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master s degrees in life sciences 2009­2010 the netherlands

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a word from the rector magnificus `master your talents thank you for considering us for your postgraduate studies we offer students from all over the world high quality research and education and provide you with the academic skills and knowledge you need for your future role in society the university of groningen founded in 1614 is one of the older universities in europe and has educated more than 200,000 graduates in the last 400 years we are proud to say that we developed into one of the leading research universities in the world we are even more proud to say that during all these years our tradition of academic excellence has not changed we are an international centre of knowledge that has managed to create an atmosphere that enables researchers to discover things which would otherwise have remained hidden to them we offer challenging study and research paths that vary in intensity to encourage you to develop your individual talent studying at the university of groningen will provide you with a truly international experience which will broaden your horizon the global outlook we provide you with will give you a competitive advantage in realising your future careerplans all this takes place in the city of talent groningen a city where distances are small and possibilities endless i hope to be welcoming you to the university of groningen soon prof dr frans zwarts rector magnificus

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the university of groningen the most welcoming university of the netherlands 400 years of academic tradition and innovation leading research university study in an international environment dedicated to student involvement facts figures 23,000 students 2,200 international students 9 faculties bachelor master and phd programmes 11 graduate schools 70 english-taught degree programmes 10 english-taught double degree programmes student facilities the groningen personal approach student support courses talent and career center excellent computer and online facilities wide variety of international studentorganisations limitless access to the university sports centre

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groningen safe environment full of life the groningen canals ports and warehouses take you back to 14th century hanseatic times when groningen was a member of this alliance of trading guilds groningen city 180,000 inhabitants best innercity of the netherlands 2005 best studentcity of the netherlands 2006 ranked as european city with the highest quality of life by its inhabitants 2006 lively with a safe community character cultural and economic capital of the north city of talent groningen museum the groningen museum is the most highprofile museum in the netherlands not only due to its striking design but also because of various exhibitions culture fun cinemas and theatres cater for all cultural tastes matching the groningen way of life these venues large and small can be found scattered throughout the city arthouse films in cinema `images concerts in the `oosterpoort theatre at the historic `schouwburg live music late-night jazz funk and blues-rock cafés musicfestivals like noorderzon eurosonic noorderslag and swinging groningen www.cityoftalent.nl www.groningen.nl

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contents the university of groningen leading research university 2 international outlook 3 international student barometer 3 social and cultural university facilities sports facilities 40 student associations 40 cultural student centre usva 40 groningen student platform 40 teaching and research master s degree programmes 4 graduate schools 4 phd opportunities 5 educational system in the netherlands 5 diploma supplement 6 preparing for groningen admission and registration 41 visa and residence permit 41 accommodation 41 health insurance 41 cost of living 41 tuition fees 41 scholarships 41 master s degrees in life sciences biology 10 biomedical sciences 12 marine biology 16 ecology and evolution 18 evolutionary biology top programme within ecology and evolution 20 molecular biology and biotechnology 22 biomolecular sciences top programme within molecular biology and biotechnology 24 biomedical engineering 26 medical pharmaceutical sciences 28 clinical and psychosocial epidemiology 30 behavioural and cognitive neurosciences 32 medical and pharmaceutical drug innovation 34 energy and environmental sciences 36 the netherlands small in size internationally oriented the dutch landscape 42 famous dutch 42 climate moderate but unpredictable 42 the netherlands in a nutshell 43 english-taught master s degree programmes 2009-2010 45 central university services and facilities international service desk 38 introduction and orientation 38 student advisors 38 language courses 38 student support courses 38 talent and career center 39 computer and online facilities 39 university library 39 disclaimer all information published in this brochure is subject to change no legal rights may be derived from this brochure while the university of groningen makes every endeavour to ensure the accuracy of the information presented in this brochure it cannot be held liable for any errors or inaccuracies you may find the university of groningen is a signatory of the `code of conduct with respect to international students in dutch higher education 1

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the university of groningen founded in 1614 the university of groningen is the 2nd oldest university in the netherlands and enjoys an international reputation as one of the leading research universities in europe it is a university with a modern student-oriented vision on education the university of groningen has always been an outstanding example of an international community almost 400 years ago close to half the students and lecturers came from outside the netherlands ­ like the first rector magnificus ubbo emmius who was german today 50 of our 950 phd students are international students although internationally oriented the university maintains strong ties with the city of groningen and its surrounding region leading research university `i judge people on the quality of their dreams said canadian physicist george sawatsky who worked at the university of groningen realising an ultimate vision is the main motive for many scientists in doing their research the university of groningen provides you with a study environment that rewards vision quality and achievement we belong to the top 3 of european research universities in the fields of ecology material sciences chemistry and astronomy other strong research groups are nanoscience molecular biology medical sciences neurosciences sociology philosophy theology archaeology and arts humanities all awarded degrees have been accredited by the dutch government and are internationally acknowledged famous scientists frits zernike nobel prize for physics johan bernoulli pioneer in the field of calculus jacob cornelius kapteyn discoverer of evidence of galactic rotation dirkje postma spinoza award for her work on patho-physiological respiration petra rudolf descartes award for her work on synthetic molecular motors and artificial nanomachines ben feringa spinoza award for his work on nanotechnology the academiegebouw the heart of the university of groningen 2

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international outlook involved with the world knowledge has no borders and knows no boundaries ­ it is universal by attracting genuine talent irrespective of the country of origin we ensure the quality of teaching and research going abroad for an international experience is not the only option anymore ­ home can be an international environment as well we maintain long-term partnerships with universities around the world with similar high standards participate in international networks and incorporate international themes in our programmes the university of groningen cooperates with universities in several developing countries and awards a number of scholarships to talented students and researchers thereby contributing to the further development of academic teaching and research worldwide international student barometer in 2007 the university of groningen took part in the international student barometer a global survey of satisfaction among international students our international reputation and the quality of our research and teaching were the most important reasons why international students chose to study with us other positive factors included the reputation of the city as a friendly safe and relatively cheap environment facilities offered for international students through the international service desk and the faculty international offices were valued highly the official welcoming ceremony the social activities organized for international students and the groningen sports facilities were considered to be the best in the netherlands international students were very pleased with the library and study facilities 9 faculties arts behavioural and social sciences economics and business law mathematics and natural sciences medical sciences philosophy spatial sciences theology and religious studies 11 graduate schools humanities law business and economics philosophy behavioural and social sciences spatial science theology and religious studies healthcare research drug exploration and biomedical engineering science international rankings esi citations per publication position 81 of the 200 most productive universities worldwide shanghai jiao tong ranking arwu shared position 102 worldwide 35 europe times higher education supplement position 172 che-excellence ranking biology and physics received the `excellence group ranking chemistry and mathematics received the `top group ranking strategic partners europe uppsala university sweden ghent university belgium the university of göttingen germany asia gadjah mada university university of indonesia bandung institute of technology indonesia university of beijing tsinghua university fudan university china osaka university japan latin america national autonomous university of mexico ­ unam mexico university of são paolo ­ usp brazil famous graduates aletta jacobs the first female student in the netherlands wubbo ockels the first dutch astronaut wim duisenberg the first president of the european central bank groningen and europe 4 erasmus mundus programmes leading university in europe-mexico erasmus mundus external cooperation windows member of coimbra group students at the university medical center groningen 3

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teaching and research the university of groningen is home to over 23,000 students who are welcomed to an inspiring and stimulating atmosphere with a degree from the university of groningen you can be confident that you have the required skills and theoretical background to pursue your future career master s degree programmes master your talents we train you to be a scholar and a scientist while instilling the professional skills enabling you to find work outside the research community as well our high quality master s programmes are grounded in research giving you the opportunity to share in the best and latest knowledge they last between one and two years successful completion of a master s programme is awarded with a master s degree ma msc or ll.m graduate school master s programmes for those of you with research as a special focal point we offer two-year `research master and `top master programmes they are designed to attract the most qualified students and are incorporated in graduate schools an excellent preparation for a phd or for professional and research careers double degree joint programmes studying at the university of groningen does not mean your experience is limited to the netherlands alone the university joins forces with strategic international partner universities or pools resources in a consortium of european universities enabling students to study in different countries and deal with different systems cultures and societies master s degree programmes at the faculty of mathematics and natural sciences and the faculty of medical sciences this brochure contains information about various types of master s degree programmes we offer broad programmes with different specializations as well as in-depth degree programmes such as research masters and top masters most master s degree programmes have several specializations within these specializations depending on your own interests and your future career wishes you then select a research variant or social variant the latest technology is used for education and research at the university of groningen 4

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the p variant is intended for students who want to focus on scientific research `p refers to `phd ­ the entire programme focuses on research students conducting research projects within the research groups involved in the degree programme the emphasis is mainly on acquiring specialist knowledge and research experience more information about the content of the programme can be found on the information pages of the various master s degree programmes in this brochure the m variant is intended for students who want to start careers at a c ompany a government institution or a social organization after they graduate the m variant m refers to `maatschappij [society and to management teaches you to apply your scientific specialist knowledge to policy-related and commercial issues during the first year you will conduct scientific research within your master s degree programme the second year will focus on using your specialist knowledge in a company or organization initially in small projects conducted together with fellow students and eventually in a six-month final project in cooperation with a company government institution or social organization graduate schools a union of teaching and research the graduate schools bring together distinguished staff members and talented students who share a common interest with these schools we aim to ease the transition between the master s and phd levels give graduates strong research skills and create a supporting environment with expert scholars the schools offer outstanding services activities and events that enhance graduate study the interaction between graduate schools research institutes and faculties ensures an interdisciplinary approach while profiting from a wide range of external networks phd opportunities admission to a phd programme is highly selective and based on academic merit the best preparation is successful completion of one of our graduate school master s programmes in the four-year phd programmes you conduct your own research while the graduate school provides a balanced mix of expert supervision tailor-made postgraduate training and the freedom to pursue your own ideas the results are written down in a phd thesis often containing papers published in scientific journals after a successful defence you will be awarded with an internationally highly esteemed phd degree in addition to the full-time programmes it is also possible to combine a phd with work outside the university educational system in the netherlands teaching style dutch higher education values independence individual opinions and teamwork knowledge is considered quantifiable and thus measurable study programmes are carefully defined and highly structured and you are expected to contribute actively and work independently the teaching staff is there to assemble and structure the truths and facts that make up the body of knowledge you must make sure that you absorb knowledge filter it and make it your own ground-breaking learning system the netherlands has received international acclaim for its problem-based learning system training students to work independently through emphasis on self-study and self-discipline student-centred it provides you with the attention and freedom you need to develop your own opinions and creativity in applying your acquired knowledge teamwork a large part of all programmes is dedicated to writing papers analysing and solving problems in groups acquiring work experience through internships and conducting experiments in laboratories source of information nuffic binary system of higher education the netherlands has two types of universities universities of applied sciences hogescholen are primarily careeroriented and prepare students for particular professions the university of groningen is a research university universiteit with research as its main focal point phd degree ceremony in the aula of the academiegebouw 5

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universities research-oriented phd 4 years master s degree ma/msc/ll.m 1-2 years bachelor s degree ba/bsc/ll.b 3 years universities of applied sciences career-oriented n/a master s degree m 1-2 years bachelor s degree b 4 years ects and grading ects is an eu standardized system for measuring study load as a way to facilitate international mobility 1 ects 28 hours of study incl contact hours reading exam preparation etc 60 ects one year the minimum number of ects credits needed to obtain a master s degree is usually 60 in the fields of the humanities economics social sciences and law 120 ects credits are required for some programmes mainly in the field of natural sciences whereas other programmes vary from 180 medical sciences to 240 ects credits the dutch grading scale runs from 1 lowest grade to 10 highest grade as an indication 5.5 is a passing grade grades 9 10 and all grades lower than 3 are highly exceptional accreditation and quality assurance higher education in the netherlands enjoys a worldwide reputation for its high quality this is achieved through a national system of legal regulation and quality control the ministry of education culture and science is responsible for legislation pertaining to education as of 2002 the responsibilities for quality assurance have been allocated to the netherlands accreditation organization nao all degree programmes offered by universities and universities of professional education are evaluated according to established criteria only accredited programmes will be eligible for government funding this system of quality control and accreditation guarantees that the education offered at all dutch universities meets the same high standards diploma supplement the university of groningen issues a diploma supplement to every student upon graduation it is designed to provide a description of the nature level context content and status of the courses that were followed and successfully completed by the student it is free from any value judgements equivalence statements or suggestions about recognition the purpose of the supplement is to provide sufficient independent data to improve international `transparency and fair academic and professional recognition of qualifications the university of groningen is the only dutch higher education institution to have a diploma supplement label recognized by the european commission council of europe and unesco/cepes welcoming ceremony for international students 6

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i was trained to find my own niche in research `it was great to be able to join the top master s programme in medical and pharmaceutical drug innovation a small group of students with different backgrounds and skills from all over the world and very enthusiastic teachers if you are interested in research and willing to learn like to be in a class with very good students with different qualities the programmes of the top or research master are a perfect match says anil rana from india anil joined the top master s programme in september 2004 and graduated from the programme in august 2006 he is now a phd student at the university of groningen very soon his first research article will be published `i was trained to find my own niche in research and design my own experiments this is an excellent way to start your career as a researcher i really enjoyed being in this programme and would go for it again anil rana graduate of the master s degree programme in medical and pharmaceutical drug innovation 7

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you learn to think more critical after finishing my degree programme in bioinformatics at the hanze university groningen i wanted to learn more about this field i checked the possibilities at the university and found out that graduates of universities of professional education can follow a transfer programme to enrol in a university master s degree programme unfortunately groningen doesn t have a master s degree programme in bioinformatics but after consultation it has been decided to adapt the master s programme in molecular biology and biotechnology somewhat so that more graduates of bioinformatics will be able to transfer to the university of groningen in the future the programme doesn t really have any compulsory modules so you can more or less design your own programme with the modules you like i can now choose all the modules relevant for bioinformatics and also follow modules from the master s programme in computing science i am currently conducting my first master s research project at the biologisch centrum i am doing a fivemonth internship in the department of molecular genetics studying the expression of operons in bacteria i am working in a friendly department with a small bioinformatics group which i am enjoying a lot i would like to do my final-year project in a company to see what it is like to work in a commercial organization the university is quite different from universities of professional education you learn to think differently and more critically therefore i would certainly advise graduates to continue on with a university degree marijke van der sijde student of the master s degree programme in molucar biology and biotechnology 8

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master s degrees in life sciences 2009­2010 the tuition fees for 2009-2010 for the faculty of mathematics and natural sciences appr eur 1,600 for eu students appr eur 9,400 for non-eu students in the top left corner of the pages where the master s programmes are described you can find a coloured indication of the type of master s programme rm research master part of one of our graduate schools tm top master part of one of our graduate schools tp top programme em erasmus mundus the highly esteemed erasmus mundus status dd double degree j joint programme 9 9

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t dd jw biology key facts start programme 1 september 2009 duration 24 months language english degree master of science msc the master s degree programme in biology is for students who have a broad interest in biology and also those who have a specific interest in science at the interface of different biology domains such as ecology marine biology biomedical sciences and molecular biology within this master s programme there is a specialization in behavioural and neurosciences general information students with a broad interest in biology are able to design a tailormade programme under the supervision of a staffmember who will coach the student during the two-year master s degree programme because many exciting discoveries have been made using the multidisciplinary approach students are encouraged to combine insights and techniques from different domains within the biological sciences a specialization combining two biology domains is behavioural and neurosciences the focus of this specialization are the factors that affect behaviour in humans and animals internal factors such as the functioning of the brain and the excretion of hormones in the blood as well as external factors involving growth conditions are examples of study areas in this field programme content the two-year master s degree programme 120 ects has two alternatives the research variant and the policy and management variant students choose one of these alternatives during the first year all students have to conduct individual research for six months 38 ects in one of the research teams in addition a colloquium and a thesis literature studies worth 6 ects each have to be done research variant the research variant focuses entirely on research within biology in addition to the first research students conduct a second individual research of 38 ects the rest of the programme can be filled with specialized courses to learn state-of-the-art knowledge and skills fitting the individual preference of the student 10

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faculty of mathematics and natural sciences policy and management variant the policy and management variant is the option to choose if you are not only interested in science but also in social and commercial aspects of biology this variant will prepare for a career in a company consultants or policy organizations in addition to the research project and thesis in this variant a policy an management module 20 ects and an internship 40 ects are conducted field of research the research projects can be in ecology marine biology biomedical sciences molecular biology or any combination of these such as behavioural and neurosciences career prospects graduates of the master s degree programme in biology who have chosen a scientific career often start with a phd or join a research and development team in a company or research institute students who have done a society-oriented project find jobs as science advisors at governmental organizations research institutions or companies admission requirements requirements for admission to the master s programme in biology include a bachelor s degree in biology this will give you direct access to the master s degree in biology students for the behavioural and neurosciences path have to show that their bachelor s degree contains enough courses relevant to this field if you have a different degree the board of examiners will decide whether or not you can be admitted to the master s programme sufficient english proficiency is required language requirements for international students include an ielts test score of 6.5 or a toefl test score of 580 paper-based 237 computer-based or 92 internet-based ibt application how can you apply for the master s programme international students can find an application form on the web http www.rug.nl/fwn/applicationmaster the deadline for applications for the master s programme in biology for eu students is 1 june 2009 the deadline for non-eu students is 15 april 2009 further information www.rug.nl/fwn/mscbiology contact details please contact admissions@rug.nl for more information about the application please contact the programme coordinator for more information about the master s degree programme mrs a f bos msc t +31 50 363 87 64 attie.bos@rug.nl 11

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