Dutch and Philosophy

Dutch and philosophy is a combination that pairs the study of one of Europe's significant but underrepresented languages with the rigorous analytical practice of philosophical inquiry. Dutch is the native language of around twenty-three million people in the Netherlands and Belgium, and is spoken in Dutch-speaking communities worldwide. The Netherlands and Flanders have produced a remarkable intellectual and artistic tradition, from the great Dutch Golden Age painters and the philosophy of Spinoza to contemporary literature and the influence of Dutch commercial and legal culture on international trade and governance.

Philosophy, meanwhile, is the discipline that examines what we can know, how we should act, what exists, and how language and thought relate to the world.

The four-year programme at University College London is split equally between Dutch and philosophy. The language part of the degree is taught in the School of European Languages, Culture and Society, where you will study speaking, listening, reading, writing, and translation alongside cultural topics including literature, history, film, linguistics, and politics, all designed to complement your language learning. Your philosophy studies give you the analytical training to engage with the major traditions of Western philosophy across both analytic and continental lines, developing the close reading and argumentative skills that philosophy demands.

Your third year is a year abroad, spent in a country where Dutch is spoken, which is essential for reaching genuine fluency.

With a typical entry tariff of 168 points, the programme is intellectually demanding. Graduates from Dutch and philosophy programmes pursue careers in law, the civil service, publishing, academia, international business, diplomacy, and the cultural sector, as well as postgraduate study in philosophy, European studies, or linguistics.