This Master's programme offers two specializations: one in Popular Music, Sound and Media Cultures and another in Theatre, Culture and Media studies. Each specialization encompasses both emergent and historically established practices in music and theatre and the performing arts.
For the music specialization see: Popular Music, Sound and Media Cultures
For the theatre and performing arts specialization see: Theatre, Culture and Media
Within both the music and theatre specialization, we highlight those phenomena which most impact the organization, experience, and creative potential of music and theatre makers and audiences in the twentieth and twenty first centuries. MA students examine the current constitution of music or theatre organizations, as well as the impact of broader processes such as globalization, digitalization, urbanization, festivalisation, and mobility upon expanding forms of creativity. Because humans continue to shape creative experience within cultural fields, these two specializations aim to uncover how music or theatre remain relevant for understanding broader relations between culture, society, and the arts.
We examine these and other processes in historical contexts and in our musical and theatrical present, where economic crisis in recording and performing industries has led to vast rearrangements of musical and theatrical labour and changing conceptions of the public sphere. Because this programme highlights the complexity of the contemporary popular music, art music, and theatre professional worlds, students enter arts professions with specialized knowledge and skills, which ensure that they are highly employable.
Please see: Music specialization: https://www.rug.nl/let/studeren-bij-ons/music-specialization/why-study-this-programme-in-groningen Theatre specialization: https://www.rug.nl/let/studeren-bij-ons/theatre-and-performance-specialization/why-study-this-programme-in-groningen
This Master's programme offers two specializations: one in Popular Music, Sound and Media Cultures and another in Theatre, Culture and Media studies. Each specialization encompasses both emergent and historically established practices in music and theatre and the performing arts.
Music specialization: https://www.rug.nl/let/studeren-bij-ons/music-specialization/
Theatre specialization: https://www.rug.nl/let/studeren-bij-ons/theatre-and-performance-specialization/
These two specializations aim to uncover how music or theatre remain relevant for understanding broader relations between culture, society, and the arts. Our students examine artistic practices and expanding forms of creativity in response to global phenomena, such as environmental and economic crises, mediatization, urbanization, migration and mobility.
The study programme includes an internship in the music or theatre industry through our extended network of established Dutch and international arts and cultural institutions. Our students acquire specialized knowledge and skills, which ensure that they are highly employable in the professional arts and media sectors.
| Programme options |
|---|
| Popular Music, Sound and Media cultures (specialization) |
| Theatre, Culture and Media (specialization) |
| Specific requirements | More information |
|---|---|
| previous education |
The Master's track Music, Theatre and Performance Studies is open to students with a BA in Arts, Culture and Media. University of Groningen students with a BA in:
with a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance track, are also admissible to this Master's track. Students who have completed a different Bachelor's or Master's degree programme in a relevant field and students who have completed the pre-Master's degree programme that prepares for the track can also apply to the track. The Admissions Board will assess whether your educational/academic background meets the specific track requirements, and will consider the level and curriculum of your previous studies. |
| language test |
Additional requirements English: 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. |
| Study programme | Organization | Transition |
|---|---|---|
| Arts, Culture and Media | University of Groningen | No additional requirements |
| American Studies | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| Communication and Information Studies | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| English Language and Culture | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| European Languages and Cultures | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| History (part-time) | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| Media Studies | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| Minorities & Multilingualism | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| Dutch Language and Culture | University of Groningen |
Additional requirements More information:With a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance Studies track |
| Study programme | Organization | Transition |
|---|---|---|
| Arts, Culture and Media | All Research universities | No additional requirements |
Please use this step-by-step guide for more information regarding your eligibility and your specific application procedure.
After you complete your application, the Admissions Board will assess whether your educational/academic background meets the specific programme requirements, and will consider the level and curriculum of your previous studies.
The Admissions Board will then determine whether:
| Type of student | Deadline | Start course |
|---|---|---|
| Dutch students | 15 August 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 15 August 2026 | 01 September 2026 | |
| EU/EEA students | 01 May 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 01 May 2026 | 01 September 2026 | |
| non-EU/EEA students | 01 May 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 01 May 2026 | 01 September 2026 |
| Specific requirements | More information |
|---|---|
| previous education |
The Master's track Music, Theatre and Performance Studies is open to students with a BA in Arts, Culture and Media. University of Groningen students with a BA in:
with a Faculty Minor (30 ECTS) in Arts & Culture, Music, Theatre and Performance track, are also admissible to this Master's track. Students who have completed a different Bachelor's or Master's degree programme in a relevant field and students who have completed the pre-Master's degree programme that prepares for the track can also apply to the track. The Admissions Board will assess whether your educational/academic background meets the specific track requirements, and will consider the level and curriculum of your previous studies. |
| language test |
Additional requirements English: 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. |
Please use this step-by-step guide for more information regarding your eligibility and your specific application procedure.
After you complete your application, the Admissions Board will assess whether your educational/academic background meets the specific programme requirements, and will consider the level and curriculum of your previous studies.
The Admissions Board will then determine whether:
| Type of student | Deadline | Start course |
|---|---|---|
| Dutch students | 15 August 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 15 August 2026 | 01 September 2026 | |
| EU/EEA students | 01 May 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 01 May 2026 | 01 September 2026 | |
| non-EU/EEA students | 01 May 2025 | 01 September 2025 |
| 01 May 2026 | 01 September 2026 |
