Study Bioethics in Europe

This master's degree offers an interdisciplinary education in cognitive sciences, the study of mental processes that shape the behavior of both biological organisms and artificial systems. The program is designed to gradually build students into confident, independent researchers capable of synthesizing approaches, methods, and knowledge across disciplines, whether they go on to further postgraduate study or into science-based industry.

The first year opens with an intensive introductory course structured to let students complement their existing undergraduate background: alongside a shared component covering the discipline's core work and its interdisciplinary character, students choose one elective module from either an introduction to empirical research and statistical methods or an introduction to the philosophy of cognitive science, and select two elective elements from cognitive psychology, neuropsychology and cognition, comparative cognition, and the critical history of cognitive science. Students then take a broader interdisciplinary sequence covering topics such as numerical and visual cognition, judgment and reasoning, rationality, individual differences in cognition, metacognition, consciousness, theory of mind, and social cognition. Further first-year coursework builds core research competencies through empirical research methods, covering experimental and non-experimental designs, measurement theory, neuroscience methods, programming cognitive experiments, and open science tools; a dedicated statistics course using open-source software, covering linear and logistic modeling, repeated-measures and hierarchical designs, and techniques such as mediation, path analysis, and structural equation modeling; and a course on research ethics, covering ethical issues in working with research participants, data management and sharing, data protection regulation, and the use and misuse of research findings. Students also complete two short rotation projects, allowing them to plan and design early-stage research studies in different subdisciplines before settling on a topic for their thesis.

In the second year, students work closely with a chosen supervisor to design and carry out an original research project for their master's thesis, complemented by a science communication project related to their research. Additional coursework includes a journal club focused on discussing current literature, science communication training covering science writing, digital presentation, and audience-specific communication, and a professional development course covering academic and industry career paths, transferable skills, and research and data science pathways, including an industry engagement day. Students also select elective courses each semester to build technical research skills or deepen their knowledge in areas of particular interest.

Applicants must hold an undergraduate university degree, typically in cognitive science or a related discipline such as psychology, philosophy, linguistics, informatics, biology, biomedicine, or anthropology, though applications from other academic backgrounds are also welcomed. Applicants must demonstrate good spoken and written English at a minimum B2 level, assessed through a short interview rather than a formal language test. Students in their final year of undergraduate study may also apply and, if successful, receive a conditional offer pending completion of their degree. Required application materials include a completed application form, a structured motivational letter in English that includes a research proposal, a CV in English, and evidence of the applicant's undergraduate degree status; degrees from institutions outside Croatia must undergo an official recognition procedure. Shortlisted applicants are invited to an interview with three members of the teaching staff, covering a general introductory question, a question based on the applicant's research proposal, and a question on general empirical research methods.

This program addresses the ethical dilemmas at the heart of modern healthcare, from end-of-life care and genetic screening to questions about personality change after neurological surgery, in a field that has grown increasingly important alongside rapid advances in medicine and technology. It is taken as a track within a two-year philosophy master's degree, but with a distinctive structure: students pursue it alongside a separate, health-related master's degree at the same time, graduating with two master's degrees rather than one.

The first year combines four introductory philosophy courses with a course specifically on bioethics, alongside five courses drawn from the student's companion health-related program. The introductory courses cover the history of philosophy from antiquity to the present, normative ethics (examining how people can coexist under competing ethical frameworks such as virtue ethics, utilitarianism, and Kantian ethics), and the philosophy of science, which asks what distinguishes scientific knowledge and whether objective knowledge is possible. The dedicated bioethics course examines the intersection of bioethics, technology, and law, engaging with developments such as so-called "designer babies" and the ethical and legal limits on parental control over a child's characteristics.

The second year deepens this focus with four courses tailored specifically to bioethics. One examines end-of-life issues through the lens of the doctor-patient relationship; another looks at how medical teams navigate complex ethical decisions using real clinical case studies and team-based work; a third gives students the opportunity to sit in on an actual medical ethics committee meeting as part of studying the ethics of medical research; and a fourth examines how political and cultural values shape medical decision-making in different contexts.

Practical training is a highlight of the second year. Students take part in a five-day "Winter School" at a partner university in the United Kingdom, where they present a critical analysis of scholarly papers and discuss them directly with the authors in a symposium format. This is followed by a six-week internship, which may take place at a hospital, a research center, a forensic institute, an advisory body, or a government institute; some students have gone on to receive job offers as a result of these placements. The program concludes with a master's thesis on a freely chosen bioethics topic, with past examples including the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare, the effects of deep brain stimulation on personal identity, and end-of-life decision-making.

The program is small-scale, with close contact between students and faculty, many of whom are practicing clinicians or ethicists bringing first-hand experience into their teaching. Students also interact with peers specializing in other areas, such as neuroscience or law, through shared introductory philosophy coursework, and a part-time option is available, with first-year philosophy courses scheduled in the evening where possible.

Graduates develop strong analytical, reflective, and reasoning skills, becoming adept at constructing well-supported arguments in both writing and speech, engaging productively with opposing viewpoints, and combining insights from different disciplines into a coherent whole. Career paths include combining clinical work with a role on a medical ethics committee, pursuing a PhD, working as a researcher at a policy or technology-assessment organization, serving as a clinical ethicist or advisor to healthcare organizations and insurers, or working as a policymaker within government.

Applicants must hold a bachelor's degree in medicine, health sciences, psychology, or a related field; for applicants with a non-Dutch degree, this must be equivalent to a three-year Dutch research-university bachelor's degree. Because part of the curriculum is drawn directly from a companion program, applicants must also separately qualify for and be admitted to one of three specific master's programs, in medicine, psychology, or health sciences; students who are not admitted to one of these companion programs are not able to complete or graduate from this program.

Applicants must also demonstrate English proficiency through an accepted international test: an IELTS Academic score of at least 7 overall, a TOEFL iBT score of at least 100 overall (minimum 20 per section) under the older scoring system, or at least 5.0 overall (minimum 4.5 per section) under the new scoring system used for tests taken from January 2026 onward, or a score of at least 180 on Cambridge CAE or CPE. The TOEFL ITP is not accepted. Tests must have been completed within the two years before the program starts, unless the applicant is exempt on the basis of prior education conducted fully in English within a qualifying country or through an International Baccalaureate diploma.

Applicants must submit a scanned copy of their passport, a completed application file, and proof of English proficiency, if already obtained at the time of application.