Master’s in Communication, Health and Life Sciences

In the MSc in Communication, Health and Life Sciences you learn to understand complex social problems around health, food and the living environment from multiple perspectives, and to translate them for different audiences, building bridges between science, policy and society.

The programme comprises 120 ECTS over two years and starts in September. The first year consists of coursework (60 ECTS); in the second year you complete your thesis (36 ECTS) and internship (24 ECTS). The academic year has six periods: in periods 1, 2, 5 and 6 you typically follow two courses side by side, while periods 3 and 4 are four intensive weeks with one full-time course.

Unlike most comparable master’s programmes in the Netherlands, this is a two-year programme. That gives you room for a full 36-credit thesis, a 16-week internship, and the Academic Consultancy Training or Research Master Cluster.

For all course descriptions, learning outcomes and scheduling, check out the Study Handbook.

All students follow two programme courses and one of two Academic Master Clusters; the remaining courses depend on your specialisation, which you can read more about under the 'Specialisations' section. Every course code below can be looked up in the Study Handbook.

Programme courses for all students (12 ECTS)

• Science Communication: Dialogue and Transdisciplinarity (CPT38006) – 6 ECTS
  Why have science and technology become contested, and how can science build trust by working with society instead of only sending messages to it? The opening course of the programme explores dialogue, ethics and transdisciplinary co-creation around issues such as health, nutrition and sustainability.
• Research Methods and Data Analysis in Communication and Health (YRM30806) – 6 ECTS
  How do you design sound interdisciplinary research and choose the right analysis for your question? You work with real data in R and Atlas.ti, from argumentation and metaphor analysis to regression and factor analysis, and learn to build a transparent, replicable data-analysis plan.

Academic Master Cluster (12 ECTS) — choose one of two

• Academic Consultancy Training + Modular Skills Training (YMC60809 + YMC60300) – 9 + 3 ECTS
  In a team of five to seven students from different programmes, you carry out a real consultancy project for an external commissioner, such as a government agency, company or civil-society organisation, supported by a process coach and an academic advisor. Alongside it you select Modular Skills modules, for example scientific writing, negotiation skills or career exploration.
• Research Master Cluster: Proposal Writing (YWU60312) – 12 ECTS
  Develop a realistic scientific idea into a high-quality research proposal and defend it before a jury of experts and peers. A good choice if you are considering a research career or PhD.

Compulsory specialisation courses (12 ECTS)

• Current Issues in Communication and Society (CPT33806) – 6 ECTS
  Guest researchers take you through the front line of communication science, from strategic digital communication and patient–provider interaction to institutional trust and knowledge resistance, across Wageningen’s domains of food, health, nature and climate.
• Re-Imagining Innovation (CPT22806) – 6 ECTS
  What if we built not only better technologies but better societies? You explore decolonial, degrowth and grassroots approaches to innovation and gain hands-on experience with a future-oriented focus-group methodology.
• Restricted optional courses — choose two (12 ECTS)
  • Facilitating Interactive Processes (CPT60306) – 6 ECTS
    Hands-on facilitation of multi-stakeholder processes, from active listening and dialogue to negotiation and applied drama, applied to a commissioned case.
  • Communication, Culture and Change (CPT35806) – 6 ECTS
    Communication across cultural, professional and disciplinary borders, and the intended and unintended changes it brings.
  • Communication in Everyday Life (CPT33306) – 6 ECTS
    How people navigate today’s high-choice information environment — attention, algorithms and news avoidance — is investigated in your own small research project.
  • The Politics of Communication and Change (CPT32806) – 6 ECTS
    How communication and change advantage some groups and ideas over others, from populism and mobilisation to political participation.
• Life science courses (12 ECTS)
  You follow two life-science courses within one domain of your choice, for example Nutrition and Health, Climate Change or Food Technology, so you can bridge communication science and the world of the life sciences. Students with a life-science background may replace these with extra restricted optional courses, in consultation with the study adviser.
  

Thesis – 36 ECTS (around 25 weeks)

Your thesis is an independent piece of scientific research on a question in communication, health or the living environment, usually embedded in an ongoing research project of one of the programme’s chair groups. Students in Health and the Living Environment can write their thesis with Strategic Communication (COM), Knowledge, Technology and Innovation (KTI), Health and Society (HSO), Rural Sociology (RSO) or Consumption and Healthy Lifestyles (CHL); students in Communication, Science and Society write theirs with COM or KTI.

Examples of recent thesis topics:

• Green participation as a strategy to tackle health inequalities
• The role of stigma in the decision-making process of obese adults to undergo weight-loss surgery
• Organising tiger mosquito-related disease prevention in the Netherlands
• Screen use and physical activity in association with sleeping behaviour in children aged 4–12
• Discourse changes in the climate blogosphere between COP15 and COP21
• Comparing mission-orientated innovation platforms in the agri-food industry: the Netherlands and China

Internship – 24 ECTS (around 16 weeks)

During your internship you work at academic level within an organisation outside the university, in the Netherlands or abroad, and complete a scientific report. Recent internship hosts include the European Public Health Association, VeiligheidNL, Nictiz, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Philips, ARCADIS and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Rwanda.

Before you start the MSc Communication, Health and Life Sciences, you choose the specialisation that best matches your interests; the study adviser is happy to help you make the right choice.

Please note: as of the academic year 2026–2027 the specialisations carry new names, so older materials may still refer to "Health and Society" and "Communication and Innovation". For detailed course, thesis and internship information, check the Study Handbook.

Specialisation Health and the Living Environment (previously Health and Society)

To deepen our understanding of the major challenges facing human and planetary health, this specialisation focuses on the environments in which people live and work: improving social conditions, promoting healthy practices and preventing infectious and chronic disease. You analyse the social determinants of health and wellbeing, from individual and social practices to governance, the organisation of healthcare and environmental justice, and the constant interplay between media, politics and the public, working towards a just and equitable society.

Compulsory specialisation courses (12 ECTS)

• Social Inequalities in Health (HSO31806) – 6 ECTS
  Health inequalities keep widening worldwide. Why, and what actually works against them? You study the pathways behind the health gap through cases such as basic income and sports interventions and translate your analysis into a factsheet and a policy brief.
• Comparative Health Problems and Policies (CHL32306) – 6 ECTS
  A critical, sociological look at how public-health issues, from mental health to food security, are constructed and addressed as social problems, and how to take and defend a well-reasoned position of your own.
• Restricted optional courses — choose two (12 ECTS)
  • Settings for Health Promotion (HSO40306) – 6 ECTS
    Analyse health where everyday life happens — families, schools, workplaces, communities — and design solutions in a real-life case study for an external client.
  • Food, Health and Society: an Integrated Socio-Political Perspective (RSO33306) – 6 ECTS
    What would a just and sustainable food system look like at the level of a city? Explore cities as foodscapes from a socio-political justice perspective.
  • The Politics of Communication and Change (CPT32806) – 6 ECTS
    How communication and change advantage some groups and ideas over others, from populism and mobilisation to political participation.
• Life science course and free choice (6 + 6 ECTS)
  You take one life-science course in a domain of your choice; recent examples include Environmental Psychology, General Medicine and People and Forest & Nature Conservation. You also have one free elective from any relevant master’s course at WUR or elsewhere, such as Risk Communication, Public Health Practice or Introduction to Global One Health. You make both choices together with your study adviser.

Specialisation Communication, Science and Society (previously Communication and Innovation)

This specialisation examines how science and society interact in addressing complex societal challenges, and why science-based solutions become accepted or contested. You study how problems are defined and framed by citizens, scientists, media and policymakers, what shapes public trust and engagement in science, and how dialogue and co-creation can make the contribution of science to societal problem-solving more integrated, democratic and responsible.

Compulsory specialisation courses (12 ECTS)

• Current Issues in Communication and Society (CPT33806) – 6 ECTS
  Guest researchers take you through the front line of communication science, from strategic digital communication and patient–provider interaction to institutional trust and knowledge resistance, across Wageningen’s domains of food, health, nature and climate.
• Re-Imagining Innovation (CPT22806) – 6 ECTS
  What if we built not only better technologies but better societies? You explore decolonial, degrowth and grassroots approaches to innovation and gain hands-on experience with a future-oriented focus-group methodology.
• Restricted optional courses — choose two (12 ECTS)
  • Facilitating Interactive Processes (CPT60306) – 6 ECTS
    Hands-on facilitation of multi-stakeholder processes, from active listening and dialogue to negotiation and applied drama, applied to a commissioned case.
  • Communication, Culture and Change (CPT35806) – 6 ECTS
    Communication across cultural, professional and disciplinary borders, and the intended and unintended changes it brings.
  • Communication in Everyday Life (CPT33306) – 6 ECTS
    How people navigate today’s high-choice information environment — attention, algorithms and news avoidance — is investigated in your own small research project.
  • The Politics of Communication and Change (CPT32806) – 6 ECTS
    How communication and change advantage some groups and ideas over others, from populism and mobilisation to political participation.
• Life science courses (12 ECTS)
  You follow two life-science courses within one domain of your choice, for example Nutrition and Health, Climate Change or Food Technology, so you can bridge communication science and the world of the life sciences. Students with a life-science background may replace these with extra restricted optional courses, in consultation with the study adviser.
  

The teaching staff at Wageningen University are closely connected to research groups, playing a key role in creating scientific content and upholding the academic quality of the programme. Courses are delivered through a mix of learning methods, including lectures, tutorials with group assignments, practical exercises, problem-based group work using real-life cases, and excursions.

You will receive tailored support from a study adviser who helps you shape your study plan and navigate important decisions throughout your degree. From developing academic skills to writing your thesis, you’ll benefit from individual supervision and mentoring at every stage. The university fosters a positive and collaborative learning atmosphere that encourages both academic progress and personal development. 

There are several study programmes which are similar to this master's but have a slightly different focus. In contrast to the majority of other comparable masters in the Netherlands, the Master's in Communication, Health and Life Sciences is a two-year programme instead of a one-year programme, including an internship, thesis and Research Master Cluster or Academic Consultancy Training.

Compare the programme in Wageningen

• Master's in Consumer Studies
  The Master’s in Consumer Studies focuses on understanding consumer behaviour, from lifestyles and decision-making to sustainability, food and health.
• Master's in Development and Rural Innovation
  The master's in Development and Rural Innovation is a social science programme for students with a technical or life science background and with an interest in international development problems and social dimensions of technical change.
• Master's in International Development Studies
  The master's in International Development Studies is a programme for students with a social science or economic background and deals with worldwide processes of development and change related to livelihoods, agrofood networks and the environment.
• Master's in Nutrition and Health
  The master's in Nutrition and Health gives training on all aspects of the relation between Nutrition and Health, including the biomedical aspects of metabolism, epidemiology, molecular nutrition, both in developed and developing country settings.

Check more information on Studiekeuze123.nl about how you could compare this programme further. 

Communication, Health and Life Sciences graduates work in very diverse positions in the Netherlands and abroad: at ministries, municipalities and public-health services, at universities and knowledge institutes, at NGOs, hospitals and healthcare organisations, and at communication and health consultancies. What they share is that they are specialists in building bridges between stakeholders, such as governments and citizens, or experts and lay audiences.

Examples of jobs include:

• Health policy advisor
• Health promoter
• Manager of a health-orientated organisation
• Policymaker
• Communication advisor or communication manager
• Process facilitator
• Project manager
• Researcher

Recent graduates work, for example, as advisor at Vilans (the national knowledge organisation for care and support), as safety and health advisor at Antea Group, and as trainee healthcare procurement at health insurer Zilveren Kruis.

If you need help in your orientation towards your future career Student Career Services facilitates students towards the labour market.

Interested in the master's programme Communication, Health and Life Sciences? Find out whether your knowledge and skills match the entry level of the programme.

The admission requirements for the master's programme Communication, Health and Life Sciences are defined in such a way that the students should be able to successfully complete the program nominally in two years. In order to comply, the student needs to have sufficient knowledge on social sciences with a focus on either communication sciences, sociology or (social) psychology. Additionally, a solid basis in social-scientific research methodology is required. This is to ensure that the student is able to follow the advanced studies in the master's programme.

The criterion used for admission is

a WUR BSc degree in Communication and Life Sciences, Health and Society, International Development Studies, or equivalent.

The norm for this equivalence is

For both specialisations, Communication, Science and Society and Health and the Living Environment: ≥60 ECTS in social sciences at an academic level, of which:

• ≥50 ECTS in communication science, sociology and/or social psychology
• ≥10 ECTS in advanced social-scientific research methodology, including basics in statistics

Not all topics mentioned need to be mastered at the same level; they will be weighed by the Admission Board per individual application. Statistics and methodology courses are necessary prerequisites, and internship and thesis courses are not counted as disciplinary courses. For the specialisation Communication, Science and Society, basic knowledge of a domain within the life sciences is an asset.

Method of assessment whether this norm is met

• Transcript of records displaying the content of previous course subjects and project work;
• Curriculum vitae displaying relevant work, internship and/or project experience on an academic level in a relevant field if applicable.

Scores attributed by the Admission Board

Admitted / not admitted / admitted under condition of obtaining the BSc or MSc degree / not admitted with offer of pre-master's. 

Study programmes with knowledge gaps

In general, students from University of Applied Sciences (NL: hbo) are required to follow additional courses within their current programme or in a pre-master's to fulfil the knowledge requirements.

Ready to start your application process? Find everything you need to know about Application & Admission before applying for a master's.

The Admission Board may allow and/or suggest compensation of knowledge gaps by:

• a GPA≥7.0* for the previous education for small discrepancies, as new knowledge is sufficiently easily acquired;
• a GPA≥7.0* and an individual pre-master's programme for larger discrepancies that can be compensated in ≤30 ECTS and one year of study.

*Check the Application & Admission page for master's for the International credentials evaluation guide for international equivalencies to a Dutch GPA>7.0. This guide includes compensating factors for a slightly lower GPA the Admission Board may include in their judgement.

A pre-master’s programme comprises 21–30 ECTS. You can be registered as a pre-master student for a maximum of twelve months, and you cannot take MSc courses during the pre-master’s. Most pre-master students start the master’s in period 3, immediately after completing the pre-master’s; the total duration of pre-master’s plus master’s is then around two years and four months.

Contact us through the contact button above to discuss the possibilities of a pre-master's or how to mitigate knowledge gaps if you are still in the process of obtaining your degree.

Studying in the Netherlands costs money. Curious to see what you should expect? All information about the costs of this programme can be found on Tuition fees and study finances.

Financial information for Dutch students: this is a two-year programme, registered with DUO as a one-year programme. Wageningen University & Research compensates one year of basic grant and/or supplementary grant for students from MCH, MDR, MID, and MME who, had they enrolled in a different two-year master's programme, would have been eligible for a fifth year of basic grant and/or supplementary grant from DUO. For more information, see Student Support Fund Wageningen University (download) and DUO (Dutch).

Note for Dutch students: this two-year social science programme is registered with DUO as a one-year programme, like most social science master’s in the Netherlands. This can affect your rights to a public transport product and additional grants; check your personal situation with DUO.

Your time in Wageningen goes beyond the classroom. Live independently yet with potential new friends, discover fun clubs, and dive into a social life full of memorable events and new experiences. Additionally, there are parks, forests, and a river nearby, so if you enjoy the outdoors, you're in the right area. Explore more about Student life in Wageningen.

As a Master’s in Communication, Health and Life Sciences student you can also join study association Apollo, which organises excursions, symposia, business days and plenty of social activities.