Accelerate energy transition initiatives at a regional and (inter)national level

Master
Full-time
3 semesters

Energy for Society

Level: master
Form: full-time
Duration: 3 semesters
Language: English
Locations: Groningen
Degree: Master of Science
Credits: 90 ECTS
Startmonths: Start: September

Science and Engineering
Behaviour and Society
Language and Communication

Do you want to make a difference in the energy transition? Do you want to help communities transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy? Furthermore, do you want to bring people together to make this transition happen? Do you want to become a change agent who accelerates the energy transition at regional, national and international level? Then the Master Energy for Society is for you!

What you will find:
✔ Multidisciplinary approach ✔ International learning community ✔ Real-life clients and assignments

Apply for this programme Request brochure

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Projects with impact

During your master’s, you will work on real-world projects that address societal and organisational challenges. Through hands-on research, you will create innovative solutions that make a difference. Curious what that looks like? Below are a few examples of our students' projects.

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Your programme

Within this master we work with themes. The theory of these themes offer a deepening of your knowledge and skills and ensure that your knowledge and skills are raised to a higher level. You can expect the following themes.

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Henmar Moesker

Programme manager
Wim Timmerman

Lecturer & Coordinator Graduation Programme
Wytze van der Gaast

Lector Economische aspecten van de energietransitie
Alex van Spyk

Onderzoeker
Tania Ouarichi Peralta

Lecturer Communication, Behaviour & Sustainable Society
Wim Elving

Lector Communication, Behaviour & the Sustainable Society

About the master Energy for Society

During the Master Energy for Society, you will learn to recognise your role as a change agent and become an all-round, academically informed energy professional who understands the technological, economic, legal, social and environmental aspects of the energy transition. You will not only learn how to solve technical and economic issues, but also how to deal with the social and political challenges that may arise during energy transition projects. You will encourage, facilitate and manage collaboration between communities, consumers, policymakers and other stakeholders.

Facilitating the energy transition requires strong professional and interpersonal skills. That is why this programme focuses on developing professional skills such as coaching, discussion, presentation and group work.

Why choose Energy for Society at Hanze UAS?

Multidisciplinary approach: You learn to look at energy transition challenges from different perspectives and contribute to solutions at regional, national and international level.
Learning community: You work and learn in close collaboration with your peers from all over the world, professional practitioners, researchers and teaching staff.
High-end research facilities: The Energy Transition Centre (EnTranCe) and Energy Academy Europe (EAE) offer excellent opportunities for research, testing and collaboration. These facilities are highly valued by current master's students.
Events and excursions: You will have the opportunity to join a range of events and excursions as part of your programme, such as visiting a renewable energy power plant or the European Parliament in Brussels.

Students about the master's programme Energy for Society

Joline and Marlous tell you about the master's programme Energy for Society

Course overview

First semester – Investigating the Energy Transition

You will gain insight into the complexity of the energy transition at different levels. You explore the need for the energy transition from societal, technological, economic, political, legal and geographical perspectives. You will follow courses such as Politics for the Sustainable Society, Legal Aspects for the Sustainable Society, Energy Technologies and Systems for the Sustainable Society and Economy for the Sustainable Society. You will also learn how to influence the behaviour of stakeholders in relation to the energy transition. You apply your knowledge and skills in real-life projects, such as engaging groups of low-income citizens in local energy transition projects.

Second semester – Making Energy Transition Happen

During this semester, you work on real-life energy transition projects for companies, institutions and/or EnTranCe professorships, using the knowledge and skills developed in the first semester.

Third semester – Graduation Project

You work on your graduation project. In this project, you demonstrate that you can act as a transition strategist. You approach a complex real-life challenge within a local energy transition context from a transdisciplinary perspective.

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Hanze Makerspace

The Hanze Makerspace (HMS) is for all colleagues and students of the Hanze University of Applied Sciences! A creative and informal educational workplace where everything related to making something comes together.

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Click here to see whether you qualify

Students with a Bachelor of Economics, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Communication, Bachelor of Social Science, Bachelor of Environmental Science, Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of Engineering or equivalent are eligible to enroll for this programme. Applicants should have a strong interest in the social and societal aspects of energy transition.

Students holding another Bachelor degree as mentioned above are also admissible to the master's programme if they can demonstrate strong motivation or when they have relevant work experience related to energy transition.

When applying for this Master's programme, all applicants need to prove that they have achieved a sufficient level of English. Therefore, one of the following is required:

All language scores must contain four subjects: reading, writing, listening and speaking
IELTS (academic): overall band score 6.5 minimum and no sub-score below 6.0
TOEFL iBT (Home edition not allowed)

- For exams taken before 12 January 2026 we require a minimum score of 90 with not sub-scores below 20.
- For exams taken on or after 12 January 2026 we require a minimum score of 5 with no sub-scores under 4.
(Please indicate Hanze University of Applied Sciences to check your TOEFL score from ETS in your test taker profile; the institution code is 2165)

Cambridge Advanced Exam in English: C minimum (scale 180-184)
Cambridge Proficiency Exam in English: C minimum
Pearson PTE (Academic) minimum of 61 with no sub-score below 60
LanguageCert (Academic) minimum of 75 with no sub-scores below 65

Exempted from the above mentioned are:

Students holding a Bachelor qualification from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain or Ireland are exempt from the language requirement
Students who have obtained a diploma at an English taught institution within the EER and who can prove that their prior education for which they obtained the diploma with which they can become accepted to the master, was fulltime English taught. In this case prove the English proficiency by uploading a statement, signed and stamped, from the university, confirming that the medium of instruction and examination of the prior education was entirely in English. The dean may seek advice from NUFFIC in such a case.

Hanze UAS reserves the right to check, both in the Netherlands and abroad, the authenticity of all documents submitted in support of applications.

All applicants for the Master's programme Energy for Society apply through Studielink. Instructions on how to apply through Studielink can be found here. Candidates for admission should upload the following documents in Studielink.

A CV (resume) in English
The degrees and transcript of records based upon which you seek admission to the master, both the original as well as the translated versions;
A reference letter from an employment
A motivation letter outlining why you wish to enrol in this master programme
A proof of English language proficiency (see above for minimum scores)
A copy of your passport

Application Review

Hanze UAS will review your application and will decide whether you are accepted or not based on the admission requirements. We aim at notifying students about whether or not they can be admitted within two weeks after receiving the application. If the application file is incomplete, your file may be put on hold or in some cases you may be provisionally accepted. You will need to hand in the missing document(s) to become fully accepted.

Letter of Acceptance

In case you are accepted we will send you an official letter of acceptance. You will be required to meet our enrolment requirements and you can start the procedure to apply for the various facilities that Hanze UAS offers.

Students who do not meet our admission requirements will receive a letter of rejection. In this letter it will be stated how to appeal the decision.

In some cases you may receive a letter of provisional acceptance at first. In this case you are not fully admitted yet. You still need to send your diploma and/or your language proficiency. Please be aware that you cannot enroll as a student until you have been fully admitted and you have received your final letter of acceptance.

For Chinese applicants: Application and delivery of an online Verification Report (CHESICC-DUO) Chinese applicants that are (conditionally) admitted can request an online Higher Education Student Record or a Qualification Verification Report via the CHSI archive as certified proof of their graduation diploma and transcript.

Click the DUO function to confirm the required verification report(s). An English version of the report(s) must be requested.

After applying to Hanze University of Applied Sciences the applicant will receive a student number. Applicants will need to input their student number and choose the Hanze University of Applied Sciences code (25BE) when sending an online report(s).

The tuition fees are listed per academic year here. Please be aware that Energy For Society is an 18 months programme and that for the second year 50% of the yearly tuition fee will be charged.

Please note: Students with a NON-EU/EEA nationality must be aware that on top of the tuition fee you will have to prove that you have enough financial means to live of. Please check the correct amounts of the financial guarantee under immigrations.

Please note: with this master's programme, you will receive student finance from DUO for the first year only. The Hanze may grant you financial support for the last six months of the programme, provided you were entitled to a performance grant in the first year. Are you a Hanze student? Then check with the Student Support Regulation to see if you qualify. Not a Hanze student yet? Please e-mail [email protected].

Hanze UAS offers various scholarships to eligible students. Visit this page for more information.

Additional programme specific requirements you need to consider before applying for a scholarship:

NL Scholarship

The English Language proficiency must be proved by submitting one of the following (minimum) test scores:

TOEFL internet based: 94 with no sub scores below 20
IELTS Academic: 7.0 with no sub scores below 6
PTE Academic: 66.3 with no sub scores below 60
LanguageCert 75 with no sub scores below 65

A CGPA with a minimum of 75% of the total scores to be obtained

Following the core semester in Groningen

Hanze Scholarship

The English Language proficiency must be proved by submitting one of the following (minimum) test scores:

TOEFL internet based: 102 with no sub scores below 20
IELTS Academic: 7.5 with no sub scores below 6
PTE Academic: 74.6 with no sub scores below 60
LanguageCert 82 with no sub scores below 65

A CGPA with a minimum of 80% of the total scores to be obtained

Following the core semester in Groningen

Procedure

Students who have been (conditionally) accepted for the programme by Hanze UAS will receive an invitation to apply for the scholarship as of 1 March from the enrolment advisor.
The last day to apply for the scholarship is April 30, 23:59 hrs (Central European Time - CET).
The grants committee will award the scholarship

Note

Higher scores increase your chances to obtain the scholarship
Only a few scholarships are available for this programme
The decision of the grants committee is final

The International Office (IO) assists students who wish to study for an exchange semester at a partner university. We help with the application procedure and practical information. The IO also processes the applications of incoming exchange students from partner institutions who want to follow an exchange programme at Hanze UAS. We apply for visas and residence permits for all incoming students with a non-EU nationality, assist with the search for accommodation and provide information about insurances and other practical matters.