Lucy Benjamin
Why did you choose this Research Master’s?
After four years of university in Melbourne I was ready to take on a new challenge in a new place. I visited and met with the faculty following my own graduation and in the end Amsterdam was the only graduate school I applied to - for me it was such an easy decision. Amsterdam is an amazing vibrant city and the Research Master’s offers so many opportunities to engage with cultural institutions in the Netherlands.
What do you like about this Master’s?
I like the way research is approached in this course. Seminars are always full of heated debates and lecturers allow students to really shape the flow of courses. The division between academic and student is really fluid and my confidence to assert my opinion has grown tenfold. There's a great community here and despite being far from home there is such a sense of familiarity.
How did you design your programme?
The Research Masters really caters for the developing interests of the students. I came here to study post-war French cinema and in my time have uncovered so many new fields of research. I have approached staff with curiosities of mine and entire reading subjects have developed in their wake, one on Fashion and Philosophy and another on Adorno's aesthetics.
Which subjects did you find most interesting?
My two core courses have been invaluable. The breadth of the theory we cover in these courses is a real credit to the team who built them up, not only have they affirmed what I am interested in but they've also challenged me to understand foreign terrain. I had a great time doing a Fashion and Philosophy tutorial with some friends which to me showed the investment of the faculty in cultivating our interests but also introduced me to a whole new way of doing academic work.
What are your plans for the future?
My hope for the future is to do a PhD. Long nights in libraries was always a romantic (nerdy?) fantasy of mine growing up and the UvA has been the perfect place to realize that. More so this course has really taught me the reality behind academic research - hard and challenging but also incredibly rewarding.
Would you recommend this Master’s programme to prospective students?
For any media student who knows exactly what they want to do and wants to learn more and for any student who's not sure what exactly to do and wants to find out this is the perfect course. The past two years have been so great and I will be sad to leave but so happy in what I have learnt.