Military Strategic Studies master’s degree programme
The Military Strategic Studies (MSS) programme starts each year in September at the Faculty of Military Sciences. This academic master’s degree programme is completed on a part-time basis and all assignments are completed in English. Intake is limited to approximately 45 students a year.
Content of the master’s degree programme
The role of the armed forces in the context of current security policy is considered from a Western perspective and contemporary strategic security issues are analysed. Areas addressed include the role of intelligence and intelligence services in security policy and the relationship between security issues and strategic policy. Ethical and legal questions surrounding the deployment of armed forces are also discussed. Other current topics covered include cyber operations, terrorism and counterterrorism, and how warfare is changing. Economic and logistics challenges that military organisations must overcome in peacetime and wartime are also explored.
Structure of the master’s degree programme
The part-time programme normally takes two years to complete. The first year consists of three ten-week academic terms. Two subjects are covered in each term. The second year has two terms in which three subjects are covered and an individual research plan, the thesis design, is drawn up. The final term is the thesis period. Apart from a compulsory lecture day, the study entails a substantial self-study load of about 20 hours a week. The lectures (2 x 3 hours a week) are given on Fridays in Breda.
Admission requirements
A bachelor’s or master’s degree in a relevant field awarded by an academic university.
Intellectual capacity is on the whole more important than the content of the completed degree programme.
Officers and civilians who are permanently employed by the Netherlands Ministry of Defence must hold at least a bachelor’s degree awarded by an academic university or must have completed the longer Royal Netherlands Military Academy/Royal Netherlands Naval College training programme or Advanced Command and Staff Training. These candidates must also have a few years of work experience.
A bachelor’s degree awarded by a university of applied sciences and completion of the MSS pre-master’s programme, a preparatory programme, as laid down in the Teaching and Examination Regulations (Chapter 3, Article 6 under 4g).
Proof of proficiency in English (language certificate).
You may apply for an exemption from this requirement if you studied at a native English-speaking university.An exemption will also be granted if you completed a programme taught in English at a non-native English-speaking institute.
You must pay the costs associated with obtaining a language certificate yourself. Therefore, only reserve a place for the language certification process once you are certain that you have been admitted to the MSS programme. There is usually enough time to obtain the language certificate.
Please see the Teaching and Examination Regulations for more information on language requirements and exemption options (see below) or request a document that contains practical information regarding the language examinations that you can take to obtain a language certificate. To request that document, please send an email message to master.mssx@mindef.nl. State English language exam in the subject line of your message.
Dutch comprehension (passive proficiency in Dutch).
The language requirements are set out in Article 7(6) of the Teaching and Examination Regulations.
A Certificate of Conduct (Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag, VOG).
If granted, a Certificate of Conduct is only valid for the purpose specified in the application for the certificate. A Certificate of Conduct is therefore not reusable.
If you are admitted to the MSS programme, we will apply for a Certificate of Conduct on your behalf.
Further information regarding the degree programme and the admission requirements is available in the Teaching and Examination Regulations (TER). To request these regulations, please send an email message to master.mssx@mindef.nl. State TER MSS in the subject line of your message.
Disclaimer: appropriate prior education does not guarantee admission to the MSS programme.
Registration
An MSS programme information evening is held every year in spring. During this information evening, we deal in greater depth with the requirements, expectations and experiences regarding the degree programme.
The information evening for the 2025-2026 academic year will be held on Thursday evening, 13 March, at Kromhout Kazerne in Utrecht from 19:00 to 21:00. To register for the information evening, please send an email message to master.mssx@mindef.nl. State Information master MSS 2025 in the subject line of your message.
You can enrol for the 2025-2026 academic year from 1 February 2025 until and including 31 May 2025. Enrolments submitted after the closing date will not be considered.
To enrol in the degree programme, please send an email message to master.mssx@mindef.nl. State Registration master 2025 in the subject line of your message. We will send you enrolment instructions that specify the information and documents that you must send to enrol in the degree programme.
It is not possible to enrol yourself using the Studielink centralised admissions service. The education office will arrange this enrolment for you.
Admission
Because the MSS master’s degree programme is provided by the Netherlands Ministry of Defence, 50% of the students are Netherlands Ministry of Defence employees. The other 50% work or study elsewhere.
The master’s degree programme is intended in the first instance for:
Dutch officers who are employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract.
Netherlands Ministry of Defence civilian employees who are employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract.
The master’s degree programme is also open to:
Officers of allies or partner countries.
Individuals who are serving in the military reserve (reservists and Defensity College students).
Employees of other ministries of the Netherlands or NGOs who are employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract and who work with military organisations by virtue of their professional duties.
Civilian students who have completed a degree programme in a relevant field at an academic university (see under ‘Admission requirements’).
Each year, the selection committee seeks to achieve the broadest possible mix of students on the basis of prior education, study results, reasons for wishing to complete the MSS programme and other qualities.
We receive more applications than there are places available. We cannot increase the number of places available in the first year. Unfortunately, this reduces the chances for all candidates. Inevitably, therefore, we have to disappoint students each year. We cannot offer advice or information on how students can better prepare for this degree programme.
If you are not admitted, you can try again a year later. We can put you on a waiting list for that purpose. This is not done automatically, however, so please let us know if you wish to use this waiting list option. We will put you on the waiting list on 1 September following the admissions clearing process.
If you currently meet the admission requirements, you will still be eligible for admission in a year’s time. Nevertheless, because we do not know in advance how many candidates will apply next year and what backgrounds and qualifications they have, we cannot comment on your chances of being admitted next year or on what you could do to improve your chances of being admitted. The waiting list has no particular order and does not automatically say anything about your chances for the next academic year.
Programme
When enrolling, you must select one of the following specialisations, or tracks:
War Studies;
Intelligence and Security;
Managing and Organising in the Military.
To request the study guide and annual schedule with subjects, please send an email message to master.mssx@mindef.nl. State Study guide MSS in the subject line of your message.
It is not possible to simultaneously pursue more than one track of study. The specific lectures associated with each track are given at the same times and attendance is compulsory. You can, however, take additional courses from another track a year later.
Attending the lectures is compulsory. You are only allowed to participate in the exams if you have attended more than 75% of the lectures.
Lectures are in person and on location only. Added value is achieved through interaction between the lecturer and the students and between the students themselves. Remote studying is currently not possible.
In addition to the courses of your track, you may select one elective. The electives available can differ each academic year. Factors that affect availability include the number of students who select a particular elective. The programme includes appropriate electives for the academic year.
An elective may be from another track. Whether it will be possible to attend that elective depends on the number of places available. Students of the track concerned will be given precedence. Registering takes place in close consultation with the course coordinator.
It is currently not possible to complete a pre-master’s programme (a special preparatory programme if you do not meet the admission requirements) for the MSS programme.
It is possible to take a maximum of four separate courses instead of completing the full MSS programme. Admission is subject to the same prior education requirement that applies in the case of the full degree programme. If you wish to take a particular course, inform us at least one month in advance of the start date of that course.
Whether it will be possible to take that course depends on the number of places available. Precedence is given to regular students. Registering takes place in close consultation with the module coordinator.
Please note that a language certificate is required if you intend to take more than three courses. Because of the associated costs, only reserve a place for the language certification process once you are certain that you have been admitted.
The MSS programme is structured such that deferment due to work or personal circumstances is possible. Deferment of the thesis or any of the courses will affect your graduation date. There may also be financial consequences. If this is the case, you can explore options with the study coordinator. It may mean having to pay for supervision (in the case of a thesis) or for the deferred courses (see also under ‘Costs’).
The MSS programme is structured such that deferment due to work or personal circumstances is possible. Deferment of the thesis or any of the courses will affect your graduation date. There may also be financial consequences. If this is the case, you can explore options with the study coordinator. It may mean having to pay for supervision (in the case of a thesis) or for the deferred courses (see also under ‘Costs’).
Costs
Netherlands Ministry of Defence employees who are employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract and foreign military students do not have to pay tuition fees for the MSS programme.
Other participants, such as civilian students, reservists, Defensity College students, employees of other ministries and employees of NGOs, must pay an institutional fee.
Full MSS programme
€2,601 for the 2025-2026 academic year.
This is the statutory full-time tuition fee.
Separate modules
€100 per credit (EC).
The amount charged for a standard course (5 EC) is therefore €500.
If you take several courses in the same academic year, you will never owe more than the annual tuition fee.
Payment must be made before the course starts.
Full MSS programme
€5,202 for the 2025-2026 academic year.
This is the statutory full-time tuition fee.
Separate modules
€200 per credit (EC).
The amount charged for a standard course (5 EC) is therefore €1,000.
If you take several courses in the same academic year, you will never owe more than the annual tuition fee.
Payment must be made before the course starts.
Suspension of payment of the tuition fee
In the event of illness or for other unforeseeable reasons, you can submit a request for a temporary cessation of payment (a suspension of payment) of the tuition fee. The faculty board may grant this suspension of payment in special circumstances.
Inform the study coordinator of the reason and the postponement period. The study coordinator will then discuss your request with the education board of the MSS programme. The chair of the education board will submit your request to the faculty’s head of operations. The head of operations will draw up a decision and inform the education board. The education board will inform you of the decision.
If you wish, you can pay the tuition fee in three instalments, in which case payments must be made by 1 November, 1 January and 1 March. If you decide to use this option, it will be included in your study contract.
Unfortunately, if you are simultaneously enrolled in another study programme for which you pay tuition fees, you cannot make use of the scheme under which tuition fees are paid only once.
This is because the Faculty of Military Sciences does not fall within the remit of the Netherlands Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. Rather, it is a legal entity for higher education that is funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Defence.
Under Dutch law, students in part-time programmes such as the MSS master’s degree programme do not qualify for student finance because they have the time to do paid work. It is possible, however, to apply for what is known as lifelong learning credit from the Education Executive Agency (DUO). Please contact DUO yourself to determine what is possible (see DUO website).
If you wish to use this lifelong learning credit, ask the coordinator to sign the form that you can use to prove that you are studying at the Netherlands Defence Academy.
Permission required
A Netherlands Ministry of Defence employee who is employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract requires the permission of his or her superior to apply for admission to the MSS programme. The superior must complete an application form (DF56). By granting permission, the superior agrees to the consequences of participation in the MSS programme. This prevents problems arising because of an increased workload or changes of superiors.
A superior can also grant permission by means of a personal training plan. Doing so is not required for the Netherlands Defence Academy, however.
If your element of the Netherlands Defence organisation requires a personal training plan (POP) for administrative recording in PeopleSoft, use the following course code for the MSS master’s degree programme: 047085.
Study books
The exact costs of study books cannot be determined in advance. In general, a total of €1,000 (€500 per academic year) is enough.
A Netherlands Ministry of Defence employee who is employed on the basis of a permanent employment contract can include these costs (€500 per academic year) in his or her individual training plan (IOP).
Work experience placement
It is possible to complete a work experience placement at the Netherlands Defence Academy/Faculty of Military Sciences. Such placements are rare, however. A clearly formulated work experience goal is in any case required. In addition, a professor who is involved in the MSS master’s degree programme must be available to supervise.
To view the work experience placements that are available at the Netherlands Defence organisation, please visit Werkenbijdefensie.nl (in Dutch).
