History
MA

Full-time and Part-time

History

Overview

Course overview

Challenging and diverse, our flagship history programme builds on the department’s research strengths and has been designed to provide a thorough training in the study of history across a wide range of periods and themes.

You consider history from a variety of perspectives, to explore how people lived in the past and what factors shaped their environment, beliefs and culture. The provision is flexible. You can either build your programme by choosing from a range of taught options in cultural, European and regional history, or undertake 100 credits out of 180 through independent study.

Course details

Core modules provide the foundation for historical research. The programme fosters the integration of archival and secondary sources necessary for original research and writing.

Course structure

Core modules

Final Project

This module marks the culmination of the MA History programme, requiring you to produce an extended example of historical research. This may take the form of a dissertation of 15,000 words, or an equivalent knowledge exchange project.

History in Theory and Practice

The module addresses various theoretical and practical approaches to history and historiography, and will equip you to study the subject at postgraduate level. It is organised around the acquisition of interpretive and historiographical skills and their application to some of the narratives, themes, periods and theories that engage historians at the current time.

Making History 1

This module will give you the opportunity to choose one of two specialist topics relating to the specific research interests of the teaching team. You will also complete an independent research project on a subject to be negotiated with an individual member of the teaching team. The module will therefore provide you with experience shaping research questions, and if you choose to submit your independent research in the form of a knowledge exchange project it will also afford you the prospect of shaping your own mode of assessment.

Making History 2

This module will give you the opportunity to choose one of two specialist topics relating to the specific research interests of the teaching team. You will also complete an independent research project on a subject to be negotiated with an individual member of the teaching team. The module will therefore provide you with experience shaping research questions, and if you choose to submit your independent research in the form of a knowledge exchange project it will also afford you the prospect of shaping your own mode of assessment.

Researching History

The module focuses on further developing your skills as a researcher with practical sessions on the framing of research questions, various research methodologies, and aspects of presenting your research, with the aim of enabling you to develop a research proposal for your final project. The module will therefore provide you with an opportunity to investigate and test the possibilities of a chosen topic by conducting a literature search, identifying historiographical context, locating primary sources, and devising a relevant and productive methodology. At the end of the module you will present your research in a conference style setting, and then complete a feasibility study which will feed-forward into your final project.

Modules offered may vary.

How you learn

At postgraduate level it is important that you take an active role in structuring your own learning experience, and also engage with the relevant methods and underpinning theories of the disciplines you encounter. At the same time we recognise that students embark on their study with different levels of skills and awareness of the discipline, especially in the case of mature students perhaps returning to study. The Research Skills and Methods module is designed to address these issues, involving a high degree of regular tutor contact, a firm foundation of research, interpretation and writing skills, as well as an introduction to a range of methodological approaches and historiographies.

How you are assessed

It is intended that you should experience a variety of different types of assessment, although the traditional extended essay plays a large part in the overall picture. There may also be ‘formative’ types of assessment which do not contribute to your final mark but have a useful diagnostic and developmental function. Some modules include a portfolio of exercises or short pieces, a group project, case studies or even a practical project. There are, you may be pleased to learn, no exams!

Entry requirements

Students should normally have an undergraduate degree of 2.2 or above in History or a cognate discipline, or have other relevant experience or equivalent qualifications. Tutors will be happy to discuss entry requirements on a flexible basis.

For general information please see our overview of entry requirements

International applicants can find out what qualifications they need by visiting Your Country

Employability

Career opportunities

Typically graduates go on to roles in teaching, museum work, heritage management and/or administration. You may also choose to pursue further academic study - MPhil or PhD.