Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences

Art theory, research and experimentation all play a prominent role within your study programme.

Studying Fine Art at the WdKA means learning to define and redefine what art is – or can be – in relation to society. Our BFA department is called Autonome Beeldende Kunst which translates as ‘autonomous visual art’, a specific field of contemporary art.

Our department focuses on the fact that we as humans exist together, in constant communication (both visual and linguistic). We share awareness of the influence of concepts and language in relation to the image. At the Fine Art department, we stimulate you to develop your own forms of making-meaning, and constantly (re)determine them under the influence of perception, memory and imagination, and the expression of these. An area in which art is positioned in relation to society – while still able to and daring to give space for new, incomplete, dis-articulated forms of imagination and expression. An area where you can - and will need to - redefine the rules and shapes of what art can be.

At Fine Art you develop your artistic talent through a broad training in all aspects of the profession. Applied artistic research, concept development, ‘making’ skills, communication of your work, as well as entrepreneurial skills relevant to the domain of the arts.

If you study our bachelor course in Design, you chose from one of the 2D, 3D or 4D disciplines in your first year: Advertising & Beyond, Animation, Audiovisual Design, Fashion Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Product Design or Spatial Design.

Rotterdam is home base to quite many designers in all disciplines that have gained an international reputation. Many of them have been educated at WdKA: as a 'typical Rotterdam' academy it boasts a strong tradition in design education. Quite logical in a city that is an internationally orientated hub for trade and transport, and that is all about 'getting things done'. Rotterdam manifests itself - both nationally and internationally - as a 'city of design'. Proof of that is the biennial Rotterdam Design Prize.

On the one hand, Rotterdam designers are characterized by their pragmatic 'hands on' approach ("don't fuss, just do it!"). On the other hand, they are renowned for their innovative and personal approach of design assignments.

Over the past two decades, digital media have transformed all WdKA's design courses - like they transformed professional practice. Digital media are not just important as tools in the design process, but even more as a new arena for designers to work in. From day one, digital media are an integral part of the curriculum of all WdKA design courses.

Are you aiming for a career in business? Do you thrive in an intercultural environment? With an International Business (IB) degree you can.

Our International Business degree teaches you how to be an innovator, an intercultural business communicator and a value-oriented leader. Since every business faces complex challenges, you will tackle multidisciplinary challenges in this programme, as well as learn how to develop data-driven decisions to back up your strategies.

We think it's valuable for you to get out there in the business world as a student. Less research and more of a practical approach is our approved method of preparing students for the international business world. It means that your assignments will deal with real issues in real companies. You will get to work on marketing plans and sales techniques. You will test out entry and organisational strategies. You will learn about accounting and assess the financial performances of companies. You will also create supply chain networks, using the latest digital tools.

Languages are an important part of the education we offer and are one of the unique elements of our university. You will learn at least one foreign language. This will complement your studies and improve your knowledge and cultural understanding when operating across borders.

This course is a two-year part-time master developed for working professionals in the field of art and design education (secondary, vocational, higher art and design education, museum education).

The program explicitly connects theory and practice, focusing on contemporary issues, which span different practices and discourses: education, pedagogy, art, design, cultural theory, digital cultures (maker education), philosophy, museum education and other experimental pedagogical practices. Participants are encouraged to reflect upon their position and teaching methodologies within social and cultural contexts, and are offered a close insight in the newest developments in contemporary art and design education. The program is taught in English and accepts both students from the Netherlands and within the EU.

How can educators help to define the role of art and design in society? Which pedagogical methodologies are appropriate for specific audiences and contexts? How do developments such as 'the educational turn in art' influence gallery education? Can art education help children grow up to become self-confident and emancipated adults? How does education adapt itself to a changing society and cultural environment? These are but a few of the questions that are at the core of the Master Education in Arts program.

Our international programme offers students a unique Master level design-research education with a critical and experimental focus on the complex and developing field of Interior Architecture.

This programme is offered by Piet Zwart Institute. Piet Zwart Institute houses the international Master programmes of the Willem de Kooning Academy at Hogeschool Rotterdam.

Interior Architects today are faced with a changing world of new realties, technologies, socio-political, environmental and economic challenges; consequently the practice of the designer needs to expand, react and determine future roles. For this reason, we question the conventions of Interior Architecture across disciplinary edges in order to create new perspectives in the production of space. Design as research is viewed as multidimensional, circulating along numerous pathways and scales, from the local to the global, from objects to architecture and beyond. Students are expected to be independent and forward thinking. Our multidisciplinary and proactive approach to design education creates a sense of openness, possibility and intellectual rigor to nurture innovative 21st century designers.

XPUB is the Master of Arts in Fine Art and Design: Experimental Publishing of the Piet Zwart Institute.

XPUB focuses on the acts of making things public and creating publics in the age of post-digital networks.

XPUB’s interests in publishing are therefore twofold: first, publishing as the inquiry and participation into the technological frameworks, political context and cultural processes through which things are made public; and second, how these are, or can be, used to create publics.

Do you want to improve your knowledge and understanding of the shipping & transport industry? Want to strengthen your managerial skills and take the next step in your career?

Shipping plays a vital role in world trade and is the backbone of the world economy. Without ships and the services they provide, the world would not be as prosperous as it is today and many countries would not be able to participate in world trade. The shipping and logistics industries are two of the few industries that are truly global in both geographical scope and in the nature of the business.

Globalisation of trade and economies has led to a situation where multinationals have developed worldwide sourcing and marketing strategies. Logically, ports and shipping companies play an important role in enabling the smooth and efficient transportation of cargoes, thus connecting manufacturers and consumers around the world.

The Master of Science Shipping and Transport programme will give you an excellent opportunity to improve your skills in business administration in the maritime and logistics field.

The two-year Master of Fine Art (MFA) program at the Piet Zwart Institute is an HBO Masters offered by the Willem de Kooning Academy, which is part of Hogeschool Rotterdam.

The Piet Zwart Institute Master Fine Art (Master of Arts in Fine Art and Design, option Fine Art) educates artists toward the fulfilment of their own creative and professional autonomy and encourages enrolled students to see themselves as agents with the potential to shape the field of international contemporary art.

Our ambition is to provide our students with a challenging, supportive and responsive learning environment and a curriculum that offers the creative structure and committed resources they need to develop their individual and collective senses of artistic purpose and agency. We recognise the inherent diversity of perspectives, methods, practices and channels of dissemination that are available to contemporary artists today. We strive to meet our diverse students wherever they are in their artistic trajectories. We offer them critical guidance and opportunities for experimentation and growth in their research and practice, leading to personal and professional validation. We motivate our students to sustain their artistic research and practice while navigating a highly competitive, economically uncertain and deeply evaluative field.

Do you want to take your knowledge of Supply Chain Management to the next level? Are you looking to enhance your managerial and leadership skills?

A Supply Chain Manager is not a master of just one specific area in the supply chain; he or she is a master in all areas including sourcing, planning, transportation, distribution, warehousing, inventory management, customer service and strategic leadership. Our one-year intensive programme is designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills required to transform yourself into a well-rounded Supply Chain Manager. You will participate in an intensive programme of combined classroom learning, company projects and self-led projects. In this environment, you will both broader and deepen your theoretical knowledge about Supply Chain Management while simultaneously developing your project management skills and cultivating your personal leadership capabilities. At the end of the programme, you will be an expert in the functional areas of Supply Chain Management and will be equipped with the skills necessary to manage a logistics organisation.

The Master of Arts in Fine Art & Design: Lens-Based Media program focuses primarily on artistic and experimental lens-based practices (both still and moving image/animation).

These practices embrace the use of artifice, formal and technical innovation, fictional strategies and other unconventional visual approaches to create new and meaningful visions of the world.

We support visions that seek to move beyond the conventional narratives of our society and create new impetus in the viewer towards an open-eyed engagement with myriad challenges humans (and non-humans) collectively face in a world saturated with disinformation, increasing polarisation and fragmentations of communities, centuries-old political and social injustices, marginalisation of the most vulnerable, and a rapidly degrading global environment.

Such work is necessarily based on a solid artistic research practice: allowing makers to take responsibility for the specificities and narratives of the images they create in such work, and the complexities and histories of both the forms they employ and the topics they explore. However fictional the worlds we create, we must take responsibility for their claims to truth.

The Master Sustainability Transitions (STR) is designed for professionals and future change-makers who want to drive systemic change in business, policy, and society.

Unlike traditional programmess, STR places strong emphasis on applied learning and practical engagement. Throughout the programme, you will work directly with companies, policymakers, and research institutions to tackle real-world sustainability challenges in energy transitions and circular economy.

Your learning is grounded in real cases, strategic action plans, and field immersion, making this master truly applied, hands-on, and impact-driven.

Through the one-year Master in Consultancy and Entrepreneurship you will achieve a deep understanding of enterprises and learn how to effectively advise clients or lead your own business.

By writing a business solution report on a real-life business challenge, you will be offered a hands-on learning experience, which preparing you for your future career. The programme prepares students to navigate in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world by focusing on creative solutions to complex problems.

A graduate of the Master in Consultancy and Entrepreneurship programme is expected to be a world class problem solver.

The Master of Arts in Fine Art and Design offers three study paths: Fine Art, Lens-Based Media and Experimental Publishing.

1. Fine Art: The two-year Master of Fine Art (MFA) program at the Piet Zwart Institute is an HBO Masters offered by the Willem de Kooning Academy, which is part of the Hogeschool Rotterdam (Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences). The MFA program foregrounds the reciprocal articulation of research, practice, and professionalisation. It considers critical reflection, debate, and action as integral to self-directed artistic research and practice, and it fosters professional development for emerging artists through exposure to key actors and influences in the field of contemporary art, professional guidance and workshops, and exhibition and public programming opportunities for presenting ideas and work to wider audiences.
2. Lens-Based Media: this course focuses on approaching animation, photography, and the full range of contemporary cinematic forms as a single expanded field.

3. Experimental Publishing: this course prepares students to critically engage with societal issues within the fast-changing field of art, design and cultural products.

An ideal starting block for the English-taught Master programmes at Rotterdam Business School.

Pre-Master courses are designed to prepare students for one of our two English-taught Master programmes: Master in Consultancy and Entrepreneurship and Master in International Supply Chain Management.

We offer the 6 month foundation programme to students with both a business and non-business related bachelor degree. Based on the diploma you have, you will required to have work experience and an English level test. Check out the admission requirements page to find out more.

The course consists of an intensive English language programme with a focus on business English and business subjects.

Successful completion of the Pre-Master course will lead to: (1) a certificate for the Pre-Master course, (2) an exemption from the IELTS 6.5/TOEFL iBT 90 requirements