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Broader Mind Course - for all bachelor's and master's students

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Last updated on 8 December 2025
At VU Amsterdam, you develop A Broader Mind. In every study you will be challenged to take a broader view of your academic discipline, of society and yourself. In the Broader Mind Course you will train in debate, active listening, creative thinking, and perspective shifting.

Imagine stepping into a classroom where students from every faculty, science, arts, business, and more, come together. Instead of traditional lectures, you learn through conversation, reflection, and shared experience - guided by a fellow student rather than a teacher. Together, you’ll explore meaningful themes such as success & failure, health & happiness, and poverty. In this classroom, there are no right or wrong answers, only stories, ideas, and perspectives that challenge how we see the world.

The Broader Mind Course is an extracurricular, interdisciplinary course focused on your personal development and societal engagement. The course runs from February to June 2026 (P4 + P5), with registration opening on December 9, 2025.

Altogether, the Broader Mind Course takes just 40 hours spread across four months-very manageable, and all the more exciting because of how impactful those 40 hours can be!

Last years’ students share their 9 reasons to follow the Broader Mind Course in this video.

An overview of practical details and themes of Broader Mind Course can be found in the flyer.

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  • Who is the course for?

    The course is interdisciplinary, and therefore accessible to all VU bachelor’s and master’s students, regardless of your faculty or whether you are a first-, second- or third-year student.

    The course is specially designed as an extracurricular activity but has also been integrated into some study programs as a core component.
     

  • What does the course entail?

    The Study Guide contains everything you need to know about the Broader Mind Course, Track A and Track B. You choose one of those two tracks. Each track covers four themes, namely:

    Track A: Success & Failure, Poverty, Human Body and Rebellion.
    Track B: Health & Happiness, Digital World, Viewpoints & Worldview en Sustainability.

    Each theme takes three weeks to complete and involves blended learning, with online and on-campus activities. The language of instruction is English. The total study load is 40 hours, which breaks down into about two hours per week, spread over four months, except during exam periods.

    After successfully completing the course, you will receive a certificate of participation, be awarded a Broader Mind Course Edubadge and the course will be included on your diploma supplement.

  • When is the course?

    The course runs from February till June in the year 2026 (P4 + P5); registration opens from December 9, 2025.

    The course takes place in periods 4 and 5, except during exam weeks. There are 10 meetups on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, from 17.30–19.30. You will also do online assignments on your own time.

  • Want to register for the course?

    To register for Track A or Track B of the Broader Mind Course, go to your dashboard and enter the course code or the name of the course in the registration module (via: Plan course > All courses > Search in extracurricular courses).

    Registration opens December 9, 2025 and runs until January 12, 2026.

  • Want to help develop the course?

    A unique feature of the Broader Mind Course is that the curriculum is not only developed by teachers but also by students. You, too, can be a co-creator of the Broader Mind Course!

    Help us develop the content of the course. You’ll work together with diverse teams of students as well as educators and professionals in relevant fields. You can be as involved as you like with no obligation necessary. You’re welcome to drop by just to give your opinion or share ideas - or if you’re feeling inspired you could even become part of the development team and meet once a week to work on continual improvements.
     
    Drop by or sign up for one of the co-creation sessions via broadermindcourse@vu.nl or this form. You do not need to have followed the Broader Mind Course to participate.

  • Want to become a student guide for the course?

    We are looking for enthusiastic senior bachelor's and master's students to act as a ‘student guide’ for a group of students during the Broader Mind Course. You will help the students with both on-campus and online activities, give feedback and assess the final assignment. We will make sure you are well-prepared by providing you with training and coaching both prior to and during the Broader Mind Course. So, you will also learn quite a bit!

    As a student guide, you will receive a volunteer's allowance.

    For more information, please sign up with this form or contact us at broadermindcourse@vu.nl.

    Or keep an eye on VU Student Jobs. The recruitment period usually runs from September to November.

    There is also the opportunity to become a guide for the Broader Mind Course as part of the Honours programme and earn credits (12 EC).

    For more information, please have a look at the webpage of the Honours course: Coaching, Teaching & Transformative learning. Improve your teaching and coaching skills.
     

  • Get inspired by these Broader Mind Course videos

    Are you getting curious? Get inspired by these Broader Mind Course videos.

    Develop 'A Broader Mind!' Video message by rector Jeroen Geurts, Rector Magnificus VU

     Success & Failure
    Poverty
     Human Body
     Rebellion
     Viewpoints & Worldview
     Health & Happiness
     Digital World
     Sustainability

    9 reasons to follow the Broader Mind Course

    Studying with A Broader Mind

    Broader Mind Course kick-off 2022 featuring astronaut André Kuipers

    Why ACTA chooses the Broader Mind Course

    VU Amsterdam Future education: the A Broader Mind program

  • Want to stay informed?

    Sign up for the Broader Mind Course newsletter.

    Or join one of the information webinars on:[KS(1] 

    🗓️ Date: Wednesday, December 10, 2025 | Time: 16:00-17:00
    🗓️ Date: Wednesday, January 07, 2026 | Time: 16:00-17:00

    You can join via the Microsoft Teams link:
    💻 Join the meeting now / Meeting ID: 334 068 477 342 2 / Passcode: VL6JT7Zf 

  • Want to know more?

    Contact us at broadermindcourse@vu.nl.

A great opportunity

“You don't often get the opportunity to talk about social issues with people from other disciplines. It was a great opportunity to listen to others, to think about challenging issues and to try to find solutions to them.”

- Diana Lucía Gross, Social Psychology student

Broader Mind Course students share their experiences

At VU Amsterdam, you don't just become something, you become someone. Someone with academic expertise who is also mindful of society. Some of the students of the Broader Mind Course share their experiences.

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A Broader Mind

Do you have questions about the Broader Mind Course?

Please feel free to contact us

Send an email to broadermindcourse@vu.nl

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