Program Overview

Master's in Literary Studies

The one-year Master's degree in Literary Studies offers two tracks: English Literature and Culture and Writing, Editing and Mediating.

Programme Description

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.

The Writing, Editing and Mediating track focuses 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.

Facts and Figures

• Degree: MA in Literary Studies
• Course type: Master
• Duration: 12 months (60 EC)
• Croho code: 60813
• Language of instruction: English
• Start: September
• Faculty: Arts

Why Study this Programme in Groningen?

• We offer a programme in line with leading British and North American universities.
• Our programme is tailored to your needs, with small classrooms that facilitate plenty of interaction with your lecturers and fellow classmates.
• With a range of electives, you can design your programme to meet your ambitions and interests.
• Over the past decade, our BA and MA courses have been rated as the best in The Netherlands in the Keuzegids university rankings.
• Our academic staff have a reputation for excellence in teaching and research.
• Our student body is composed of domestic and international students.

Programme Options

Writing, Editing and Mediating (WEM)

What makes a text captivating? How do you recognize repetitions, inconsistencies, faulty logic, and other problems with writing? What does it take to guide a text from writer to reader? Groningen is the only university in the Netherlands to offer an MA programme that focuses on answering these questions, providing insights into the history of publishing and textual dissemination alongside practical skills in textual editing and writing.

English Literature and Culture

How do literature and culture create identity? What effect does literature and telling stories have on modern society? How can literary studies shape the future? The academic study of English literature can be used to reflect on the ways that people interact with one another, providing a catalyst for insight into contemporary social debates.

Entry Requirements

• Dutch diploma
• International diploma

Admission Requirements

• Previous education: For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track English Literature and Culture, see the programme's webpage. For specific information on the entry requirements for the MA track Writing, Editing and Mediating, see the programme's webpage.
• 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.

Application Deadlines

• Type of student:
  • Dutch students: 15 August 2026, Start course: 01 September 2026
  • EU/EEA students: 01 May 2026, Start course: 01 September 2026
  • non-EU/EEA students: 01 May 2026, Start course: 01 September 2026

Tuition Fees

• Nationality:
  • EU/EEA: € 2601, Programme form: full-time
  • non-EU/EEA: € 19200, Programme form: full-time
  • EU/EEA: € 2695, Programme form: full-time
  • non-EU/EEA: € 19900, Programme form: full-time

After Your Studies

Job Prospects

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.

Research

The research projects of staff members are innovative and international. Research themes include the analysis of (offensive) humour in controversial cartoons, alterity in Old English literature, women's travel writing, garden writings, and sustainability and 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. Topics that have been proposed by our students focus, for example, on decolonial or postcolonial discourses, on trauma and exile, on ecocriticism, or on concepts such as transculturality and heterotopia through in-depth analysis of contemporary case studies.