Explore the structure of the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University, including core courses, electives, method training, thesis or internship, and small‑group seminars.

Chat with a current MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice student at Leiden University to get firsthand insights on the programme, student life, and study experience.

Organized by the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, this programme enables students and professionals from all over the world to engage in discussions on the prospects and challenges of international criminal justice. Registration is now open!

Humans can see the world through the eyes of other humans and imagine what they know, want, and intend. This competence is known as Theory of Mind.

The terms ‘social’ , ‘collective’ or ‘public’ memory, are often contrasted with ‘private’, ‘individual’ or ‘personal’ memory. All these terms derive from a fairly new and interdisciplinary scholarly field that is often referred to as ‘memory studies’, and that according to some critics has developed…

Systems with local constraints is a new finding in recent researches on complex systems. The heterogeneous spatial interactions and the temporal dependencies among those numerous units make it difficult to describe by traditional statistical physics.

In this work we describe three methods to improve the performance of Quantum Field Theory calculations.

Following their application to system biological models, control theory techniques have further potential to aid in the understanding and application of quantitative systems pharmacology models.

The next generation of high-contrast imaging instruments on space-based observatories requires sophisticated wavefront sensing and control in addition to a high-performance coronagraph.

On 16 april 2020, Andrew Fink defended his thesis 'The Importance of Conspiracy Theory in Extremist Ideology and Propaganda'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. A. Ellian.

Discover the information activities for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University, including webinars, virtual open days, Q&A sessions and events for prospective students.

Is there a causal mechanism underlying the decision to attack another country when on the brink of war? If so, does this mechanism differ between regime-types? Political scientist Femke Bakker (Leiden University) addresses this question from a political psychological and comparative perspective and…

Check the admission requirements for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University — bachelor degree in (or related to) Political Science with sufficient relevant credits and, if needed, research‑methodology background.

How can we gain insights in the connection between teaching practices and theoretical elaborations of purposes of education?

While self-driving cars and autonomous weapon systems have received a great deal of attention in media and research, the general requirements of ethical life in today’s digitalizing reality have not been made sufficiently visible and evaluable.

Discover why Leiden University is the ideal place for the Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice MSc — combining top-level political philosophy education, small-group seminars, and academic staff expertise.

Explore the extra challenge options for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University — including Honour’s Academy programmes, leadership training, and opportunities to deepen your research experience.

Prepare for your MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University with orientation activities, academic resources, visa guidance, student support and tips for arriving in the Netherlands.

The relevance of intentionality to the interpretation of Aristotle was first suggested by Brentano in his Psychology from an Empirical Standpoint. Here we take our starting point from Brentano and investigate how Brentano’s concept of intentionality is rooted in Aristotle.

Alumni event, Arts and Culture

Explore student life for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University, including student associations, events, academic community and living in Leiden and The Hague.

Explore the career possibilities after the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice — pursue roles in academia, policy analysis, public debate, ethics consultancy, or further studies (PhD).

Check the application deadlines for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University — visa / residence permit and non‑visa deadlines for September and February intakes.

Find out which documents you need to apply for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University, including diplomas, transcripts, CV, motivation letter and references.

Memory, Imagination, and Mimetics in Contemporary Composition and Historical Performance

Why do black holes emit thermal radiation? And how does a closed quantum system thermalize?

On 12 mei 2020, Darryl Robinson defended 'Exploring Justice in Extreme Cases: Criminal Law Theory and International Criminal Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. C. Stahn.

Is it possible to formulate a new conceptual foundation for attributing an evaluative role to historiography of science, without relinquishing the historiographic sensitivity of recent work in the discipline?

Conference, International Seminar, Hybrid

Conference, International Seminar, Hybrid

The linguistic project constitutes the connection between the two other subprojects. It consists of two parts.

'Politics of Withdrawal' considers the significance of practices and theories of withdrawal for radical thinking today.

Political protest is often at least partially about the question of legitimacy. How can we distinguish whether a regime is legitimate, or merely purports to be so?

View tuition fee information for the MSc Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University, including how fees vary by nationality, residency status and programme category.

The first of the two volumes of this co-authored study has just been published by Metzler. The study explores the history of the concept ‘barbarism’ from the 18th century to the present and illuminates its foundational role in modern European and Western identity.

Bernini and Pallavicino, the artist and the Jesuit cardinal, are closely related figures at the papal courts of Urban VIII and Alexander VII, at which Bernini was the principal artist. The analysis of Pallavicino's writings offers a new perspective on Bernini's art and artistry and allow us to understand…

This project will construct an inventory of possible conceptions of the resistance of the world to scientists’ claims and theories.

Subproject of

Learn how to apply for the Master's programme Political Theory: Legitimacy and Justice at Leiden University with step-by-step application instructions, document submission via Studielink, and next steps after applying.

The emergence of the Köprülü household that imprinted its stamp on the latter half of the seventeenth century in the Ottoman Empire. What is the power struggle they carried out against Ottoman dynastic power?

On Thursday 29 January 2026 Uğur Derin successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Together with two other authors, Jaroslaw Kantorowicz from ISGA investigates the susceptibility to believing in misinformation.