Curriculum

Four first-year and two second-year compulsory courses deal with the multidisciplinary knowledge and skills that are fundamental to each field in climate research: 

First year

• Atmospheric Composition and Chemical Processes: discusses surface emissions and chemical transformations that determine the composition of the atmosphere. Consequently, they affect air quality and the earth's energy balance.
• Dynamical Meteorology: goes into the application of geophysical fluid dynamics to atmospheric weather phenomena enables us to understand the formation and dynamics of sea-breeze systems, thunderstorms, fronts and cyclones.
• Dynamical Oceanography: applies geophysical fluid dynamics to large-scale ocean circulations, to describe wind-driven and thermohaline ocean circulation, adjustment to changes through planetary waves, and barotropic/baroclinic instabilities.
• Earth System Modeling: introduces the methods to capture the climate system in an Earth System Model (ESM) and a first experience on working with an ESM. 

Second year

• Making, Analyzing and Interpreting Observations introduces techniques to use laboratory, in situ and remote sensed observations for climate research.
• Open Science for Physicists evaluates the best practices, concepts and conditions used by physicists in- or outside academia. 

Look for an overview of the courses in the Courseplanner:

* Turbulence in fluids is a bachelor course, selection of this course requires permission of the programme coordinator. 

⇨ Extra courses

Secondary electives (up to 15 EC) may be selected from within and outside the programme, faculty or University. Courses offered by the Graduate School of Natural Sciences are always accepted. For other courses, permission of the programme coordinator is required. Courses offered by e.g. the Faculty of Geosciences are accepted unless the course clearly overlaps with courses from the Climate Physics programme. 

Courses of all university programmes can be found with the OSIRIS course catalogue. Schedules for most Master's courses are also available in the Cursusplanner & for scheduling your courses, you can use My Timetable.

⇨ Profile of 30 EC

See which profiles you can choose.

Students who finish the programme obtain two separate degrees, i.e. one diploma for each Master’s programme. By combining research projects the total study load is 180 EC. Usually, the double Master’s programme can be finished in three years or less. The Board of Examiners of both Master's programmes have to approve the proposed programme.

This programme is highly selective and only the very best students, with proven excellent academic records, are admitted. Typically, you need to be in the top 10% of your class and have completed your bachelor's degree without delay.

Information and application

To be admitted to this programme, please contact the programme coordinator of one of the two Master’s programmes involved. Your application will then be considered by the programme leaders of both Master’s programmes. You also need to be enrolled in both the participating Master’s programmes. For Dutch or EU/EER-students there is no additional tuition fee.

Together with the programme coordinators, you have to fill out and sign this Double Degree Master's Programme form and complete this with a motivation letter. You can upload this form together with your application in Osiris Case.

For more information, please consult the Education and Examinations Regulations or contact one the Master’s programme coordinators.