You will acquire research skills and learn to generate in-depth content for museum texts, articles, videos or podcasts. Moreover, you will gain access to professional networks where our graduates are now established.
When you graduate, you will be well-qualified to work in the fields of media editing, teaching, academic research, journalism, exhibition curation and the design industries.
Alternative approaches
Our programme is the first postgraduate course on design embedded in a faculty of Humanities, offering a dialogue with sister programmes in art, architecture, media and heritage.
You will learn to identify and analyse crossovers within and between the different design disciplines in wider social, economic and material contexts. You will also learn to put theory into practice as a writer and researcher, and during your internship at a cultural institution.
You will have many opportunities to develop your own personal interests, for example, in fashion, industrial design or graphic design. The specialisation in Design Cultures will deepen your understanding of 20th- and 21st-century developments in design as a practice, a product, a discourse and a cultural environment.
Taught by experts
Our staff is made up of an international team of distinguished researchers who contribute actively to design scholarship. They publish regularly, attend conferences and are leading names in their research fields. Our academic staff are actively involved in numerous local, national and international networks.
Amsterdam
Studying in the city of Amsterdam is a unique experience. The urban setting and the multicultural mindset of the people of Amsterdam, combined with the energy of a thriving cultural city life gives your education a special dimension.
Cultural collaboration
The opportunities for collaboration between the design sector, cultural institutions and social enterprise in Amsterdam are endless. Through our wide-ranging academic courses, you can explore the dimensions of these contexts and combine them in unique and exciting ways.