Rabobank supports two African master's students of African Studies
The Rabobank has awarded Leiden University 50,000 euro for a ‘study-related' purpose. The gift is to be used to allow two African students to follow the research master’s programme in African Studies in Leiden.
Collaboration
Leiden University offers a two-year Research Master’s in African Studies in collaboration with the African Studies Centre and other Africa centres in the Netherlands. In Leiden, both the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences participate in the project. The lectures are given in Leiden.
High tuition fees
There is much interest from abroad in this programme, but for non-EU countries such as African countries, the tuition fees are too high. Which is why Rabobank’s gift is very welcome for this target group. Incidentally, the gift does not cover all the costs and both students will have to pay part of their study costs themselves.
Ambition
The Research Master’s in African Studies has been offered for the past five years. Each year, ten to twelve new students join the programme, including a few Africans. The aim is to increase the yearly intake to fifteen students, including five Africans.
Interdisciplinarr and thematic
African Studies prepares students for academic and policy-based positions relating to Africa. In the programme, experts from the Netherlands and abroad give lectures based on their research projects in Africa. The programme focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration and thematic specialisation. In the second year of the programme, students carry out their own research in Africa for five months.
Prof. Mirjam de Bruijn Programme Director
The Programme Director of the Research Master’s in African Studies is Prof. Mirjam de Bruijn, researcher at the Africa Study Centre and professor at the Leiden University Institute for History. The programme is co-ordinated by Dr Azeb Amha, affiliated with the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics, Languages and Cultures of Africa.
Social sciences and humanities
The African Studies Centre is the only research institute in the Netherlands that focuses exclusively on social sciences and humanities in Africa. The Leiden centre has an exceptional library with the most extensive and specialised collection of Africa-oriented publications and films in the Netherlands.