Year 1
The first year of the programme consists of required and elective courses.
Required courses:
- Introducing Natural Sciences (GSNS-INTRO)
- Dilemmas of the scientist (FI-MHPSDIL + FI-MHPSDL1)
Period 1:
- Philosophy of Science FI-MHPSPS
- History of Knowledge I GKRMV22006
Period 2:
- History of Knowledge II FI-MHPSHK2
Students are expected to take at least 22.5 EC from the list of primary optional courses, which cover a wide range of topics in the history and philosophy of science, mathematics, medicine, social sciences and humanities.
HPS curriculum 2022-23
* alternating course: offered in 2022-23 but not next year
Period 1
| Course | EC | Code |
| Making Modern Science | 7,5 | Beta_B3MMS |
| * Topics in Metaphysics | 5 | FRRMV16008 |
| * Topics in Early Modern Philosophy | 5 | FRRMV16010 |
Period 2
| Course | EC | Code |
| Science and the Public | 7,5 | FI-MHPSSP |
| Professional Skills and Identity | 5 | FI-MSECPSI |
| * Topics in Epistemology and Philosophy of Science | 5 | FRRMV16011 |
| * Topics in Moral Psychology | 5 | FRRMV16013 |
| Ethics and Technology | 5 | FRRMV22002 |
| Art History I: Knowledge, Technologies and Material Culture | 5 or 10 | GKRMV16051 |
| Philosophy of the Social Sciences | 5 or 7,5 | 201600160 |
| Pharmaceutical Humanities | 7,5 | FA-MA214 |
Period 3
| Course | EC | Code |
| Philosophy of Space and Time | 7,5 | FI-MHPSPST |
| History and Philosophy of the Modern Life Sciences | 7,5 | FI-MHPSHLS |
| Making Climatic and Environmental Knowledge: From Meteorologia to the Anthropocene | 7,5 | FI-MHPSMCE |
| Investigative Journalism | 7,5 | FI-MHPSIJ |
| Science in Society | 5 | FI-MSECSIS |
| History and Philosophy of Objectivity | 5 | FRRMV16014 |
| Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence | 7,5 | WBMV05003 |
| Digital Ethics | 5 | FRRMV16017 |
| History of the Early Modern Book | 5 | GKRMV17007 |
| Logic and Computation | 7,5 | WBMV13005 |
| Law as an Academic Discipline | 7,5 | RGMURWOM08 |
Period 4
| Course | EC | Code |
| The Quantum World | 7,5 | FI-MHPSTQW |
| Science and the Dilemmas of Modernity | 7,5 | FI-MHPSDM |
| History of Medicine | 7,5 | BMB507812 |
| 20th century German Philosophy | 5 | FRRMV16015 |
Other:
| Course | EC | Code |
| Tutorial HPS | 5 or 7,5 | FI-MHPSTUT, FI-MHPSTU2 |
| Tutorial Philosophy | 5 | FRRMV17009, FRRMV17010 |
Secondary optional courses can be any course at master’s level from Utrecht University. It is worth thinking about the skills you need for your thesis research, for example digital history, Latin, logic, paleography, or a course from a scientific field that you intend to study. You can look at courses from, for example, master’s programmes in Philosophy; Science Education & Communication; History, Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance Studies; Science and Business Management; Innovation Sciences; etc.
It is also possible to include relevant courses from other universities, after consulting the study advisor and the board of examiners.
The bachelor’s courses Living Pasts (BETA-B3LH); Geschiedenis en Filosofie van de Biologie (B-B3GESB05); Geschiedenis van de Wiskunde (WISB382); and Making Modern Science (BETA-B3MMS) are also eligible as secondary elective, as long as the total amount of bachelor level credits in your curriculum does not exceed 15 EC.