of scenarios.
During the second week, students will carry out activities that could lay the foundations for a publication that can be finished later on in the course. This course introduces a network-oriented modelling approach based on adaptive networks. This approach is useful for modelling social interactions and mental and health-related processes within their respective networks.
These network models cover the dynamics of causal effects, changing causal connections and excitability or sensitivity thresholds. Higher-order adaptiveness is another topic covered in the course, which includes the role of metaplasticity and the extent to which plasticity occurs in the field of cognitive neuroscience.
Course Overview
- Course level: Advanced Bachelor's & Master's
- Coordinating lecturer: Jan Treur
- Forms of tuition: lectures & assignment sessions
- Forms of assessment: assignments
- Contact hours: 60 hours
Gallery
Admissions
Scholarships and Funding
Equal Access Scholarship
Application Procedure
Application for the Equal Access Scholarship will open in Febraury
Great that you are interested in applying for the Equal Access Scholarship. You can apply to the scholarship between 12 February and 1 April. Please be aware that it is only possible to select one course.
The results of the scholarship selection will be announced in May. Since we have a limited number of scholarships available for a large number of applicants, we suggest - if possible! - to complete your payment at the time of your course application to guarantee your place in the course. However, if you are not able to come without the scholarship, you can just wait until the announcement. If you would like to come, regardless of whether you will be granted the scholarship, it is best to secure your place in the course by completing your payment via our regular application form. If the scholarship is granted to you, the tuition and accommodation fees will be reimbursed.
Deadline to submit your Equal Access Scholarship application: 31 March (23:59 CET).
Requirements
When you apply via the Equal Access Scholarship application form you will be requested to upload the following documents:
- Curriculum Vitae/Résumé (CV) stating your educational background.
- Professional Letter of Reference Including:
- His/her/their experience working with you (either in an academic, professional, or volunteer setting)
- His/her/their motivation for recommending you for the scholarship
- Complete contact information
- When filling out the scholarship form, we will ask the following questions*:
- Why are you interested in joining VU Amsterdam Summer School?
- What’s your motivation for selecting this course?
- How you will use the information you learn to make a positive impact in the future for both you and your community?
- Why do you deserve this scholarship?
Please stick to a maximum of 150 words per question.
Green Travel Grant
At VU Amsterdam Summer School we are also committed to VU's sustainability goals and we aim to reduce the environmental impact of mobility, and specifically, student travel. Therefore, we are thrilled to offer Green Travel Grants to encourage sustainable travel for students attending our summer school.
Where can I apply?
Once the courses have been confirmed to run in mid-May or June, we will send out a newsletter to our participants with a link where they can apply for either funding for train travel or funding for bus travel.
The application period will last two weeks, and we will select the winners via a lottery system. More information on the specific deadlines can be found in the newsletter we send out in May.
How does it work?
For students to receive the economic compensation they will need to submit their purchased travel tickets via email within two weeks after being selected as winners of the grant. Once the deadline to submit their tickets has passed, the students will receive the reimbursement.
Welcome to Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Summer and Winter Schools
Last chance to apply!
Curriculum
Classes will take place from Monday 8 July until Friday 19 July. In general, classes will be during the week between 9 am and 17 pm. Wednesday afternoons and weekends will be off for optional social activities or personal time. Good to be aware that self-study will be required in your private time (nights and weekends). Saturday 6 July and Saturday 20 July are arrivals and departure days (in case you arrange accommodation via our housing service). More details will be shared in the course syllabus which will be shared with the participants in June.
Program Outcome
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Identify different types of mental, social and health-related processes
- Understand how individual and social behaviour emerges from mechanisms known from Cognitive, Affective and Social Neuroscience, and from Cognitive and Social Sciences, and Health Sciences
- Design network models for adaptive mental, social and health-related processes
- Perform simulations based on these models using the provided Network-Oriented Modeling software environment
Program Tuition Fee
Program Leaders
Program Admission Requirements
Show your commitment and readiness for Grad school by taking the GRE - the most broadly accepted exam for graduate programs internationally.