Are you interested in the study of literature? Investigate our tracks to see the courses we offer.
The one-year Master's degree in Literary Studies offers three
tracks and you should click on the links below to find out more
detailed information about each of them.
In the track in European
Literatures and Interculturality you study the arts and
literature of Europe. You will explore subjects such as the impact
of globalization on European literature; and the shifting of world
views within European art. You will focus on the language and
culture you studied as a Bachelor's student.
The track in English
Literature and Culture explores English literary classics and
new works of English literature in their cultural context. As a
student of this programme, you can draw from the full historical
and geographical sweep of literatures in the English
language.
In the Writing,
Editing and Mediating track you focus on all aspects of
writing, editing and publishing. You will improve your English
writing and editing skills. In addition, you will learn to help
others in their writing process. The track is meant for graduates
with a near-native command of the English language.
Read more about the discipline of European Languages and Cultures.
Read more about the discipline of English Language and Culture.
Programme options |
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Writing, Editing and Mediating (WEM) (track) What makes a text a good or captivating text? How do you recognize repetitions, inconsistencies, faulty logic and other problems in texts? What does it take to guide a text from writer to reader? Working with texts in a professional setting involves a special set of skills. The Writing, Editing and Mediating Master's track (often abbreviated to WEM), offers students a choice of courses that focus on non-fiction writing for specific audiences, the history of texts in their various forms (from manuscript to digital book), proof-reading and correcting English texts, and producing texts for publication. Topics addressed include censorship, copyright, scholarly editions, critical theory and social issues in contemporary literature.Students on the course typically have a BA in English or in an Anglophone culture (e.g. American Studies). Some students with other humanities qualifications and a sufficient level of academic English are accepted by the admissions board.The one-year Master's track in Writing, Editing and Mediating (WEM) is a track within the Master's degree in Literary Studies and is run by the Department of English Language and Culture. It is taught and assessed wholly in English. |
European Literatures and Interculturality (track) How do literature and culture interact with and reflect on socio-political challenges such as the EU (dis)integration, rise of populism or migration crises? How can literature facilitate inclusion, empathy and intercultural awareness, and contribute to sustainable societies and environmental issues? How can literary analysis be applied to other cultural forms or productions? What does it mean when we say: “culture is political” and “politics is cultural”?.In the Master's track European Literature and Interculturality, you will explore the connection between literature and culture in the processes of nation-building, the formation of attitudes towards migration, environmental issues and other socio-political issues. This track teaches you academic skills and approaches that will prepare you to operate as a cultural expert wherever texts are involved: in the media, institutions and networks.Each course builds on a theoretical foundation and simultaneously trains your research skills and ability to communicate with a range of different audiences. This unique and innovative literature programme is based on cutting-edge research in literary studies, is international in scope and comprises several modern European languages.The Master's track in European Literature and Interculturality is located at the Department of European Languages and Cultures. This international, interdisciplinary and multilingual environment offers excellent opportunities for research and immerses them in vibrant networks of experts across different European countries and languages. Students have to choose one of the following major languages to study: French, Frisian, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish and Swedish.You will follow the language-specific courses and one or two interdisciplinary seminars in literature which are team-taught by experts from different fields. Examples of such interdisciplinary courses include: 'Literature and Conflict' and 'Modernist Geographies’. It is possible to replace the Interdisciplinary seminar by a Master's placement. |
English Literature and Culture (track) Literary study is socially relevant: from the medieval to the modern, it maps the forces which divide and unite people. English is the global language of cultural exchange and experiment. The themes of conflict and co-operation are at the core of the Master's track in English Literature and Culture, a programme that allows students a broad choice from a range of modules drawing on the full historical and geographical sweep of literatures in English. It is a key tenet of the track that the academic study of English literature can be used to reflect on the ways that people - as individuals and as groups - interact with one another, and that it provides a catalyst for insight into contemporary social debates. Literature captures the separation and the solidarity of its writers and audiences in a manner particular to itself: it is a multidisciplinary practice that is as various as the texts it studies. The programme's core themes of conflict and co-operation are linked to sustainable society, a research priority of the university.For more information see: English Language & Culture. |
Master's Honours Programme (honours program) The Master's Honours Programme was developed especially for students who want to get more from their studies. It is a programme worth 15 ECTS that is followed in addition to the standard Master's programme. It is a one-year interdisciplinary programme that is designed to introduce students to various aspects of leadership. |
Specific requirements | More information |
---|---|
language test |
Writing, Editing and Mediating / English Literature and Culture: Additional English language requirement: a TOEFL iBT with a score of 110 (min. of 25 on all items); an IELTS, Academic Module, with a score of 8 (min. of 7.5 on all items); ERK level C1. Cambridge C1 Advanced (level A) or C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of 200. If your BA does not certify this, you may have to take an appropriate language test. European Literatures and Cultures: Additional English language requirement: A VWO diploma or a subject certificate for VWO English (mark 6 or higher), minimum requirement of TOEFL iBT 90 (with a minimum of 21 on all items), or IELTS 6.5 (with a minimum of 6 on all items). Cambridge: C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of 180. |
previous education |
For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track English Literature and Culture, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/english-literature-and-culture/#!requirements For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track European Literatures and Interculturality, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/european-literatures-and-interculturality/#!requirements For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track Writing, Editing and Mediating, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/writing-editing-and-mediating/#!requirements |
Type of student | Deadline | Start course |
---|---|---|
Dutch students | 15 August 2022 | 01 September 2022 |
15 August 2023 | 01 September 2023 | |
EU/EEA students | 01 May 2023 | 01 September 2023 |
non-EU/EEA students | 01 May 2023 | 01 September 2023 |
Specific requirements | More information |
---|---|
language test |
Writing, Editing and Mediating / English Literature and Culture: Additional English language requirement: a TOEFL iBT with a score of 110 (min. of 25 on all items); an IELTS, Academic Module, with a score of 8 (min. of 7.5 on all items); ERK level C1. Cambridge C1 Advanced (level A) or C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of 200. If your BA does not certify this, you may have to take an appropriate language test. European Literatures and Cultures: Additional English language requirement: A VWO diploma or a subject certificate for VWO English (mark 6 or higher), minimum requirement of TOEFL iBT 90 (with a minimum of 21 on all items), or IELTS 6.5 (with a minimum of 6 on all items). Cambridge: C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of 180. |
previous education |
For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track English Literature and Culture, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/english-literature-and-culture/#!requirements For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track European Literatures and Interculturality, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/european-literatures-and-interculturality/#!requirements For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track Writing, Editing and Mediating, see: https://www.rug.nl/masters/writing-editing-and-mediating/#!requirements |
Type of student | Deadline | Start course |
---|---|---|
Dutch students | 15 August 2022 | 01 September 2022 |
15 August 2023 | 01 September 2023 | |
EU/EEA students | 01 May 2023 | 01 September 2023 |
non-EU/EEA students | 01 May 2023 | 01 September 2023 |
Nationality | Year | Fee | Programme form |
---|---|---|---|
EU/EEA | 2022-2023 | € 2209 | full-time |
non-EU/EEA | 2022-2023 | € 14570 | full-time |
Practical information for:
Your possibilities depend on your track. You might work as a translator, journalist or writer. You could also find a job in the field of education, research or publishing. Other options are functions at cultural organizations and government institutes.
The research projects of staff members are innovative and international and range from the analysis of (offensive) humor in controversial cartoons to garden writings and sustainability, from digital media representations to literary self-identification of marginalized or minority groups. Students have a free choice of dissertation subjects within the areas of staff expertise and are encouraged to develop new and innovative approaches and ideas. Examples of dissertations are:.
- From a barren desert to a microbial jungle: Deep-sea
narratives in the Anthropocene
- Heimat als Heterotopie: Ortlosigkeit und Vielortigkeit der neuen
Heimat in Keuns Kind aller Länder und Stanišićs
Herkunft
- No de izquierdas ni de derechas: El discurso decolonial en la
obra de Calle 13
- Le transculturalisme littéraire à travers deux «
intrangères » issues de l’exil. Une comparaison
entre L’art de perdre d’Alice Zeniter et Marx et la
poupée de Maryam Madjidi
- Trauma - Ironi i ungdomsromanen Tio över ett. Hur
kolliderande former skapar en personlig bild av Kirunas
flyttning
- Ambivalent feminism: Hashtagification, YouTubification, and
Eurovisionization of women's rights in Russia
Dissertations may be supervised by any appropriate member of staff. The following list indicates the areas of expertise of the various staff members:
Vera Alexander - English and Anglophone Literatures and Cultures, Ecocriticism, Travel writing and mobility, Life Writing, Bildungsroman, Children’s Literature, Place, Space, Heterotopia, Diaspora, Transculturality.
Alberto Godioli - Humour and satire across media; Law and Humanities; Comparative literature, 19th-21st centuries; Italian literature and culture, including film; Modernism; Posthumanism.
Ester Jiresch - Scandinavian Literature, Culture, and History, Swedish Politics, Scandinavian Crime Novel, Modern European Culture and History, Gender Studies.
Christian Kirchmeier - Literary, Cultural, and Media Theory, Law and Literature, Morality and Literature, Theories of Society, Political Theory, German and Literature, Music and Literature, Theatre, Aesthetics.
Stella Linn - Translation Studies, Contemporary French and Spanish Literature, Migrant and Minority Literature, Urban Youth Language/Slang and Street Culture, Youth and Young Adult Literature.
Florian Lippert - Modern German literature, Modern European literature and culture, Film Studies, The European migrant crisis, Literary Theory, Film Theory, Reception Theory, Critical Theory, Systems Theory, Art and Literature in Philosophy, Sociology and Politics, Self-reflexivity, Surveillance.
Hugh McDonnell - 20th Century French and Spanish Political, Social and Cultural History, French and Spanish Politics, Culture, Identity, and Politics, The Idea of Europe and European Identity, Political Theory.
Konstantin Mierau - Empirical Study of Literary Reception, Prison Reading, Digimodernism and Literature, Spanish Golden Age Literature, The (Spanish) Picaresque Novel.
Ksenia Robbe - Russian Literature and Culture, Eastern European and Postsocialist studies, Postcolonial and Decolonial Theory, Memory and Time Studies, Feminism and Gender studies, South African Literature and Culture, Visual Art, Museums, Theatre and Performance, Aesthetics and Politics.
Camilla Sutherland - Contemporary Spanish-Language Literature, Women Writers, Gender Studies, Spatial Theory, Latin American Literature and Culture, Global Modernisms, Avant-gardes, Art History, Film Studies, Theatre and Performance.
Jeanette den Toonder - Contemporary French and francophone Literature, Migrant and Minority Literature, Literary Theory, Comparative Literature, Contemporary Quebec novel, Gender studies, Spatial Theory, Life Writing, Transculturality.
Pablo Valdivia - Multidisciplinary Humanities Research, Cultural Analytics, Cultural Narratives, Narrative Theory, Metaphor Theory, European Literature and Culture, Comparative Literary Studies, Film Studies, Visual Studies, Literature and Culture from the Golden Age till the Present, Art History, Theatre, Poetry, European Politics and Culture, Spanish and Latin American Literature, Culture and Society.
Vera Veldhuizen - Children’s Literature, Young Adult/Adolescent Literature, Picture books, Fairy tales, Fables, Narrative Empathy, Script Theory, Irish Literature, War Literature, Literary Theory, Cognitive Studies.
Read moreFreelance editor at EditUp
After I graduated, I wanted to gain experience and get even better at what I like doing best: writing and editing. I registered with the Chamber of Commerce and started working as a freelance editor at my own editing business 'EditUp', where I write, translate and edit academic and publicity texts for various clients. I work in Dutch and English for both digital and print media. I also have a part-time job as a content editor at Oberst BV.
The knowledge that I acquired in the Master's track in Writing, Editing and Mediating has proven indispensable in both my jobs. I chose this track because of my passion for the English language and literature, and because I wanted to become an editor. The programme enables you to study interesting literature while at the same time training you in the field of editing. It taught me to write and edit, and also to support my writing and editing choices with relevant theories. I can now use this knowledge and these skills to justify my texts to my clients. The opportunity to gain practical experience in a placement gives the programme great added value. I was given the opportunity to do an internship at the Marketing, Communication and Sales department of Dutch National Opera & Ballet. I was responsible for writing, editing and translating texts such as biographies, flyers, interviews and articles for the magazine Odeon and the internal personnel magazine.
The combination of academic and practical perspectives will help you translate your knowledge and understanding to the labour market. In my view, this is the strength of this Master's track!
Are you a non-EU/EEA student from Russia, India or Indonesia, starting a Master's programme at the Faculty of Arts? If so, you could qualify for the University of Groningen OTS/Talent Grant, Faculty of Arts, a partial scholarship which helps you to finance your studies.
Read more about the OTS/Talent Grant Faculty of Arts.
Each Master's degree programme has a study advisor whom you can contact if you have questions or need advice about your degree programme and other study-related matters. Everything you discuss will be treated confidentially. If you have a more complex problem, for example study delay, a performance disability or if you are ill for a long time, you should contact a student counsellor.
In addition, you can also follow various courses at the Study Support section of the Student Service Centre (SSC), for example on study stress and holding presentations.
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