Physics and Business Studies (MSc)

Admission requirements

To be eligible for Physics and Business Studies at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Diploma requirements

If you have a bachelor's degree in Physics (Natuurkunde) or a Physics-related programme from any research university in the Netherlands, you are eligible to apply.

Admission is under the provision that you have sufficient in-depth knowledge, and theoretical/mathematical skills on topics like quantum physics, electrodynamics, statistical physics, and complex analysis, equivalent to those of the undergraduate courses of the Leiden BSc Physics curriculum.

Further on, please note that:
For the specialization Research in Physics, Cosmology, you must also have knowledge of “Physics of elementary particles” at undergraduate level.

The Casimir pre-PhD specialisation is an honour’s track that students can enter only after the first semester. For this specialisation the following admission requirements apply:

A grade point average of at least 7.5 in the first semester of the Physics programme.
Admission to the second year is on the condition that all courses of the first year (60 EC) have been successfully completed.

The Board of Admissions will assess whether your degree and background are sufficiently related to the Dutch BSc degree in Physics (and, if applicable, whether you meet the additional requirement for certain specialisations).

If you have a bachelor’s degree that does not meet the requirements specified above, you may be eligible for an individual Pre-Master’s Programme tailored to your individual background. If you have successfully met the requirements of the imposed Pre-Master’s Programme, you will be admitted to the master’s programme.

For more information, please contact the Physics study advisor.

If you have a degree in Dutch higher vocational education (hbo) in Technische Natuurkunde, admission can be considered upon completion of a pre-master's programme.

If you have a bachelor's degree in Physics (Natuurkunde) or a Physics-related programme from a foreign research university with a level similar to Dutch universities, you are eligible to apply.

Further on, please note that:
For the specialization Research in Physics, Cosmology, you must also have knowledge of “Physics of elementary particles” at undergraduate level.

The Casimir pre-PhD specialisation is an honour’s track that students can enter only after the first semester. For this specialisation the following admission requirements apply:

A grade point average of at least 7.5 in the first semester of the Physics programme.
Admission to the second year is on the condition that all courses of the first year (60 EC) have been successfully completed.

Candidates without an adequate degree in Physics who have in other ways covered the appropriate material* in a demonstrable way (i.e., having taken exams) will be evaluated on an individual basis.

* An appropriate study program should cover most of the following:

Math:

Multivariate calculus, ordinary and partial differential equations, complex analysis, Fourier transforms, special functions
Real and Complex vector spaces, linear transformations, orthonormal bases, basis transformations, quadratic and Hermitian forms, spectral methods

Classical Mechanics:

Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms.

Special Theory of Relativity

Electromagnetism:
Electrical and magnetic fields, Maxwell’s equations; wave theory of light, propagation of EM waves in media.

Statistical Physics:
Thermal equilibrium and equipartition theorem; entropy and microcanonical ensemble, free energy, canonical ensemble, partition functions, Maxwell relations; ideal gases, elasticity, Hooke’s law; magnetization and magnetic susceptibility; Ising model; mean-field solution; macrocanonical ensemble, Grand free energy.

Quantum Mechanics:
Schrödinger equation, 1D stationary states, Hilbert space, 3D spherically symmetric systems, H atom, angular momentum, spin; including probability functions, operators, Dirac notation, eigenvalue problem; many particle systems; H-like atoms, Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein statistics; blackbody radiation; fine structure, Zeeman and Stark effects; time dependent perturbation theory; quantum theory of radiation (Einstein coefficients).

The specialisation ‘Cosmology’ also requires knowledge of ‘Physics of Elementary Particles’ at undergraduate level.

Language requirements

In order to successfully participate in this programme, you must be proficient in English. The following requirements apply*:

IELTS: minimum 6.5, with a minimum of 6.0 for each of the components Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking
TOEFL: internet based 90 (with a minimum component score of 20)
Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE), minimum 180, with a minimum component score of 169

*Please note: You do not have to submit proof of proficiency if you have

An International Baccalaureate diploma (or other with English A);
A diploma of secondary or higher education completed in Australia, Canada (with the exception of French-language programmes in Canada), Ireland, Malta, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United States or South Africa;
A diploma of an English-taught university degree programme completed at a Dutch research university;
A pre-university education (vwo) diploma.

For detailed information about which English qualifications are accepted, as well as the relevant exemption criteria, refer to English language proficiency.

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