Philosophical Perspectives on Politics and the Economy (MA)
Global and Comparative Philosophy (MA)
The one-year master's programme in Philosophy at Leiden University integrates historical and systematic approaches in philosophy. It offers an advanced training in philosophical methodologies and skills, as well as a sophisticated knowledge of traditional and recent philosophical developments.
Why study Philosophy at Leiden University?
Leiden University is home to one of the oldest departments of philosophy in the Low Countries. Among its research strengths are political philosophy and non-Western philosophy. In addition, it hosts a large international staff with wide-ranging expertise in continental philosophy and the philosophy of knowledge. Content of the programme incorporates the very latest academic theory and the field’s historical development across a number of branches of philosophy.
Our graduates are currently employed in a wide range of professions in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Successful completion of an MA can also lead to PhD research and a career in academia.Currently 100% of our students find employment at university-graduate level within one year of completing our one-year MA in Philosophy. We can attribute this both to the high quality of the programme and the talent and ambition of our students.
The intellectual skills you will develop by studying philosophy are transferable to most non-philosophical professions. The master’s in Philosophy will train you to become a critical thinker, capable of analysing complex ideas and evaluating the principles of various positions. During your master, you will study, analyse and discuss primary philosophical texts while you learn to develop and communicate your own ideas.
Do you want to find out if you are eligible for this Master's programme?
At Leiden University, great minds have been gathering for over five hundred years to explore fundamental questions. Today, the Institute for Philosophy at Leiden University is an international centre for research and education, with an expansive network of partner institutes and an active programme of visiting lecturers.
During your master’s programme in Philosophy, you learn from researchers of the highest international standing. Our lecturers are committed to helping you reach your potential. At Leiden University, small classes allow ample opportunity for contact between you and your lecturers.
Why Leiden University
Leiden University offers ambitious students a world-class environment in which to reach their potential.
A top-ranking university
Leiden University's Faculty of Humanities is consistently ranked among the top 30 Humanities faculties worldwide in the THE World University Ranking. At Leiden University, the oldest university in the Netherlands, you can access the best teaching staff, the very latest research, and a wealth of resources found nowhere else in the world, including those of the famous Leiden University Library and its collections of original manuscripts and periodicals.
Accomplished teaching faculty; an individual approach
The Leiden Institute for Philosophy is a leading centre of academic research with an exceptionally broad range of research streams. Our students can pursue specialised areas of interest not available elsewhere. All classes are taught by accomplished scholars from Leiden as well as scholars from our international network of philosophy departments. Small classes give students valuable time interacting with their lecturers, who offer a high level of personal support and guidance.
An excellent start to your career
Your qualification from Leiden University is respected by organisations worldwide. Our graduates enjoy successful careers thanks to their broad and global mind-sets, their specialised and in-depth knowledge, and their strong critical thinking skills.The success of our alumni speaks for itself. Our graduates are equipped to solve the challenges facing society now and in the future.
Diversity and inclusion
We are convinced that our education can only flourish if everyone within the programme feels supported, respected and empowered to do their best work. We find it important to offer a learning environment that allows for different perspectives and points of view that students bring with them, depending on their ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, health, religion, age or socio-economic background. Every new generation sees the world from a new perspective – and our students are the newest generation. We look forward to hearing more about your perspective. Leiden University has been pursuing diversity policy since 2014, with the aim of creating a diverse and inclusive learning and working environment for all staff and students.
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Each specialisation consists of a total study load of 60EC.
Programme structure
For a detailed programme, please visit the programme information for each of the specialisations or visit our Prospectus.
Bruno Verbeek
University Lecturer Moral and Political Philosophy
“The Global and Comparative Philosophy specialisation is an intercultural programme with regard to Asian, Middle Eastern and African intellectual traditions. Questions of colonialism and post-colonialism come up, as well as the different aspects of these traditions.”
Extra-curricular
Get the most out of your studies at Leiden University by taking part in our extracurricular activities.
Community building
Throughout the year, activities are organised by the Philosophy department to encourage community building. You will for example be able to take part in seminars and guest lectures at theCentre for Political Philosophy.
Small-scale teaching
Teaching generally takes the form of small-scale seminars (10-20 students), in which lively and engaging discussions are encouraged. The small size of classes allows for a high level of quality contact and interaction between you and your lecturers and fellow students.
Leiden Leadership Programme
Are you interested in developing your leadership potential? The Leiden Leadership Programme (LLP) is an Honours Programme specifically developed for ambitious master's students at Leiden University and the Delft University of Technology who recognise the importance of leadership abilities. The LLP offers in-depth training sessions, assessments, seminars, and the creation of a Personal Leadership Roadmap – a five-year plan for reaching and developing your leadership potential.
Study at the Academy of Creative and Performing Arts
The Academy of the Creative and Performing Arts (ACPA) is a research institute and part of the Faculty of Humanities. The ACPA offers education such as electives, and talent programmes such as the Practicum Artium (PA), which gives you the opportunity to study photography, graphic design or drawing, and the Practicum Musicae at the Royal Conservatoire The Hague, where you can study classical music, singing, early music or jazz. Find out more about ACPA.
Career prospects
Where do our graduates work?
The one-year master’s programme in Philosophy prepares you for any career in which reasoning skills, high levels of abstraction and critical thinking are valued. Our graduates are currently employed in a wide range of professions in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Successful completion of an MA can also lead to PhD research and a career in academia.
Currently 100% of our students find employment at university-graduate level within one year of completing our one-year MA in Philosophy. We can attribute this both to the high quality of the programme and the talent and ambition of our students.
Examples of the diverse roles of our graduates include:
Policy Officer at a ministry
Copywriter at a media company
Freelance editor
PhD candidate at an foreign university
Editor at a communications consultancy firm
Consultant at an IT consultancy firm
Editor at a company specialising in reviewing theses and dissertations
Coordinator at an international human rights watch organisation
PhD candidate at a university in Sweden
Teacher qualification
If you are interested in a career in teaching, you can apply for the Dutch-taught teacher-training MA at the ICLON Graduate School of Education after graduating from the master’s programme. To be admitted, you need to have a master’s degree in the relevant discipline. Fluency in Dutch is mandatory, and additional entry requirements may apply.
Floris Schleicher
Graduated in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) (MA Philosophy)
“As a teacher of philosophy I try to enthuse my students for philosophy so that they can critically think about today’s ever-changing world. The master’s programme Philosophy, Politics and economics (PPE) is a fitting contribution to my work as a teacher.”
“As the name seems to suggest PPE is a wide-oriented interdisciplinary master’s programme that touches on all aspects of the modern society and focusses on the knowledge and skills that are needed for a rigorous philosophical analysis of this society. By contributing to a better theoretical understanding of the modern society, PPE brings about better informed acts in practise. Hence, the knowledge and skills learned in the PPE master’s programme are a valuable asset for everyone. I aim to spread the knowledge and skills learned in the master’s programme to my students.”
Skills you need as a modern political philosopher
“Besides teaching I also write, for instance as a columnist for the Dutch website tussenwoord.nl. PPE contributed to my quality of writing as it learned me to write succinctly, precisely and accessibly about complex philosophical, political and economical ideas. To me it is clear that PPE teaches you the skills you need as a modern political philosopher. I would recommend the PPE master’s programme to all who want to teach or write about philosophy, politics or economics.”
In which sector do students find jobs?
The graphs below are based on alumni data from the MA in Philosophy (60EC) 2016-2020.
31 %Education
25 %Government and semi-government organisations
13 %Research
6 %Non-profit
6 %Media and journalism
6 %Business services
6 %Financial organisations
6 %Consultancy
1 %Other
Career preparation
Find out how this programme exactly prepares you for your future career and check our career preparation activities.
The MA in Philosophy at Leiden University aims to equip you with a range of intellectual skills and academic attitude that will help you thrive in any future position. Your high-level skills in abstraction, reasoning and critical thinking can be applied within any role, to any conceptual problem, helping you come up with innovative and out-of-the-box solutions.
A growing number of students choose to do an internship during their study. Internships are a great way to gain indispensable firsthand experience in your area of interest before you decide on making it a career.
In recent years students from the MA Philosophy (60EC) have been doing internships at the following organisations:
Filosofie Magazine
Dutch Royal Library The Hague
Peace Palace The Hague
Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment
Dutch Consulate Office in Chongquing, China
PricewaterhouseCoopers Consultancy
Our staff can help you identify both the career that is right for you, and the necessary steps to get you there. Our team at Humanities Career Service provide all Leiden University humanities students with professional advice and guidance on everything from internships and career planning to job applications. Humanities Career Service also organises regular workshops on topics such as effective interview skills and creating a successful CV.
The Leiden University Career Zone is an online career portal that helps you to prepare for the job market. Here you can find information, tools and tips to help you gain more personal insight, learn about the job market, develop your application skills, plan your academic and professional career, find job vacancies and discover what the Career Service can do for you.
Join the Mentor Network to contact alumni with experience on the labour market and ask them for advice. More than 1200 alumni are happy to help you!
Jelle on finding an internship via Leiden University's Mentor Network
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We invite motivated students from around the world to apply for the Master of Arts in Philosophy (60). Admission requirements may vary per specialisation, please visit the specialisation of your interest to find out more about the entry requirements.
Your time at Leiden is about more than just studying. Some of your best experiences will stem from being a part of our lively and diverse student community, as well as from life in the beautiful city of Leiden.
Welcome and orientation programme
In August and February each year, Leiden University hosts the English-language Orientation Week Leiden (OWL), which welcomes both international and Dutch students. The OWL is an excellent way to get to know Leiden University, the city, and other students.
Life in Leiden
Picturesque and the perfect size, Leiden is the ideal place to spend your university days. The Faculty of Humanities is located within the heart of the city, where dozens of cafes, shops and bars line its historic laneways and leafy canals. Small enough to run into familiar faces, but big enough to keep offering surprises – you will treasure your time at Leiden. And for adventures further afield, the major cities of The Hague and Amsterdam are a short train ride away, along with Schiphol Airport, which is just half an hour away by train.
Our study and student associations organise a huge variety of social, cultural, and study events to keep you busy all year round. You can also join the University Sports Centre, which offers scheduled group sports and fitness classes, amongst other activities.
Leiden has several student organisations that specifically cater for international students. These associations organise regular social events and activities that help create the strong sense of community that exists within our international student body. The main two organisations are:
Erasmus Student Network Leiden (ESN) ESN Leiden is an international student organisation which hosts a range of activities and programmes. They also have a buddy programme which provides new students with the right support to assimilate into Leiden and the university.
AEGEE Leiden AEGEE is a leading European student association with sister organisations in over 40 countries across Europe. AEGEE organises many activities in Leiden, from dinners and pool nights to boat trips and guest lectures.
The Humanities Master’s Buddy Programme has been set up by the Faculty of Humanities to help all students who are new to the university to integrate quickly and easily into university life. You will be matched to a buddy who can help you out with your academic and practical questions. Additionally you will be able to attend fun monthly activities and make friends from all over the world.
Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!
Two speakers at the open day
Are you thinking about joining this Master's programme, and want to determine if it will be the right fit for you? Below, you can browse the events that we have coming up, and sign up to experience Leiden University and the programme for yourself. Alternatively, take a look at the Master Talks videos to find out more about the programme or check out our virtual campus tours!
Upcoming events
Master's Open Days
The next Master's Open Day will take place on 16 February 2024. You can also still watch the recordings of all the presentations from the last Online Open Days. The videos can be found on the Master Talks page.
Master Talks: Programme videos
On the Master Talks: programme videos platform you can find videos for each master’s programme. This includes a video which gives a short introduction to the programme. You can also find the recording of the Master's Online Open Days of 5-6 October and watch the programme presentation on the platform.
Get to know the campus
Check out our virtual campus tours, filmed in 360 degrees – by dragging the video, you can look around at the surroundings yourself. Below is the video recorded at the Humanities faculty, where most of your lectures will take place; you can also view other 360 campus tours of the various university faculties here.
360 Campus tour: the Humanities faculty
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Questions about the application procedure, tuition fees and scholarships
Student Affairs Front Office
Phone: +31 (0)71 527 80 11
Email: Contact form
Or visit their website
Visiting address
Leiden: Plexus Student Centre
Kaiserstraat 25, ground floor
2311 GN Leiden
Monday to Friday between 11.00 and 16.00, Tuesday between 11.00 and 17.30.
