Robotics (Transfer minor / doorstroomminor)

Are you currently a student at a university of Applied Sciences? Would you like to deepen your knowledge in the field of Robotics and are you looking for a scientific approach? Then the minor Robotics at the University of Twente may be an interesting option for you.

The minor Robotics is meant for students from universities of Applied Sciences who would like to continue their education with an academic master’s programme in Robotics. If you have finished the minor successfully, you will be admitted to the master’s programme after graduation from your bachelor’s programme.

Master Robotics programme

During the two-year, English-taught master Robotics you learn to develop robotic solutions that benefit many different industries and societal domains. Working in small teams on real-world challenges, you will cover all disciplines involved, from mechatronics to computer science and AI, while also tackling ethical, legal, societal, and economic aspects. Your grasp of both the technology and the wider context is exactly what high-tech industries and research institutes today are looking for. 

There are three specialisations within the Robotics programme:

Mechatronics and Physical AI

Mechatronics and Physical AI is all about combining mechatronics and control engineering to enable a robotic system to make the right movements in relation to the people or objects around it. 

Algorithms and Software AI

Algorithms and Software AI centres on the intelligence inside a robotic system and its ability to convert external signals into autonomous, relevant decisions.

Human-Robot Interaction and Social AI

Human-Robot Interaction and Social AI centres on how a robotic system fits in with people in social settings in terms of communication, movement, acceptance and trust. 

 

For more information about the Robotics programme, have a look at the Robotics website.

The main learning objective of the programme is to lay a sound theoretical foundation under the practical knowledge that you already obtained during your bachelor’s programme:

• Topics from calculus, linear algebra and probability should bring your understanding of these mathematical subjects to the same level that students with an academic bachelor’s degree have.
• The Linear Systems course introduces the mathematical concepts of signals and systems, the different ways they can be described and how a system transforms an input signal into an output signal. The course prepares for more advance courses in electronics, mechanics, signal processing, system modelling and control. As such it is indispensable for students in the master’s programme.
• The course Engineering System Dynamics will give you an introduction in modelling the behaviour of multidisciplinary (e.g. electromechanical) systems. Courses during the master's programme will learn you later how to control them.

A second learning objective of the transfer minor is that you make a start learning to carry out scientific research in a systematic way.

The course Academic Research Skills contains the following topics:

• How to formulate a research question
• Literature search
• How to formulate a research plan
• Ethical topics (fraud and plagiarism)
• Carrying out research
• Oral and written communication.

 

The contents of the minor programme is the same for all students regardless of the specialisation they choose later during the Robotics programme.

This minor aims to attract students from universities of Applied Sciences (HBO) who have the adequate motivation and capacities to complete an English-taught degree programme on university level.

You need to have completed 120 ECs from the first two years of your current related bachelor’s studies before starting this transfer minor.  Please send with your signed learning agreement a grading list containing all your bachelor courses with the obtained marks.

In addition, the University of Twente assumes that students who start this transfer minor possess sufficient prior knowledge in mathematics (preferably Wiskunde B on so-called VWO-level) and that they are sufficiently proficient in English (benchmark score in this regard: IELTS 6.0 or TOEFL 80). Students are supposed to assess themselves whether their competencies in this respect match with the recommended levels.

Considering the programme of the minor you may realize that these requirements are related firmly to its contents: if you don’t meet the requirements, your chances of finishing the minor programme are low.

In order to determine whether your current studies is sufficiently related to Robotics, please check: www.doorstroommatrix.nl and check the Robotics programme website.

Note:

For those students whose current bachelor’s studies involves a non-related programme, admission is determined on an individual basis by the Robotics Admission Committee.

The books used for each course can be found in the course descriptions of the individual courses in the course catalogue (see links below).

The transfer minor entails a full time programme of 30 ECTS and there is only one term of enrolment in September.

An introduction period for prospective students takes place in the week before the programme starts: in August.

The courses of the minor are given in the table below.

Course Code    Course                Study load (EC)

202001171     Calculus A                           5

202001173     Calculus B                           4

202001178     Linear Algebra                    3

201500252     Digital Logic and

                        Computer Organization     3

202001185     Linear Systems                   6

202001141     Engineering System

                        Dynamics                            5

202000238     Academic Research Skills  4

                       Total                                    30

 

Assessment of the study results with a mark happens during each individual course. After each examination one re-examination is available in case of failure. The minor programme can only be completed successfully (implying admission to the master’s programme) if all individual courses have resulted in a sufficient mark. The minor programme should be completed successfully within a year after the start in order to get admission to the master’s programme.

The learning agreement signed by the student and his Examination Board must have reached the UT-contactperson before the enrolment ends. Please also attach your most recent transcript of records.

The programme is entirely in English, as is the required literature.

For more information, please contact Heidi Muijzer-Witteveen, h.j.b.witteveen@utwente.nl, programme coordinator MSc Robotics.