The M.A. program starts in the winter trimester (January) and lasts a total of 21 months. The program ends with the writing of a Master's thesis during the 5th trimester and the final summer quarter (July to September). During the lecture-free period (3rd quarter), students are obliged to complete a summer module in the form of an internship, a summer school or – in exceptional cases – a foreign language course. There is also the possibility of studying abroad.
The Master's program in Social Sciences and Public Affairs builds on the knowledge students acquired in the Bachelor's program and enlarges upon their specialization in either "State Structures and Social Change" or "International Law and Politics". Students are largely free to further develop their study interests within the scope of supplementary modules and in accordance with their elective subjects from the B.A. (necessary prerequisites for the M.A. courses can be found in the respective module/event description).
The program is to enable students to develop scientific questions in political science, history, law, economics, sociology and ethics in an interdisciplinary way and to work on them in a practice-oriented, methodologically sound and solution-oriented manner. At the same time, students familiarize themselves with the development and debate of theory of the different disciplines as well as with the latest research results. In addition to imparting in-depth specialist knowledge, analytical competence is further promoted, methodological knowledge is applied to real research questions, and subject-specific techniques and skills are deepened.