amsterdam university phd psychology

Psychological service for PhDs

During the first interview, an assessment is made of the nature, severity and background of the problems you encounter, and the type of support that is of most benefit to you. This can be a number of individual meetings with one of our psychologists. Another option is participation in a training, either a training that is open to PhDs and students or a training that is specifically designed for PhDs.

The conclusion of the first meeting might be that we are not able to offer you the counselling that you need. In that case, we can support you in finding the right professional. Sometimes this will result in a referral to Mental Health Care. To make sure your Health Insurance covers the costs, you need an official referral from a GP.

We mainly use evidence- based methods and techniques stemming from the Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy.

The meetings are confidential, unless you indicate in writing that it is important to you that information about you or your case is shared with a specific professional or institution.*

Please notice: when you need  psychological help immediately  or in case of crisis contact your GP or the UvA- studentenartsen (020 5252878).

• for an individual meeting: please fill in the form on this page
• for an overview of our workshops / training
• for questions please email: [email protected]

* We might break this code when we suspect there is a profound suspicion that you will hurt yourself or someone else.

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PhD Programme Social Sciences

Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research / AISSR

• PhD Application
• PhD Training & Support
• Overview dissertations

Project & activities

During your PhD appointment, which typically lasts three to four years, your primary focus will be conducting research for your doctoral dissertation. However, we also encourage you to engage in other activities such as taking courses offered by the PhD Training Programme, teaching undergraduate courses in the Departments of Social Sciences, and actively participating in the research community, both within AISSR and at national and international levels.

Close-knit community

As a PhD student at AISSR, you will be part of a vibrant community that values your growth and development. We offer coaching, training, and a strong PhD Community to support you throughout your doctoral journey. We encourage our students to publish their research early in their careers, enhancing their academic profiles and fostering their future career prospects.

Programme Groups

You will be assigned to an AISSR programme group where you will conduct your research and be immersed in a supportive and collaborative environment. We are excited about newly interest in pursuing a PhD at the University of Amsterdam and look forward to welcoming postgraduate students to our dynamic academic community at AISSR.

Communication with others, categorizing and identifying people and objects, establishing symbolic and moral boundaries, is strongly influenced by culture. Moreover, culture is the way we try to understand and interact with the world around us. At Cultural Sociology, the way social meanings and expressions associate culture will be questioned. How do people create status differences and maintain boundaries between groups? How are international beauty standards (re)produced?

The Institutions, Inequalities, and Life courses programme (IIL) examines institutions in a broad way as the formal and informal rules and arrangements in society that govern individual behavior and social relationships. Examples of institutions are welfare states, labor market arrangements, educational systems, occupational groups, norms and rules in organizations, and gender role norms.

The programme group Political Sociology researches evolving relations of conflict and cohesion in various national and international settings. Our research on citizenship, politics, policies, social movements and the state extends beyond actor-centred approaches through relational analyses and a keen eye for power differentials.

Governance and Inclusive Development (GID) scrutinizes development dynamics at various geographical, jurisdictional and temporal scales, realizing that these are situated in different but interconnected multi-level processes. GID analyses and rethinks dominant development paradigms, and engages with international, national and local development practices, policies and debates to identify viable and socially just alternatives.

The Political and Economic Geographies (PEG) group investigates the role of multi-scalar relationships that are crucial in understanding contemporary economic and political geographies.

The researchers within Urban Geographies study the socio-spatial processes that shape cities and urban life across the world. Our research concentrates on the formation of urban difference and inequality. It seeks to understand how specific spaces, places and mobilities reflect, reproduce and transform social differentiation in terms of class, ethnicity, generation, gender and sexuality. In addition, it studies how resources, risks and political voice are distributed unevenly across urban spaces and populations, analyzing geographies of inequality within and between city regions.

Urban Planning research and teaching at the University of Amsterdam focuses on the relationships between the social, spatial, and environmental dimensions of urban processes, and on ways of purposefully and positively impacting on them.

The research program Challenges to Democracy studies the consequences of current political developments and their historical roots for democratic governance. How do democratic regimes maintain political stability? To what extent can they deliver political equality, legitimacy and prevent societal polarization?

Ongoing trends towards transnational integration of markets and economic transactions are giving rise to far-­reaching transformations of governance both within and beyond the nation-state. The Political Economy and Transnational Governance (PETGOV) programme group focuses on the drivers, dynamics, and consequences of these epochal developments in political and economic life.

In recent decades, there has been a growing divergence between the organisation of society and the inherited conceptual framework of the 20th century political sciences. The Transnational Configurations, Conflict and Governance group seeks to re-examine established notions of identities, categorizations and boundaries defined by classical political science concepts through different forms of empirical investigation.

We investigate the manifold ways gender, race, class, citizenship, religion, and sexuality are made and unmade in everyday life, including the ways in which differences and similarities among people, communities, and other living things are created, contested, celebrated or distrusted. We are interested in the everyday experiences of belonging and exclusion and how they shape individuals, institutions, and environments in lasting ways. Our research delves into the political dimensions and the impact these have on people's aspirations and pursuits. We investigate the aesthetics of these world making projects, their pasts, presents and futures.

The Health, Care, and Body programme group aims to analyse evolving health experiences, sexual identities, body practices, and social/cultural influences on scientific knowledge utilization in clinical settings. It also examines care and self-help practices, the exercise of biomedical power, and patterns of resistance or acceptance of medical regimes, scientific knowledge, and technology.

The social consequences of the mobility of people, goods, power, and ideas constitute the central focus of the Moving Matters research programme. Members of the research group explore migrating people and moving commodities, as well as the shifting networks that result from such practices. These networks stretch from the local to the transnational and necessarily involve encounters with the state through deportation regimes, access to resources and technologies, border infrastructures, decolonial and postcolonial movements, labour relations, and violence and conflict.

More information can be found on the AISSR wiki. This an informative platform for all (and only) AISSR researchers with internal information like guidelines, policy documents, templates and more.

If you have any questions or require further information, please don't hesitate to reach out to our PhD Coordinator, Mr. Simon Cijsouw.

AISSR PhD Coordinator

[email protected]

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Best Global Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology in the Netherlands

These are the top universities in the Netherlands for psychiatry/psychology, based on their reputation and research in the field. Read the methodology »

To unlock more data and access tools to help you get into your dream school, sign up for the  U.S. News College Compass !

Here are the best global universities for psychiatry/psychology in the Netherlands

University of amsterdam, vrije universiteit amsterdam, utrecht university, university of groningen, maastricht university, leiden university, erasmus university rotterdam, tilburg university, radboud university nijmegen, university of twente.

See the full rankings

• Clear Filters
• # 10 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 39 in Best Global Universities  (tie)

The University of Amsterdam is a public institution that traces its roots back to 1632. The university is spread across... Read More

• # 17 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 82 in Best Global Universities

VU University Amsterdam is a public institution that was founded in 1880. The Dutch university is located in the Zuidas... Read More

• # 23 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 44 in Best Global Universities

Utrecht University is a public institution that was founded in 1636. It is located in the city of Utrecht in the... Read More

• # 36 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 88 in Best Global Universities

The University of Groningen is a public institution that was founded in 1614, making it one of the oldest universities... Read More

• # 48 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology  (tie)
• # 186 in Best Global Universities  (tie)
• # 65 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology  (tie)
• # 74 in Best Global Universities  (tie)

Leiden University is a public institution that was founded in 1575, making it the oldest university in the Netherlands... Read More

• # 74 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 65 in Best Global Universities  (tie)

Erasmus University Rotterdam is a public institution that traces its roots back to 1913. However, the university did not... Read More

• # 80 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology  (tie)
• # 531 in Best Global Universities  (tie)
• # 92 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology
• # 106 in Best Global Universities
• # 368 in Best Universities for Psychiatry/Psychology  (tie)
• # 400 in Best Global Universities  (tie)

Obtaining a PhD

The faculty does not offer PhD-courses on a regular basis, but employs PhD students on individual basis. They write a PhD dissertation under tutorship of a professor in the applicable subject. In addition, a supervisor is involved who provides substantive or process management - depending on the needs of the individual candidate.  

The recruitment of PhD students is done by actively approaching students and through advertisement on the VU Amsterdam website.

Graduate School Most PhD programs are embedded in our Graduate School, one of the National Research Schools or Interdisciplinary Research Institutes. The Graduate School is responsible for offering tailor made education to the specific elements of a PhD program, adapted to the needs of each student. External PhD candidates If your research proposal is of outstanding quality and will contribute to the research profile of our faculty, it’s possible to write a thesis at your own expense under tutorship of a faculty professor. As an external PhD candidate you are not officially a VU employee or student. The process of earning a PhD degree takes four years and consists of conducting research and writing a dissertation independently. External PhD candidates who are interested can mail their CV and research proposal to the relevant section of one of the departments . PhD candidates from abroad A PhD candidate from abroad with a research grant (from the country of origin or obtained through NUFFIC) can follow a PhD trajectory under tutorship of a faculty professor who agrees to the guidance of the candidate. CV and research proposal may be mailed to the appropriate section of one of our departments . 

• FGB Graduate School
• National Research Schools
• Interdisciplinary Research Institutes
• Vacancies at VU Amsterdam 
• PhD programme VU Amsterdam

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• Find out more about the Amsterdam University Medical Centres

Medical Psychology (AMC)

• 05 Neurology and Psychiatry

Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

Dive into details.

Select a country/territory to view shared publications and projects

Sofiya Abedali

• APH - Quality of Care (AMC) - Research Associate
• APH - Methodology (AMC) - Research Associate
• Medical Psychology (AMC) - Other Academic Staff
• Doctoral School - Standard PhD Candidate

Person: Academic

Laurien Aben

• Medical Psychology (AMC) - Medical Specialist
• Adult Psychiatry (AMC) - Medical Specialist

Leonie Baatenburg de Jong

• 1 Not started

Projects per year

MESA: SIG ‘Medical Education Scientists Amsterdam’

Khawar, A. , Mak-van der Vossen, M. , Abedali, S. , Wouters, A., de la Croix, A., Ramaekers, S., Rietmeijer, C. B. T. & Rollman, A.

4/04/2023 → …

Project : Other

The paradox of choice: reducing the burden of shared decision making for cancer patients

Hillen, M. , Henselmans, I. & Huijgens, F.

1/06/2022 → …

Project : Research

Measuring better and knowing more about sexual functioning in people with haemophilia

van Gastel, T. , Teela, L. , Peters, M., Fijnvandraat, K. , Haverman, L. , Degenaar, M. E. L., Lehmann, V. , Mauser-Bunschoten, E. P., Gouw, S. & Coppens, M.

16/05/2022 → …

Research output

• 1398 Article
• 109 Review article
• 75 Comment/Letter to the editor
• 27 Editorial
• 14 Phd-Thesis - Research and graduation internal
• 11 Erratum/Corrigendum
• 9 Conference contribution
• 3 Special issue (Editorship)
• 2 Book editing
• 1 Meeting Abstract
• 1 Phd-Thesis - Research external and graduation internal
• 1 Phd-Thesis - Research internal and graduation external
• 1 Phd-Thesis - Research and graduation external

Research output per year

A Biopsychosocial Approach to Persistent Post-COVID-19 Fatigue and Cognitive Complaints: Results of the Prospective Multicenter NeNeSCo Study

Research output : Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Anxiety, depression, and body image among infertile women with and without polycystic ovary syndrome

Bidirectional interplay between deep brain stimulation and cognition in parkinson's disease: a systematic review, supplementary material for: efficacy and moderators of internet-based interventions in adults with subthreshold depression: an individual participant data meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Reins, J. A. (Creator), Buntrock, C. (Creator), Zimmermann, J. (Creator), Grund, S. (Creator), Harrer, M. (Creator), Lehr, D. (Creator), Baumeister, H. (Creator), Weisel, K. (Creator), Domhardt, M. (Creator), Imamura, K. (Creator), Kawakami, N. (Creator), Spek, V. (Creator), Nobis, S. (Creator), Snoek, F. (Creator), Cuijpers, P. (Creator), Klein, J. P. (Creator), Moritz, S. (Creator), Ebert, D. D. (Creator), Zimmermann, J. (Creator) & Ebert, D. D. (Creator), Karger Publishers, 2020

DOI : 10.6084/m9.figshare.12489749.v1 , https://karger.figshare.com/articles/Supplementary_Material_for_Efficacy_and_Moderators_of_Internet-Based_Interventions_in_Adults_with_Subthreshold_Depression_An_Individual_Participant_Data_Meta-Analysis_of_Randomized_Controlled_Trials/12489749/1

Supplementary Material for: The Prospective Studies of Atherosclerosis (Proof-ATHERO) Consortium: Design and Rationale

Tschiderer, L. (Creator), Seekircher, L. (Creator), Klingenschmid, G. (Creator), Izzo, R. (Creator), Baldassarre, D. (Creator), Iglseder, B. (Creator), Calabresi, L. (Creator), Liu, J. (Creator), Price, J. F. (Creator), Bae, J. (Creator), Brouwers, F. P. (Creator), Schmidt, C. (Creator), Bergström, G. (Creator), Aşçi, G. (Creator), Gresele, P. (Creator), Okazaki, S. (Creator), Kapellas, K. (Creator), Landecho, M. F. (Creator), Sattar, N. (Creator), Agewall, S. (Creator), Zou, Z. (Creator), Byrne, C. D. (Creator), Nanayakkara, P. W. B. (Contributor), Papagianni, A. (Creator), Witham, M. D. (Creator), Bernal, E. (Creator), Ekart, R. (Creator), Neves, M. F. (Creator), Sato, E. (Creator), Ezhov, M. (Creator), Walters, M. (Creator), Olsen, M. H. (Creator), Stolić, R. (Creator), Zozulińska-Ziółkiewicz, D. A. (Creator), Hanefeld, M. (Creator), Staub, D. (Creator), Nagai, M. (Creator), Nieuwkerk, P. (Creator), Huisman, M. V. (Creator), Kato, A. (Creator), Honda, H. (Creator), Parraga, G. (Creator), Magliano, D. (Creator), Gabriel, R. (Creator), Rundek, T. (Creator), Espeland, M. A. (Creator), Kiechl, S. (Creator), Willeit, J. (Creator), Lind, L. (Creator), Empana, J. P. (Creator), Lonn, E. (Creator), Tuomainen, T. (Creator), Catapano, A. (Creator), Chien, K. (Creator), Sander, D. (Creator), Kavousi, M. (Creator), Beulens, J. W. J. (Contributor), Bots, M. L. (Creator), Sweeting, M. J. (Creator), Lorenz, M. W. (Creator), Willeit, P. (Creator), DeGroot, E. (Creator), Bergström, G. (Creator), Sattar, N. (Creator) & Kiechl, S. (Creator), Karger Publishers, 2020

DOI : 10.6084/m9.figshare.12593225.v1 , https://karger.figshare.com/articles/Supplementary_Material_for_The_Prospective_Studies_of_Atherosclerosis_Proof-ATHERO_Consortium_Design_and_Rationale/12593225/1

DOI : 10.6084/m9.figshare.12489749 , https://karger.figshare.com/articles/Supplementary_Material_for_Efficacy_and_Moderators_of_Internet-Based_Interventions_in_Adults_with_Subthreshold_Depression_An_Individual_Participant_Data_Meta-Analysis_of_Randomized_Controlled_Trials/12489749

Elected member of the Academia Europaea

Sprangers, Mirjam (Recipient), 10 Oct 2023

Prize : Other distinction

• 30 Membership of committee
• 28 Oral presentation
• 11 Visiting an external academic institution
• 8 Editorial activity
• 8 Invited talk
• 7 Participation in workshop, seminar, course
• 4 Participation in conference
• 2 Membership of board
• 2 Membership of council
• 1 Membership of network

Activities per year

Addressing sexual issues and dysfunction in special populations: adolescents and young adults (AYA)

Vicky Lehmann (Speaker)

Activity : Lecture / Presentation › Invited talk › Academic

Seks en intimiteit: Nog steeds een taboe in de AYA-zorg (?)

Activity : Lecture / Presentation › Invited talk › Popular

Sexual Health in Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors

Press/media, second opinions: meer onzekerheid en hogere kosten.

Marij A. Hillen

1 Media contribution

Press/Media : Press / Media

Second opinion bij dokter loont

Allemaal aan de second opinion.

Search term

• Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience

Graduate School of Psychology and Neuroscience

The Graduate School of Psychology and Neuroscience (GSPN) is an umbrella organisation for all PhD candidates of the Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience (FPN), comprising about 90 internal and over 100 external PhD candidates, and still growing. The Graduate School optimises education and training of PhD students, organises an annual research day and workshops, facilitates and monitors the quality and progress of research projects.

• 90 internal and over 100 external PhD candidates
• aims to optimise education and training of the PhD candidates
• has a strong research community

Confidential Advisor

FPN PhD students who are confronted with undesirable behaviour (sexual harassment, aggression, violence or discrimination) or unequal behaviour, or who are involved in a conflict in their working situation may contact the confidential advisors for assistance. The confidential advisor is:

Dr. Anke Sambeth   [email protected],   (043) 388 4740

Research & education

PhD candidates at GSPN have all facilities of FPN at their disposal. You can:

• make use of our extensive research laboratories
• apply for any course offered by the faculty and its research school partners
• make use of the Test Subject Database maintained by the Research Support Department

Vacancies All PhD vacancies are posted on Academic Transfer

Regulations for Promotion

• Regulation governing the attainment of doctoral degrees     
• Promotiereglement UM      (Dutch version: in case of conflict this version will be referred to)

Almost all education within the GSPN is focused on training PhD researchers within the context of their chosen topic and needs. PhD students at GSPN have access to courses from:

• FPN Research Masters
• FPN affiliated Research Schools
• Graduate Schools @UM
• the University Library
• the UM Language Centre
• Staff Career Centre

Affiliated research schools

Besides the membership in the Graduate School of Psychology and Neuroscience, PhD candidates can be affiliated to various FPN institutions and associated research schools. Many institute and school courses are also open to PhD candidates who are not members. Research Schools include:

• Maastricht Brain Imaging Centre (M-BIC)
• European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON)
• Experimental Psychopathology (EPP)
• Kurt Lewin Institute

Research laboratories

FPN has extensive research laboratories with cutting-edge equipment and apparatus, such as EEG labs, eating labs, psychopharmacology labs and non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) labs (incl. TMS). Measurements for ultra-high-field MRI research can be performed at Scannexus . PhD candidates employed by or posted at our faculty can use all facilities, and externals PhD candidates can send a request for use of the research laboratories to the lab coordinator. In addition, FPN has an instrumentation and engineering (IE) and a research support department (RSD) to assist researchers. For more information click here .

Rules and regulations

Different labs have different rules and regulations. To reserve a lab, first check Resource Booker for availability, then contact the coordinator to make a reservation.

Bachelor's in Psychology

Bachelor's programmes.

If you are interested in Psychology, you can choose between these Bachelor's programmes: 

• Bachelor's in Psychology  - numerus fixus (limited enrolment), Dutch-taught
• Bachelor's in Psychology  - numerus fixus (limited enrolment), English-taught

Master's programmes

If you're interested in pursuing a Master's degree, take a look at the overview of Master's programmes in Psychology .

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Psychology Research Institute / PsyRes

PsyRes Director and Chair

Scientific Director

[email protected] +31 (0)20 525 7263

Department Chair

[email protected] +31 (0)20 525 6044

Staff 

Please find an overview of all our staff below by clicking on the relevant research group. 

• Staff of the Brain & Cognition Programme Group
• Staff of the Clinical Psychology Programme Group
• Staff of the Developmental Psychology Programme Group
• Staff of the Social Psychology Programme Group
• Staff of the Work & Organizational Psychology Programme Group
• Staff of the Psychological Methods Programme Group

Cookie Consent

The UvA uses cookies to ensure the basic functionality of the site and for statistical and optimisation purposes. Cookies are also placed to display third-party content and for marketing purposes. Click 'Accept all cookies' to consent to the placement of all cookies, or choose 'Decline' to only accept functional and analytical cookies. Also read the UvA Privacy statement .