NINO Thesis Prizes

NINO annually awards two prizes to the best BA and (res)MA thesis on the Near East in the Netherlands: one BA Thesis Prize (€ 400) and one MA Thesis Prize (€ 600). The topic should be within the scope of the NINO research areas, and graded an 8 or higher at a Dutch university in the current academic year.

A call for submissions is open from 1 June to 1 October each year. During this period students may submit their thesis through the NINO website. The competition is judged in November; the two winners are awarded the Thesis Prize at NINO’s Annual Meeting. The runners-up receive a certificate.

NINO Thesis Prizes 2025

Our jury will select the four best theses submitted in November 2025. At the NINO Annual Meeting in January 2026 (to be held in Leiden), two winners will be announced: one for the Bachelor Prize and one for the Master Prize.

Students in relevant fields have the opportunity to submit their thesis between 1 June and 1 October 2025. Don’t miss this chance to win this year’s prize for Best Bachelor or Master thesis on the Near East!

Conditions and regulations

The main conditions for participation are:

You wrote your thesis at a Dutch university, where it was graded in the academic year 2024/2025.
The topic of your research is within the scope of the NINO research areas: archaeology, history, languages, and cultures of Egypt, Levant, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and Persia. Adjacent areas are considered under further conditions: see the regulations.
Your thesis was officially graded an 8 or higher.
Please mention if you are entering your thesis in another competition. If your thesis is awarded another prize before the NINO Prizes are awarded (January 2026), it will no longer be eligible for a NINO Thesis Prize.
The document upload limit is 64 MB.

Full regulations for the NINO Thesis Prizes 2025 are available in Dutch (pdf) and in English (pdf).

Submit your thesis

Applicant's personal information

Name *

Email address *

Postal address *

Postal code *

Current place of residence *

Telephone *

Student at *

Field of study *

Thesis details

Thesis level *

Thesis title *

Primary thesis supervisor: name and title(s) *

Primary thesis supervisor: email address *

Secondary thesis supervisor: name and title(s) *

Secondary thesis supervisor: email address *

ECTS credits *

Grade awarded *

Graduation date *

Upload documents

1. Thesis *

Upload single pdf document (max. 64 MB)

2. Proof of awarded mark and graduation date *

Upload pdf document (max. 64 MB)

3. Summary of thesis *

Upload Word document (300-500 words in Dutch or English)

I agree to NINO's conditions for entering the competition, and NINO's regulations on Thesis Prizes.

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The Netherlands Institute for the Near East

Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten - Institut néerlandais du Proche-Orient

NINO Thesis Prizes