Hebrew and Aramaic Studies (research) (MA)
Admission requirements
To be eligible for Hebrew and Aramaic Studies (research) at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.
Diploma requirements
The following diploma requirements apply for this programme:
- An academic Bachelor’s degree in Theology or Semitic Languages or a comparable degree, with at least one full-year course (normally amounting to 15 credits) of academic study of Biblical Hebrew.
In addition, you must also meet the following qualitative admission requirements:
- Good grades comparable with an average mark of at least 7.5 (Dutch grading system) for your entire bachelor’s programme and a grade for the bachelor’s thesis of an 8 or higher.
- Affinity with and suitability for scholarly research in the specific field of the programme/specialisation and the ability to clearly report on research.
- Demonstrable motivation to study and suitability for the particular Research MA programme/specialisation.
The qualitative admission requirements will be implemented as follows:
- You are asked to provide a transcript of records and diploma of the relevant obtained academic degree.
- Your motivation and suitability should be demonstrated by a motivation letter in which you indicate why you want to follow the programme and what makes you a good candidate for the research MA programme. The statement should be between 700 and 1,500 words.
- You are required to submit a writing sample (a relevant research paper or Bachelor’s Thesis). In case you are unable to demonstrate via a writing sample that you meet the requirement Please submit a 1,250 word essay as part of the admission process:
- in this essay you must demonstrate an affinity with and specific knowledge of the specialisation
- it must clearly answer a research question, provide a reasonable and reasonably well-organised argument that demonstrates an understanding of the topic of the essay.
If you have a bachelor’s degree from a research university in Humanities or Archeology with a particular focus on the ancient Mediterranean world, that does not meet all the requirements mentioned above, you may be eligible for a 30 EC pre-master’s programme tailored to your individual background. After submitting your application in Studielink, the Board of Admissions will decide whether you can be directly admitted to the master’s programme, whether you will first need to complete a pre-master’s programme, or whether your deficiencies are considered too extensive and you can therefore not be admitted at all. It is not possible to directly apply for a pre-master’s programme.
The English language requirements for a pre-master's programme are identical to the language requirements for the master's programme for which admission has been requested. These requirements must be met before the start of the premaster.
The premaster programme of the Hebrew and Aramaic Studies track can only be offered in Dutch.
The following requirements apply*:
- IELTS Academic modules only, on paper or on computer: 6.5 overall, with at least 6.0 for each separate component score.
- We do not accept IELTS Academic online.
- We do not accept IELTS General Training, IELTS Indicator, or IELTS One Skill Retake
- TOEFL internet based: 90 overall, with at least 20 for each separate component.
- We are not able to accept The TOEFL IBT Home Edition™, except in the following situation only:
You are unable to take an in-person test on location because test centres are inaccessible or closed due to unsafe conditions in a country. - We do not accept the following types of test: TOEFL My Best™ scores (multiple test scores combined), TOEFL Essentials™ or institutional tests such as ITP.
- We are not able to accept The TOEFL IBT Home Edition™, except in the following situation only:
- Cambridge English Exam C2 Proficiency, or C1 Advanced (180), with a minimum score of 169 for each separate component.
Note that English test results may not be more than two years old and must be obtained in one single test.
*You do not have to submit an English proficiency test if you have completed your education in the USA, UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Canada (except French-taught programmes in Canada) Singapore, South-Africa or Malta; or if you have obtained an English-taught International Baccalaureate™; or if you have completed a Dutch VWO diploma or an English-taught degree at a Dutch research university or (for September intake) a diploma of an English-taught higher professional education (hbo) programme completed at a Dutch university of applied sciences.
For detailed information, including exemption criteria and methods of submission, refer to English language proficiency.