A pre-master’s programme is a bridging programme for students who lack the academic background required for their chosen master’s degree. It aims to “address deficiencies”, according to the formal definition. The pre-master’s in Dutch Law mainly attracts graduates from universities of applied sciences who studied law at higher professional education (HBO) level but want to go on to become lawyers, public prosecutors or judges. This requires them to complete a pre-master’s programme. At UM, pre-master’s students must complete the programme within one year.
It’s a source of struggle for many, as revealed by the experiences of four students interviewed separately by Observant. Three were enrolled in the programme last year (of which one graduated); one is currently halfway through. Several other current students have also shared their thoughts through WhatsApp. One student says the programme “feels like a knockout competition”. “Pre-master’s students are some of the most driven students”, says another. “We already have our HBO diplomas and we’re determined to obtain our master’s degrees, but they make it very difficult for us.” All interviewees wish to remain anonymous for fear of career repercussions. Their names are known to Observant.
Second-class
“Pre-master’s students feel like second-class students”, stated a policy document sent to the Faculty Council a few months ago. They pay regular tuition fees, but as the programme isn’t funded separately by the Ministry of Education, the faculty has to make up the difference. The document noted that this has led to large tutorial groups, typically of around thirty students. This, in turn, has a negative impact on Problem-Based Learning; it’s impossible to discuss everything in detail in such large groups, say the interviewees.
Moreover, the pre-master’s doesn’t have its own curriculum. Instead, the programme is “based on the available [second- and third-year courses] in the bachelor’s programme”, as stated in the policy document, “without necessarily taking into account the overall curricular structure”. For the interviewees, this reinforces the sense of being seen as second-class students. Sjoerd Claessens, vice-dean of education, understands how they feel, but explains that the faculty is bound by the law in structuring the programme. “It’s not our choice.”
Mirror
In September 2023, a sizeable group of 71 students started the Dutch-language pre-master’s programme (28 have since dropped out); the previous cohort consisted of 46 students (of which 18 graduated). UM’s admission requirements for the programme are relatively lenient, say Claessens and Joost Sillen, programme director of Dutch Law. Erasmus University Rotterdam requires HBO law graduates not only to have graduated with an average of at least 7 out of 10, but also to pass an entrance exam. “UM gives all HBO law graduates a chance, regardless of their average grade, but it’s a fighting chance to prove themselves”, says Claessens. At the end of the pre-master’s programme, students must demonstrate that they possess the same knowledge and skills as graduates of the university bachelor’s programme in Dutch Law. “And that’s clearly not within everyone’s reach. It may sound rather harsh, but it might turn out that they’ve overestimated their own abilities. The programme holds up a mirror to students in that sense.” “It’s not unreasonable for us to expect the same from HBO law graduates as from graduates of our bachelor’s programme”, adds Sillen.
However, they acknowledge that pre-master’s students are struggling. “We’re reviewing the programme and considering various options.” One drastic option would be to stop offering the programme at UM and instead outsource it to the Open University, as the University of Amsterdam, VU Amsterdam and Utrecht University already do. But that plan “is not currently on the table”. It’s more likely that UM will keep the programme in-house after making some changes to it. But this won’t be an easy task, Sillen and Claessens explain. Unlike a pre-master’s programme in, say, economics, the pre-master’s programme in Law is a schakelprogramma civiel effect: a bridging year that, upon completion followed by the right master’s degree, allows students to obtain civil qualification. This qualification is required to practise law in the Netherlands and comes with national requirements of the content of the programme. If students obtain 50 rather than the required 60 ECTS credits, they will still qualify for a master’s degree, but they will not be able to obtain civil qualification. So, there’s a lot at stake.
Nervous breakdowns
All interviewees agree the programme is gruelling. They’ve either found themselves on the brink of burnout or witnessed fellow students suffer nervous breakdowns, depressive episodes and panic attacks. Students with side jobs felt themselves forced to cut back on their working hours or quit altogether. A current student says, “I did well at HBO level. I knew UM would be harder, but I thought, ‘I can do this’. I keep up with readings and assignments – that’s not the issue. I’ve passed all exams so far, so it’s not like I can’t handle it.” But the pressure to perform is too intense and stressful, she says.
One interviewee completed the programme and is now pursuing a master’s degree. “It couldn’t be more different! Sometimes it actually feels too slow. In the pre-master’s, there were times when we were expected to spend about twenty hours per day on our studies.” She gives the example of an assignment worth 3 ECTS credits (equivalent to 84 hours of study), published a week before the deadline. Add to that tutorials and independent study and you’re looking at nearly one hundred hours of study in one week, she points out.
Final thesis
On top of that, the student says, it was a “chaotic” year, with poor planning (deadlines set too close together), unexpected group projects and material that wasn’t discussed in class or of which it was unclear whether it would be on the exam. Due to an overhaul of the bachelor’s programme in Dutch Law, the 2022-2023 cohort of pre-master’s students was unfortunate enough to find itself in a brand-new third-year curriculum, which wasn’t without its teething troubles.
But the interviewees also have more specific grievances, highlighting that they are not treated the same as students in the bachelor’s programme. For example, the latter receive 18 ECTS credits for their final thesis of up to 10,000 words (including a course for mastering research methods), while pre-master’s students receive 6 ECTS credits for a thesis of up to 8,500 words. “And while they get to work on their theses after completing their courses, we have to do everything at the same time.” Programme director Sillen acknowledges that this is a “significant” difference and promises to look into it.
Another issue is the number of resits. There are two testing opportunities for each exam – the regular exam and the resit. That’s it for pre-master’s students. The bachelor’s programme, however, allows students to resit exams in later years. This is unfair, say the interviewees. It’s inherent to the system, counters Claessens. But Tilburg University allows its pre-master’s students to take up to two years to complete the programme – why can’t UM do the same, the interviewees wonder? “The law states that one year is a reasonable period to address deficiencies”, says Claessens.
Prior knowledge
There’s a significant gap between HBO and university – that much is clear. Lack of prior academic knowledge is a real challenge for students. HBO trains practice-oriented lawyers who mostly deal with social security law, employment law and family law. There is less focus on criminal law, for example. The same goes for property law, notes a student currently taking the course. Pre-master’s students had to take an online exam testing their prior knowledge of the subject, “but at HBO level, we never covered property law as extensively as university bachelor’s students did in their first or second year. The exam was way too difficult for us, but it still counts towards our grades, which feels unfair.”
Zuyd
“The problem stems from a misconception about what a pre-master’s programme is”, responds Claessens. “It’s not a remedial programme designed to provide additional support. If you lack the necessary foundation, that’s your responsibility. It requires independence and self-sufficiency.” They are in talks with the Law faculty of Zuyd University of Applied Sciences, a major source of pre-master’s students for UM; Claessens believes that universities of applied sciences should do more to give students the necessary foundation. Is there anything UM could do? Tilburg University cautions pre-master’s students on its website that HBO law graduates tend to find the pace of study faster. “That’s why it’s crucial to keep up from the start.”