Your first year
- Full working week
- If you already have some knowledge of Dutch, you can take the entrance examinations at the beginning of your first year. The exams assess the level at which you will join the language acquisition programme. Students with little or no prior knowledge of Dutch will start at first-year level. You will be at the University almost every day to attend classes. You prepare the rest of your study week independently. In total, you spend at least 40 hours a week on your study.
- Lectures and tutorials
- The programme consists of lectures and tutorials. In the lectures, the professor will talk about the main themes of a subject. During the tutorials, you work with the material, discussing it with your fellow students. You also prepare written assignments and give presentations in which you show that you can understand and report on academic literature.
- Subjects
- In your first year, you have to work hard at learning Dutch. You will learn to speak, understand, read and write Dutch. You will also have introductory lectures on all other aspects of Dutch culture and society. You will learn about the history of a country which is both small and great at the same time. You will discover the diversity of Dutch art history and gain insight into present-day Dutch society.
- Study points
- The year is divided into two semesters, or blocks. The entire first year consists of 60 ects (European Credit Transfer System). One ects is made up of 28 hours of study. These credits are only awarded if you have met all the requirements of a subject. In general, no credits are awarded for partial exams or attending classes only. More information about the timetable can be found in the online prospectus.
- Marking system
- The Dutch system of awarding marks goes from 1 (poor) to 10 (outstanding). You have passed an examination if you have achieved a 6 or higher. Nines and tens are rarely awarded. For more information on study points and the evaluation system, see: Credits en Grading.
- Examinations
- You conclude each subject with an exam. This may be a written or an oral exam. You receive a grade for each exam and assignment. You also receive an assessment of your performance in the tutorials.
- Digital facilities
- If you are studying in Leiden, you will organise a lot of things related to your study online. You subscribe for exams via the Leiden University Community Network (ULCN). This is also where you can look up your exam results. You also have access to Blackboard, the digital learning environment of Leiden University. Lecturers put their reading material on Blackboard and you can exchange documents with fellow students. ULCN
Blackboard
