pre-master Innovation Management

Esmée Messemaker

All the hard working during the premaster’s? It was absolutely worth it!

During my Dutch HBO Bachelor Industrial Design Engineering in The Hague, I soon figured out that I’m interested in the psychological aspects of creativity. The next step therefore seemed fairly logical: to investigate what specifically arouses creativity in the human brain. After three years of project-based learning, I chose to enroll in the Innovation Management pre-master at TU/e. Has someone ever told you that taking a premaster could be hard? Well, that’s an underestimation, but don’t be discouraged! Attend every class right from the start, be pro-active in group projects, be primarily focused on your studies and put additional activities on hold. AS a previous HBO student, you are used to the practical application of information, which will be very useful during assignments. It’ll also help you when studying and remembering all the theories in exam periods.  

You’ll have to finish the pre-master in just one year with only one retake opportunity for each course. If you don’t pass the retake, you are not allowed to re-apply for the premaster’s and you won’t be accepted for the master’s degree. This obviously boosts the pressure. The biggest obstacle in the premaster is statistics, which requires knowledge of calculus. If this isn’t one of your strengths, you could look for a tutor to brush up your skills and knowledge, which you’ll need again in the master’s program. Since I managed to be accepted into the master’s program, albeit barely, there’s less pressure and my results are much better than in the premaster’s program. Without any retakes, with experiences in a students’ team and above all with a grade average of an 8, I’ll start my graduation project in September. My graduation project is focused on what intuition brings about in the idea generation. This is exactly what I was looking for, and you can also adjust your curriculum to your wishes and desires. And all the hard working during the premaster’s? It was absolutely worth it!