Applied Cognitive Neuroscience

It gave me the freedom to work flexibly in the field while being sure that I was learning what I needed to for my own goals.

Technical skills with real-world valueThe programme provides the perfect environment to learn technical skills. I entered with a basic understanding of Python, and I’m finishing with the ability to understand, write, and repurpose code while also being confident in my ability to adapt it to situations where I may need it. Outside of this, I have gotten very comfortable with research modalities like EEG and machine learning, which are possibilities that this master’s offers you.

The technical focus of the programme is quite distinctive. A lot of psychology programmes offer theory and soft skill building opportunities, but the reality of the situation is that hard technical skills like coding and experimental setup management are extremely desirable in our field. This programme throws you a lot of technical challenges from the start, and if you choose to approach them head-on, it rewards you with universal skills.

Advice for prospective studentsIf you’re unsure about this master's, have a chat with one of the researchers listed in the Experimental Psychology department page. The best way to be sure about any programme is to speak with someone who does this for a living!

After a brief conversation with Anouk Zuurmond, who coordinated the track at the time and would later supervise my master’s thesis, I quickly signed up — and haven’t looked back since.

A diverse and personalised programmeI primarily value the diversity of the programme, coupled with the opportunity to pursue your aspirations. This applies to choosing your topic of interest for the research report in Domain-specific skills, picking a monograph to read for your essay in Expertise, education and psychological practice, and picking your essay topic in Education for a better world. And like a good master’s programme should, EoE allows you to cultivate more general ‘professional skills’: like working autonomously, managing your own project, and handling both freedom and setbacks.

All in all, the programme offered a well-rounded balance: the ‘fixed’ parts exposed me to a wide array of topics, approaches, and research traditions, while the ‘flexible’ parts subsequently allowed me to focus on elements of the programme that resonated most with me.

Courses that shaped my perspectiveThe course on citizenship education has further cultivated my interest in philosophy of education and the work of Biesta, so that was quite helpful. I’m also grateful for Qualitative Research Methods, as it helped me develop the proper mindset for qualitative research (e.g. through concepts like ‘reflexivity’), and helped me gain specific research skills, like doing interview studies.

Practicing these research skills during my internship — an investigation on citizenship education at SLO — was very helpful. In retrospect, my internship experience aligned quite well with what I do now.

The philosophical dimension of In the best interest of the child was great as well. It presented a great opportunity to study an everyday concept (like ‘children’) with the rigor and critical mindset of a philosophical approach. I believe any educational researcher should practice this at some point: it makes one realize that the world is more complex, nuanced, and up for interpretation than we sometimes like to think. That is a crucial insight for educational researchers and practitioners, who often directly work with people and the rich complexities (or ‘grey areas’) of their daily lives and actions.

From coursework to PhDThe PhD position was posted while I was finishing my master’s thesis, and its topic aligned perfectly with my thesis research. In that sense, my thesis was perfect preparation for this position, and the timing was fortunate. For my PhD project, I study the pedagogical (or educational-philosophical) notion of ‘subjectification’. Subjectification in Gert Biesta’s conception of good education means encouraging students to live as autonomous ‘selves’ in dialogue with the world, and the ‘others’ they encounter in that world.

In my research, I translate Biesta’s notion to the everyday practice of teaching, and apply it to teachers: what does it mean for a teacher to be a ‘self’, and how does that self relate to students? I study this from a philosophical (conceptual) angle, but also through several qualitative studies, like conversation analysis and interview studies. I really enjoy doing research autonomously, and the flexibility it offers: I have a lot of control over my daily work and make my own ‘executive decisions’ on short and long-term plans.

Looking ahead: future ambitionsAfter my PhD, I’d like to stay in academia, although the current political climate may make that difficult. I fear that the impending ruthless and visionless budget cuts will severely impact academia, and possibly my own and other’s careers.

At the same time, I’m convinced that educational research will always have its place in society in some shape or form. My research mainly applies to teachers and their (normative) professionalization, so I am open to working in that field – within or outside of the walls of academia.

My advice for studentsTake the time to think about who you are, what you value, and what you want to gain from this programme. There is much to do, and a lot to decide yourself (like your internship or thesis topic), and the year flies by, so plan your activities carefully. However, on the flip side: stay open to coincidence, last-minute changes, and opportunities (or requirements) to act intuitively in new circumstances. I don’t necessarily believe that everything happens for a reason, but I do think that the best things sometimes happen when you stay open to life’s unexpected opportunities.

The group of students is smaller than in the bachelor’s, which makes it very personal. There is a lot more contact with the lecturers and with fellow students, which I find very motivating. We organize drinks parties so that you can meet the staff and where you can discuss which subject you would like to tackle in your master’s thesis.The master’s programme concentrates on research focusing on application in practice. In the first semester, you follow course units, and in the second, you write your master’s thesis. This means that you can use and expand the knowledge and skills you acquired in the first semester in writing your thesis.

After I arrived, I took an intensive Dutch course for a month, only to find out afterwards that this was not necessary since everyone here speaks good English.What motivated me to study psychology was a book by Daniel Kahneman called ‘Thinking, Fast and Slow’. I was so intrigued about finding out more about psychology that I dropped my computer science programme and switched to the UG. Kahneman’s main research field in psychology is cognitive psychology. My favourite course unit in the Bachelor’s programme was also cognitive psychology. These factors inspired me to choose the Applied Cognitive Neuroscience (ACN) track; I think it is the most interesting topic in psychology.The ACN programme is very practical. You learn how to conduct research by using different instruments. There are many course units where you learn how to use tools such as eye-trackers and EEGs, or understand the principles underlying fMRI and TMS. In the field of cognitive psychology, you have to be able to work with these tools.The structure of this programme is a bit different to the other programmes. You follow all your course units during the first semester, and during the second you only write your thesis. I think this structure is very beneficial for students since you have all the theoretical knowledge before writing your thesis.Robin Hake, 24, masterstudent Applied Cognitive Neuroscience

Hemaniopia is a condition of partial blindness or a loss of sight in half of your visual field typically caused by a stroke, brain tumor, or traumatic brain injury.

I reached out to the professor, expressing my interest in the topic and asked if I could assist in any research. She connected me with a PhD student I could help. Six months later, she informed me about two PhD vacancies in this field she and her colleagues had created. I am now working on one of these positions, namely as a PhD candidate for Hanze, UMCG, and Visio, researching a rehabilitation method for people with hemianopia using Virtual Reality (VR). With this research we aim for an at-home rehabilitation method with the help of VR to enhance accessibility, personalization, and motivation in the rehabilitation process.

That course was a turning point for me
The master’s introduced me to the topic of my current research. Furthermore, it equipped me with several research skills like setting up research questions, relevant research methods and presenting results. The neurorehabilitation and treatment course I mentioned earlier was a turning point for me. But also, the statistics and research courses, as well as writing my thesis, proved very valuable. I gained a lot of knowledge about conducting research and developed a curious and critical mindset, skills that are essential in my work.

My career plans
First, I would like to complete my PhD. During this process, I will also explore which career path aligns best with my interests. I may continue in research, transition into teaching, or pursue opportunities outside academia.

Invest time in what excites you
During my master’s, I assisted a PhD student in her research on the topic of hemianopia, which provided me with an introduction to the field and gave me a sense of what a PhD entails. Additionally, I worked as an HR manager, which, although very different, was also helpful as I developed many personal skills. Equally important to me was enjoying time with friends and engaging in sports.

I truly enjoyed my student days, I get a lot of energy from learning new things (that is also why I started a PhD :) ). If something sparks your interest, seize the opportunity, connect with people, and invest time in what excites you. It will open doors for your future.

My fellow ACN students made good friends and remain so - some now as colleagues and professional connections.

Through the ACN master’s, I found a role at my dream company, MemoryLab (AKA SlimStampen). MemoryLab conducts research on forgetting and memory and applies this to an adaptive learning tool that uses cognitive modelling to improve learning efficiency and engagement. You may well use MemoryLab in your studies here! I work in business, communicating our research to external partners, arranging pilot studies in naturalistic classroom settings, and presenting our science at educational conferences.

I cannot recommend the ACN master’s programme enough and hope you find it to be as valuable an experience as I have.

This makes it very different from other programmes in this field, which in most cases focus exclusively on research. In this UG master’s, you will not only learn how cognitive processes work but also how you can apply this knowledge in practice and the business world. Think of the role attention plays in how drivers experience traffic situations, for example, or doctors look at scans, and how we all experience advertisements. Stefan van der Stigchel has written an interesting book about attention (Zo werkt aandacht), which provides a good overview of our field and how we deal with this in our master’s programme.

In this programme, students can thus expect to learn fundamental knowledge as well as practical skills in course units such as statistics and methodology. In addition, we offer an extensive research placement, where students learn to apply this knowledge in practice.