Curriculum

In blocks 1 and 2 of year 1, the RM programme offers 6 obligatory courses. They cover the fundamentals of the field, and create a common body of knowledge for all RM students to build on for the electives from block 3 onwards. The Foundations of Meaning class takes place in the first half of block 2 and the second half of block 3 in order to permit participation in the LOT Winter School (in January). There will be a special set of methodology courses available for all first-year RM students to choose from in the LOT Winter School. These require special preparation before the school, and imply attendence and homework assignments to complete the course. For more details on the programme of the LOT Winter School and the RM course requirements, consult the LOT website.

In blocks 3 and 4 of year 1, students get to choose 4 electives, in order to develop a more specialized research profile. A total of 6 electives (3 in block 3 and 3 in block 4) are offered by the programme itself. You can check the Research Master Electives Humanities site to see which electives you can follow within our faculty. If you'd like to follow electives at another UU faculty you can check the Course Planner. You should ask the course coordinator for approval to participate in the course you're interested in and put in a request with the Board of Examiners to approve the course for your study programme. For advice about your choice of electives you can contact the programme coordinator or the study advisor. All RM students participate in the Research Seminar (part I) in block 4, as well as the LOT Summer School (in June or July).

The LOT schools aim at a mixture of advanced RM students, and PhD students, and offer 18 one-week courses over a two-week period in all areas of linguistics. These courses are taught by Dutch and international experts upon invitation. RM students can participate in all the classes on offer, except for the research discussion groups that are offered on top of the regular 18 course program, because they target a PhD audience. RM students are expected to choose four courses over the two-week period of the school, and write their term paper related to the LOT school in blok 1 of year 2, as part of the Research Seminar (part II). For more information on the courses offered in the LOT Summer School, consult the LOT website.

During the entire year, students are expected to participate in the Institute for Language Sciences (ILS) colloquium. 

The MA rotation takes place during the 1st semester of each academic year. It is obligatory for first-year students.

The MA rotation is a weekly two-hour session where a variety of researchers from the hosting Institute for Language Sciences (ILS) present their research. By attending the MA rotation, students acquire a broad overview of the research and researchers available.

In block 1 of year 2, students participate in the 10EC elective Team Language Science Project (on offer as of 2025-2026) or choose 2 other electives. You can check the Research Master Electives Humanities site to see which electives you can follow within our faculty. If you'd like to follow electives at another UU faculty you can check the Course Planner. You should ask the course coordinator for approval to participate in the course you're interested in and put in a request with the Board of Examiners to approve the course for your study programme. For advice about your choice of electives you can contact the programme coordinator or the study advisor. Furthermore, you finish up the second part of the Research Seminar with a preparation of the individual trajectory of specialization in an internship (15 EC) and a thesis (30 EC).

For their internship, students can participate in ongoing research at ILS, but they can also do their internship at one of the other LOT institutes (including the Meertens Institute/INL/Max Planck institute), or go abroad. Study abroad is possible for just the internship, or the internship in combination with course work and/or thesis research. Study abroad is often made possible through the ILS institutional connections, or individual researchers’ collaborative networks. 

Thesis research is supported by a thesis seminar, during which progress is monitored by a senior faculty member, and students create a peer support group.

In your report you can check if all your achieved results have been properly recorded and are listed under the correct heading. If you find any results under 'Other' that you would like to include in your study programme, or if you have other changes to make, follow these steps:

• Go to Osiris Student > Cases > My cases > Start a new case by using the plus icon in the bottom right corner. 
• A new window will open. Make sure your pop-up blocker is turned off for the new window to open. 
• Choose Request Board of Examiners. Select case type Approval courses UU or SVO changes. 

If you wish to deviate from the curriculum, you must first ask your programme’s Board of Examiners for approval or exemption. In case your request is granted, the changes will be processed in OSIRIS and integrated into your exam programme and Study Progress Review.

In order to graduate, you will need to meet your programme's exam requirements as described in the Education and Examination Regulations. Based on these criteria and your Study Progress Review, the Board of Examiners determines whether you have graduated. The courses that are listed on your Study Progress Review will appear on the International Diploma Supplement (IDS), the attachment that you receive with your diploma. Note that courses listed under the heading ‘Results-Other’ are not part of the examination syllabus and do not appear on the IDS.

If you have questions about your Study Progress Review or find errors in it, contact the Student Desk Humanities.