Overview

This Master's programme teaches you how to perform high-quality cross-cultural comparative research. You'll learn how to translate social problems into empirical research questions and you will be trained in applying diverse theoretical approaches, research designs, data-collections and analyses to get the best possible answer. What's distinctive about the approach of this programme, is that we synthesise theories and methods of different disciplines, like sociology, anthropology, development studies, political science and communication science.

Future career opportunities

During this programme you will develop in-depth knowledge and methodological skills, from different social science disciplines, on the research themes inequality, cohesion and cultural diversity. After graduating you will be a highly qualified interdisciplinary researcher and have good career prospects. A large majority of our graduates gain PhD and other research positions. Besides attaining a PhD position, our graduates can also go on to have careers in relevant non-academic research and policy institutes or in (commercial) businesses and organisations.

Research

Half of the Master’s programme in Social and Cultural Science consists of practical research training. In the first year, you will do a research project in which you conduct a small-scale empirical research under guided supervision of a researcher. You will write your process and research results like a scientific journal paper. The project is done in small groups (2-3 students) and prepares you well to independently conduct a comparative empirical social science study for your Master’s thesis in the second year.

This Master's programme is linked to the research Institute Radboud Social and Cultural Research (Radboud SCR) who offer an excellent research environment and have extensive social science databases that students are free to use.

Accreditation

This programme is accredited by the NVAO (the Dutch-Flemish accreditation organisation).