Persistent somatic symptoms are long term symptoms that lack a clear medical explanation. These symptoms have a high prevalence where most people know someone who experiences such symptoms or they experience such symptoms themselves. Symptoms can vary greatly in and between people. While one person…

At the Leiden Curious Minds Centre, our research focuses on the relationship of exploratory behaviour and discovery learning to curiosity and the way children regulate their behaviour and emotions. We want to improve our understanding of how children can and do become more and more the captain of their…

In this research line, the role pharmacological agents and neurochemcial processes play in behavior and cognition is examined with a particular focus on pain, placebo and nocebo effects and intensive care treatments.

The effects of many treatments are determined, to a significant degree, by factors other than the medicine or treatment itself. For example, placebo effects can be equal to the effect size of for example antidepressants or painkillers. Contributing factors are the trust placed in the doctor, the expectation…

Do you want to know the best reasons to study at Leiden University or want to know what's it like to live in the student cities Leiden or The Hague? Our students tell you why you have to choose Leiden University to study your bachelor's programme.

The research team

Your tuition fee depends on a number of factors, such as your nationality and your previous Dutch higher-education qualifications.

To be eligible for the Research Master's programme in Psychology at Leiden University, you must meet the following requirements.

To be eligible for the Research Master's specialisation Cognitive Neuroscience, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Is this the master's specialisation of your choice? Please read here about the admissibility for this programme.

To be eligible for the Clinical and Health Psychology Research Master's specialisation at Leiden University, you must meet the following requirements.

Is this the master's specialisation of your choice? Please read here about the admissibility for this programme.

Where you end up depends on the chosen study direction, your own skills and interests.

Students and lecturers from around the world who have obtained international training, experience and exposure bring an international and multi-cultural perspective on psychology and being a psychologist to class.

Do you want to know the best reasons to study at Leiden University or want to know what's it like to live in the student cities Leiden or The Hague? Our students tell you why you have to choose Leiden University to study your bachelor's programme.

Is this the master's specialisation of your choice? Please read here about the admissibility for this programme.

Is this the master's specialisation of your choice? Please read here about the admissibility for this programme.

To be eligible for the Research Master's specialisation Developmental Psychology, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

To be eligible for the master's specialisation Applied Cognitive Psychology at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Students and lecturers from around the world bring an international and multi-cultural perspective on psychology to the class room. This, combined with the fact that all teaching and discussions will be in English, that we offer cross-cultural courses, and that you can study abroad for a semester, ensures…

To be eligible for the Research Master's specialisation Social and Organisational Psychology, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Leiden University celebrated its 444th anniversary with a historical procession on 8 February. It celebrated this year’s Dies Natalis in time-honoured fashion with a ceremony in the Pieterskerk, but broke with tradition by sending professors out to primary schools.

The Metabolomics Facility of Leiden University is now officially in operation to prevent disease and to improve health throughout the human lifespan.

As of 1 October, Marlies Reinders (1973) will be the new Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and will sit on the LUMC’s Board of Directors. This will return the board to full strength.

A new technique using fluorescent imaging to track the actions of enzymes might aid drug design for new anti-cancer, inflammation and kidney disease treatments. Researchers at the University of York and Leiden University have published these findings in Nature Chemical Biology.

Having a bachelor's, a master's and a PhD in Chemistry, Elena Sánchez López shifted to a more biological field of research for her postdoc. She completed all her studies at the University of Alcala, in Spain, before applying for a LEaDing fellowship at Leiden University, a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Cofund…

Having a bachelor, master and Ph.D in chemistry, Elena Sánchez López shifted to a more biological research for her postdoc. All of her studies she did at the University of Alcala, in Spain. Way back in medieval times, this city was the place of birth of Miguel de Cervantes, author of the world famous…

Improving healthcare with our scientific discoveries: that is the goal of pharmaceutical research at Leiden University. And there’s a lot involved in that. Our research starts with the discovery of the effect achieved by a particular substance, and sometimes continues all the way through to the development…

The elderly accept may minor discomforts like stiffer muscles and getting tired more quickly, but they do want to go to their children's birthdays independently. Preventive elderly care helps people with that. The goal is to let people grow old while maintaining their self-reliance and independence…

With our research and teaching, we help make the world a better place. We join in the academic and public debate, and seek answers to economic and social issues – not just at the local and regional level but at the global one too.

In a lot of research on education, general didactic principles are applied to a particular area of study. ‘But every field of study also has its own ways of thinking’, argues professor Fred Janssen. ‘If you can identify those ways of thinking, then you have a lot of indicators for how you can best organise…

Ineke van der Ham is one of the invited speakers at the European Workshop of Imagery and Cognition (EWIC). She discussed practical applications of her work on spatial imagery in neuropsychological patients.

The National Multiple Sclerosis Foundation need your vote for the best employer. This Award is based on the research project MS@Work from psychologists of the Health, Medical and Neuropsychology unit in Leiden. Last chance for voting on Thursday 14 November.

Leiden University now offers almost 20 Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs). The enthusiasm displayed by participants makes it rewarding to develop and teach such courses, say MOOC lecturers Marlies Reinders and Edwin Bakker. But that is not all, ‘You bring together a global community.’

On Friday 17 April Leiden Mayor Henri Lenferink will officially open the new Metabolomics Facility of Leiden University. The facility’s ultimate goal is to prevent disease and to improve health throughout the human lifespan.

It may seem as though adolescents do as they please, but they are more sensitive to their parents’ opinions than they would appear. The adolescent brain reacts strongly to parental criticism or praise. These are the results of a study by an interdisciplinary research group of psychologists and neuroscientists…

Nineteen new Leiden University MOOCs have started this January. Anyone can take part in these online courses varying from combatting terrorism to kidney transplantation.

Prof. Hanneke Hulst has been appointed Scientific Director of the Institute of Psychology by the Board of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. She will start on 1 February 2024 for a period of 3 years, succeeding Andrea Evers and interim director Serge Rombouts.

How effective is eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy in targeting epilepsy-related anxiety?

This project aims to identify which aspects of exploring a novel environment produce beneficial effects on memory. The effects of novelty will be investigated across the lifespan, including children, adolescents and older adults.

Imagine that you have a chronic skin condition, characterized by red patches of itchy, scaly skin. You regularly notice people staring at your skin and sense their reluctance to shake your hand. Or imagine that you have Parkinson's Disease, causing your hands to tremble and making it difficult for you…

We are all aware of the importance of a healthy lifestyle. However, at the same time we also experience many difficulties when we are trying to change our behavior to become more healthy. For example, more often than not our good intentions to exercise more or to eat fewer unhealthy snacks fail miserably…