Amsterdam Master in Medical Anthropology

The Amsterdam Master in Medical Anthropology (AMMA) is an advanced master's programme with a one-year curriculum consisting of course work, field research and a master's thesis. The Amsterdam Master in Medical Anthropology is part of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences of the Universiteit van Amsterdam. Our researchers are famous for their applied medical anthropological research on the use and distribution of pharmaceuticals, gender and reproductive health, immunisation and culture and HIV/Aids.

Nevertheless within its wide field of research many studies are of a more reflective nature, leading to new theoretical perspectives, such as the multi-level perspective. The extensive research has resulted in a steady stream of publications in Dutch and international journals.

Cultural and medical anthropological concepts and theories

The goal of this course is to provide students with the ability to contribute to the solving of priority health problems in the North and South. This goal is reached by helping students learn how to formulate appropriate research objectives for medical anthropological research, how to develop feasible study designs which apply relevant theories and concepts, and by demonstrating the means by which good research is conducted, and excellent reports are created. This is accomplished by means of a carefully phased programme.

At the programme's conclusion, the successful students will have mastered a basic knowledge of cultural and medical anthropological concepts and theories; they will have familiarised themselves with qualitative anthropological research methods; they will be capable of applying this knowledge and these methods in the design and realisation of research projects; they will be able to report on the results of medical anthropological research and to critically evaluate such research; they will be capable of participating in multidisciplinary teams which address problems of health and health care.