Masters Degrees (History Of Ideas)

History of art is a rich and dynamic discipline, combining the rigorous investigation of the visual arts with the creative exploration of their connections to culture, politics and society. Postgraduate study in this area trains you at a high level in looking at, thinking about and researching art and its histories.

Birkbeck's MA History of Art offers the opportunity to study with internationally recognised experts. Our teaching staff are defining the field, conducting ground-breaking research in periods from medieval to contemporary, focusing on painting, sculpture, print culture, architecture, photography, digital art and museology.

The MA History of Art exposes you to key art historical approaches, and allows you to focus in depth on areas and periods of particular interest to you, in early and modern (including contemporary) periods, through taught options (see an indicative list of modules on the 'course structure' tab) and independent research. The course also offers opportunities for work placements with London museums, galleries and archives.

The course develops your visual acuity and your understanding of art's histories, while stimulating critical debate and stretching your research skills. In addition to independent written work, you will take part in group discussion, give oral presentations and engage with the Department of History of Art's research culture.

In all of this, you will work closely with our staff while also benefiting from our diverse and vibrant student body of all ages and backgrounds. The teaching programme is enriched by museum and site visits, visiting speakers, screenings and opportunities to get involved as volunteers in research and community outreach activities. The department also offers an exciting study trip every spring.

Students are encouraged to become involved in the lively research culture of the department through the History and Theory of Photography Research Centre, the Architecture, Space and Society Centre and the Vasari Research Centre, which has pioneered the field of digital art history. In addition to the core teaching and individual research support, students benefit from many events in the Department of History of Art at Birkbeck, including: the postgraduate Research Seminar, which brings art historians from all over the UK and beyond to speak at Birkbeck; the biennial Murray Lecture; the Murray Seminar on Medieval and Renaissance Art; and the programme of exhibitions and displays at the Peltz Gallery, the School of Arts' purpose-built exhibition space. Students are also welcome to attend other seminars and events across the School of Arts and at the Birkbeck Institute for Humanities.

We offer taster events and information evenings for prospective students interested in our history of art programmes throughout the year.

Why study this course at Birkbeck?

Arts and humanities courses at Birkbeck are ranked third best in London and 11th in the UK in the Times Higher Education 2015-16 World University Subject Rankings.
You will work closely with leading international experts in the history of art.
You can choose to specialise in a wide range of periods and geographies, from medieval European architecture and cityscapes to contemporary global art practices.
You can study flexibly, full-time or part-time, with all teaching in the evenings.
On class visits and in your independent research you will have access to London's world-class art collections, museums and libraries.
Your fellow students are from a wide range of backgrounds and are often already working in the field, offering a high level of discussion and excellent networking opportunities.
You will have access to the Birkbeck Library and an in-house resources centre. In addition, our location in Bloomsbury offers excellent access to specialist libraries in the University of London. These include the University of London Library, Institute of Historical Research, Warburg Institute and School of Oriental and African Studies, together with the major national resource of the British Library.
You will also have easy access to specialist art libraries not far from Birkbeck, including the library of the Courtauld Institute of Art, the Royal Institute of British Architects library and the National Art Library at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), as well as the great visual resources of the British Museum, National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Tate Britain, Tate Modern and V&A, commercial galleries and salesrooms. Temporary exhibition galleries like the Barbican Gallery, Institute of Contemporary Arts, Hayward Gallery and Royal Academy also make London a particularly good place in which to undertake research.
You can participate in the rich research culture of the Department of History of Art.
Keep up-to-date with our research on the Birkbeck History of Art blog.

Read less

This MA programme is especially designed for those with an interdisciplinary background who wish to more fully comprehend core issues and approaches within International Relations post 9/11.

At the dawn of a third millennium, the pace of integration among the world’s regions and populations is breathtaking. Powerful forces – the emergence of transnational economies, the lightning speed of global communications, and the movement of peoples, cultures and ideas into new settings – are reshaping notions of citizenship, society and community.

At the same time, however, older religious hatreds, sectarian violence and new fundamentalisms are recasting existing states and disintegrating individual, national and international notions of security. Such dynamics demand that we rethink why we are and where we are today, but also reconsider historical interpretations of past change within and among the world’s regions. To understand the global condition requires a thorough and sensitive understanding of diverse interests, ethnicities and cultures. The purpose of this new postgraduate award in International Relations (IR) is to foster within students a global perspective and encourage a multicultural awareness of contemporary problems.

Why study with us?

IR is a vital and dynamic field of intellectual inquiry that offers an interdisciplinary exploration of human interaction. It is not so much a single discipline; rather it is a study of a particular type of behaviour whose comprehension requires the insight and methods of a number of disciplines. Although your MA is set within a strong political and sociological framework, the course is enhanced through the support of Law, History, and American Studies.

IR provides an opportunity to engage with and adapt to changing international, national and regional realities post 9/11. The security implications of the events of 9/11, and the impact of global developments on everyday lives, are present in the public mind as never before. The Palestinian question, western intervention and civil war in Iraq, nuclear proliferation, international crime and terrorism are just some of the recurrent themes that have taken on a new urgency and demand our attention.

IR develops critical awareness, conceptual understanding, sound research methods, and originality in the application of knowledge. Your MA will provide you with an appropriate set of intellectual skills to enable more informed and effective participation in an ‘ever-changing’ global context. Current social, political and economic globalisation demonstrates the inexorable importance of the ‘international’ and the increased relevance of this knowledge dimension at both academic and practice levels.

Course content

International Relations is a vital and dynamic field of intellectual inquiry that offers an interdisciplinary exploration of human interaction. Students undertaking the course will come from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds and it is not assumed that all students will have similar abilities or skills. It is not our aim to encourage further specialisation along the line of a student’s first degree but rather to complement existing knowledge and build upon transferable capabilities. Overall this is a unique opportunity for graduates both with and without International Relations training to study at a very high level for a postgraduate degree with global relevance.

Our aim is to foster a set of intellectual skills to enable more informed and effective participation in an ‘ever-shrinking’ global society. This goal is to provide a rigorous and intellectually challenging foundation in approaches to the study and practice of international relations while developing an understanding and sensitivity to key issues in diverse areas of the modern world. The MA offers an exciting opportunity for graduates to develop their understanding of international affairs both theoretically and through their own or others’ experience.

Course modules (16/17)

-International Relations Theory: Great Debates, New Directions
-Major Organisations in the International Order
-Methodology and Research Design in International Relations
-The Peoples’ Republic of China: Foreign Policy Dilemmas
-European Integration
-America after 9/11
-The Politics of Latin American Development
-The International Politics of the Post-Soviet Space
-The Politics of Sub-Saharan Africa
-Politics of International Communications
-Dissertation
-The International Relations of the Pacific Rim
-The Political Economy of East African Development
-Comparative Transnational Criminology
-European and International Human Rights
-National Security, Terrorism and The Rule of Law
-Political Economies of International Development
-The Politics of Aid

Methods of Learning

The Master’s award in International Relations is designed to provide a rounded education and broadly based qualification for UK graduates and equivalently qualified foreign students, particularly those who lack an international dimension through their previous study. It is awarded after completion of a mixture of taught courses and a programme of research. The MA lasts at least one year (if taken full time, two years part time), and is to be taken by persons with honours degrees (or equivalent achievement). Also on offer (and commensurate with this standard of education) are advanced short courses leading to Postgraduate Certificates and Postgraduate Diplomas in IR.

In common with all universities, certain elements of the course are compulsory and other elements chosen. To be awarded the MA in International Relations each student must achieve 180 credits at Master’s level (here called CATS (Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme)). This includes 40 CATS of compulsory modules in International Theory, 20 CATS of compulsory methodology and research training, and a 60 CATS compulsory dissertation of between 15,000 and 20,000 words. Compulsory modules define the intellectual basis of IR as a multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary subject while providing a firm foundation in theoretical issues and debates. They also develop the cognitive skills for specialist study and the practical skills for research. You gain the remaining 60 CATS through a wide choice of designated modules. All modules build upon the research and teaching expertise of individual tutors, and cover a wide range of themes in diverse areas of the globe – not just North America and Western Europe but the Middle East, Latin America, China and the Pacific Rim among others. A key aim is to develop a sensitivity and awareness of varied geo-political settings while comprehending the impact of change upon states, societies and individuals. Students are taught to discuss international problems to a high standard while applying the ways of analysis adopted by IR scholars to a range of issues.

We hope all candidates might be encouraged and enthused to achieve the MA. Yet we also recognise that some students may prefer to study in ‘stages’ – funds or time permitting. This is why we provide a named Postgraduate Certificate and a named Postgraduate Diploma. A Postgraduate Diploma in International Relations is available if students successfully complete 120 CATS points but do not complete the 60 CATS dissertation. Alternatively, there is the opportunity to achieve a Postgraduate Certificate in International Relations by successfully gaining 60 CATS points including 40 CATS of IR theory but excluding 20 CATS of methodology/research and of course the 60 CATS dissertation module.

All of this gives you, the student, the added flexibility of opting in or out of awards as personal or financial circumstance change. It gives the added incentive of an identifiable and quantifiable award at each stage of study while consistently encouraging and widening your participation in postgraduate enterprise. This strategy also enables an individual to complete their study within a timescale suitable to their own specific needs. Multiple points of entry (February and September) over a one or two year cycle further facilitate this.

Schedule

At Master’s level study, we aim to encourage student-led debates and exchange of ideas. Modules will typically alternate fortnightly between classes on campus and online learning activities. Each module incorporates a variety of teaching methods in class, including workshops, student presentations and discussions of primary and secondary materials (such as film, images, documentary sources and online resources). Online learning activities include online seminars, discussion boards, podcasts and blogs.

Full-time students get six hours of timetabled contact per week, part-time students have three hours. This does not include individual tutorials or dissertation supervision.

Independent study and assessment time equate to approximately 18 hours per week full time or nine hours part time.

Assessments

Your MA in International Relations is assessed through a variety of types of coursework and the dissertation. Assessment items include essays, literature reviews, presentations and research reports. There are no examinations. All coursework reflects the high level of intellectual demands associated with a taught MA and has the aim of developing a range of oral and written skills. You need to be prepared to commit yourself to substantial reading and thought for successful completion of an MA. This time includes preparation for assignments, seminars and the dissertation element.

Although teaching strategies vary according to individual modules, considerable emphasis is placed upon student-based learning in order to foster effective critical participation and discussion as overall course objectives. This means lectures and tutor-led teaching provide overviews of major theories and themes but the seminar or workshop is where learning is consolidated, exemplified and used in more student-centred contexts.

Modules typically make use of current case study material, video teaching media as well as practical exercises and the more traditional lecture and seminar activities. Tutorials are very important in facilitating and directing the learning of cognitive skills on a personal basis – by working within the context of your individual needs, appropriate goals can be set, for example, in relation to essay preparation and feedback.

At each stage you are encouraged to plan and organise your own learning. This allows greater time to be spent on critical evaluation – so reinforcing and extending your learning experience. Mixed methods of teaching and learning are utilised in seminars to achieve aims and outcomes, including tutor input, structural discussions, small group work, presentations, guided reading of designated course material, and wider reading appropriate to Master’s level. Student-led presentations and small group work develop your transferable skills and enhance your capacity for critical reflection. The academic essay has a central function in every module in allowing you to engage with and reflect upon the key skills required to demonstrate knowledge and understanding in IR. Coursework for all modules, but particularly in methods modules, allows students to acquire skills that they will then use in the dissertation.

Facilities and Special Features

-Strong staff expertise.
-Enthusiastic teaching team providing a supportive atmosphere for research.
-The core modules consider classic texts and the very latest thinking on international theory.
-Focus on the study of distinct global regions not just Europe, North America or the West.
-All students are assigned a personal tutor and will be encouraged to form study groups with colleagues.
-Guest speakers are a feature of this MA.
-Students will find the course team warm and approachable.

Careers

Previous students have used our MA in a variety of ways. It can be a bridge to further study – with several former students having gone on to do a PhD. As a prestigious qualification, it can enhance career opportunities in a wide range of occupations, for example, teachers have used the course to gain curriculum knowledge and career progression. Many students take the course purely because they have enjoyed History as a degree or as a personal interest and wish to pursue the subject further.

Progression to a taught postgraduate course is a path chosen by those wishing to further their careers, those intending to pursue further research and those who seek principally to satisfy their own intellectual interests. Successful completion will lead to the award of MA. This will complement a candidate’s existing qualifications. Additionally, it is envisaged that the programme’s breadth and depth will provide you with a suitable background for careers in public and private sectors where there is a need for international expertise.

The award of MA demonstrates an intellectual flexibility and high level of analytical, written and verbal skills. Increasingly, employers are looking for graduates with skills and knowledge which are not found (or perceived by employers to be found) among many recent graduates. This MA will give you, the graduate, a distinctive product in a highly competitive and expanding graduate employment market. Employers report that a person with a background in International Relations is more likely to find a career in the rapidly changing international environment than a person with another form of postgraduate qualification.

The MA IR thus aims to provide you with a suitable foundation for careers in both private and public sectors where there is a need for international sensitivity. Students wishing to engage in later doctoral research (where we have capacity) or in careers within voluntary organisations, civil and diplomatic service, international organisations, research posts or journalism will particularly benefit from it. We now have excellent links with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Members of European Parliament and representatives from the United Nations, as well as a number of pressure groups.

In sum, our core purpose is to nurture not only a robust intellectual flexibility but also the high levels of analytical, written and verbal skills attractive to employers from globally focused agencies and business. Our aim is to provide you with an excellent background and competitive edge for further study or a wide variety of careers in an ever-expanding job market.

Read less

The MA in History and Philosophy of Art (with a term in Rome) provides a structured introduction to postgraduate study of the history and philosophy of art.

It includes a term in Rome where we run the MA with the American University of Rome. A range of themes and approaches are considered in this MA with a particular focus on medieval, Renaissance and Baroque art in Italy. The first term is taught in Canterbury.

During the term in Rome you will study the art of Rome first hand, visiting relevant sites and museums, with options to study the history of Rome and specific artists. Kent staff are present for part of the spring term in Rome to ensure continuity of academic guidance and pastoral support. The campus is located in the Monteverde district of Rome, a picturesque district with a wide range of shops and amenities. From nearby Trastevere, it is a short bus-ride to the historic centre of Rome with its astonishing range of Roman sites, monuments, churches and museums.

The programme is intended for graduates in art history and other arts subjects. It gives you the opportunity to pursue your interest in visual art at advanced level, to develop a high level of expertise in topics in history and philosophy of art and to prepare for doctoral research in history of art.

Visit the website https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/344/history-of-art-rome

About the Department of History of Art

The History of Art Department within the School of Arts, provides opportunities for graduate study with well-established researchers in the fields of art history, philosophy of art and aesthetics. Staff research covers contemporary art and aesthetics, modernism, theories of art, the historiography of art and the Cold War; biographical monographs, the photograph (in its historical, contemporary and critical contexts), and the historical interplay of image, theory and institutions from the Renaissance to the present (especially European and North American).

Postgraduates have the opportunity to participate in the activities of the multidisciplinary Aesthetics Research Centre and the Art History and Visual Cultures Research Centre. There is also a full programme of visiting speakers from across the constituent subject areas within the School of Arts, which includes Film and Drama.

Course structure

You take one core module and one optional module during your first term in Canterbury and your second term in Rome. Over the course of these two terms you discuss with the course director your ideas and plans for your 15,000-word dissertation. The writing of the dissertation takes place in the summer with completion in August.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.

Term 1 (Canterbury):

Compulsory modules:
HA838 - Key Concepts and Classic Texts in History and Philosophy of Art

One option from:

HA826 - History and Theory of Curating
FI812 - Advanced Film Theory
FR872 - Theories of Art in Modern French Thought
HA826 - History and Theory of Curating
HA835 - A Matter of Taste: The Art and Aesthetics of Food and Drink
HA898 Dissertation

Term 2 (Rome):
Compulsory Module:
HA833 Discovering Rome in Rome: Arts in Rome from antiquity to the present day

One option from:

Optional modules in Rome are taken through the American University in Rome and change each year. Past options have included:

- Michelangelo in Rome

This seminar on Michelangelo examines the work of the Renaissance master; his sculpture, painting, architecture and literary production. His works are investigated within their specific historical context, focusing on issues of commission, iconography, censorship, biography, historiography and aesthetics. An excursion to Florence is also planned. Beyond a complete comprehension of Michelangelo’s work, the course aims toward a mastery of art historical research skills, the evaluation of current scholarship and independent critical thought on art.

Term 3: Dissertation
HA833 - Discovering Rome in Rome: Arts in Rome from Antiquity to the Present Da (30 credits)
HA838 - Key Concepts and Classic Texts in History and Philosophy of Art (30 credits)
HA898 - History & Philosophy of Art Dissertation (60 credits)

Assessment

Assessment is by two assignments per module and the dissertation.

Programme aims

This programme aims to:

- provide you with a focused programme of taught postgraduate study in history and philosophy of art; enhanced through the opportunity to study for one term in Rome

- provide you with a taught foundation for subsequent postgraduate research

- enable you to acquire or deepen your knowledge and understanding of the historical and contemporary topics within the history of art and philosophy of art

- enable you to develop your art historical and philosophical skills beyond that expected of an undergraduate; especially through study abroad and site visits

- enable you to develop, articulate and defend art historical and philosophical ideas as they relate to art

- provide access to enhanced intercultural awareness and understanding through the opportunity to study for one term in Rome

- enable you to engage with historical and contemporary theoretical thought about the arts from art historical and philosophical perspectives

- provide opportunities for the development of personal, communication and research skills and other key skills appropriate for graduate employment both in industry and in the public sector.

Research areas

The Department has a collective interest in developing interdisciplinary projects, including projects informed by art history and philosophy of art or aesthetics. Shared areas of research interest include: photography, art theory from the Renaissance to recent times and contemporary art.

Careers

Arts postgraduates have gone on to work in a range of professions, from museum positions and teaching roles to marketing and gallery assistants. Our graduates have found work with Tate Britain, the V&A, Museum of Childhood and other arts, culture and heritage-related organisations.

Find out how to apply here - https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/apply/

Read less

Whether you’re interested in the making of the modern world or witchcraft through the ages, at Essex we give you the freedom to explore the history that excites you. Our geographic spread, topic diversity and social reach give you an unrivalled opportunity to pursue your historical passions and discover new ones.

Our MA History is rigorous, flexible and wide-ranging, so that you can to choose the modules and thesis topic which best suit your interests.

Alongside four optional modules which enable you to explore the latest in historical research in our specialist areas, you also study a practical module in research techniques, and write a 20,000-word dissertation on a topic of your choice.

Historical research at Essex concentrates on the period from 1500 to the present, and covers a wide geographical area that includes British and European history, as well as Latin America, the USA, China, Russia and Africa.

Our Department of History has developed a strong research and teaching profile, with the majority of our research rated as ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’ (REF 2014). We provide you with opportunities to explore local history, and have strong links with the Essex Record Office, one of the best county record offices in the UK.

Alternatively you can focus your study on a more specific area by following one of the following pathways:

Public History Pathway
Further your understanding of, and expertise in, a variety of public history contexts, ranging from museums and documentary films to conflict resolution and computer games.

This pathway makes the most of our status as an institution at the cutting edge of communicating history to the general public, and will involve classes led by scholars who are currently involved in documentary, heritage, oral history and school curriculum projects.

You will be given the opportunity to create, participate in, and/or critique a current piece of public history as part of your coursework assessment on the Public History Workshop module, and your dissertation will demonstrate an engagement with the methods and/or theories of public history, analyse an example of public history, or be an example of public history.

Cultural and Social History Pathway

Explore the varied ways in which understandings of the relationship between evidence and interpretation, language and the material world, economies and identities, have been challenged and changed by the ‘cultural turn’.

This pathway offers you modules which deal with a range of areas, themes and periods, placing you at the cutting-edge of historical thought on issues such as gender, race, class, consumption, modernity, mentalities and identities.

Local and Regional History Pathway
Local (or micro) history, as well as community and family studies, has played an increasingly important part in the development of historical analysis.

We reflect on these developments, drawing on the rich national and comparative literature in these fields, with a primary focus on the period from 1800 to the 20th century.

You also design and conduct a substantial independent study on a chosen historical topic or in the field of local, community or family history.

Our expert staff

Our staff are among world leaders in their field, and our enthusiasm for our subject is infectious. Our flexible course is combined with a supportive structure which helps you to pursue the modules best-suited to your interests.

We take the time to get to know you as an individual, welcome you into our scholarly community, and value your views.

Specialist facilities

-We have several Special Collections in history, including the Essex Society for Archaeology and History Library, the Harsnett Collection, the Hervey Benham Oral History Sound Archive, the Bensusan Collection, and the Colchester Medical Society Library
-Access the UK Data Archive, a national service provider digital resources for historians, which is particularly strong in 19th and 20th-century economic and social history
-Attend an exciting programme of events
-Access a variety of textbooks and journals in our Albert Sloman Library which houses materials on Latin America, Russia and the US that are of national significance

Your future

We have excellent links with the research community, both in the UK and worldwide, so many of our students have gone on to teach in higher education institutions. Others have found employment in archives, research, managing research funds, other forms of educational provision, the Civil Service, the National Health Service, and management.

Within our Department of History, we offer supervision for PhD, MPhil and MA by Dissertation. Themes of particular research interest include:
-Class, race and gender formation
-Nationalism
-Wars and revolutions
-International relations and oil diplomacy
-The history of medicine
-The history of crime
-Popular culture and consumption
-Slave societies
-The history of ideas and print culture
-The history of the Roma and Sinti in Europe
-Historical censuses and surveys

Our University is one of only 11 AHRC-accredited Doctoral Training Centres in the UK. This means that we offer funded PhD studentships which also provide a range of research and training opportunities.

We also work with our Employability and Careers Centre to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.

Example structure

-Dissertation
-Research Methods in History
-Race and Class in the United States, South Africa and Britain: Select Topics (optional)
-Illness and Culture in 18th-And 19th-Century Europe (optional)
-The Public History Workshop (optional)
-Gender in Early Modern Europe c.1500- c.1800 (optional)
-Approaches to Cultural and Social History (optional)
-A Global History of Food, c.1400 - c.1750 (optional)
-The Making of Consumer Culture: Britain 1780-1960 (optional)
-Narcotic Culture: A History of Drugs (From the Sixteenth to the Twenty First Century) (optional)
-Decency and Disorder: Institutions in Essex 1700-1900
-The Patterns of Victorian Life: Reconstructing Nineteenth-Century Communities (optional)
-The Uses of Space in Early Modern History (optional)

Read less

This two-year part-time Masters Degree in Literature and Arts course offers the opportunity to study the literature and arts of three different periods of English history (ranging from the c16th to the c19th) in an interdisciplinary manner over four five day residences and two online modules. The course offers full access to the library and electronic resources of the university, a team of expert tutors, and a high level of personal and academic support.

VIDES (volume of interdisciplinary essays)

VIDES 2016 - Volume 4
In the second year, as part of the preparation for the dissertation, each student writes a short essay around two documents or artefacts which they have chosen which comment on a particular topic but from contrasting viewpoints. The student group is divided up into a number of small committees responsible for peer reviewing and editing the journal, deciding on its house-style and designing it.

To make navigation around the journal easier the volume is also presented on the open.conted site where you can find a list of all the essays with their abstracts to help you identify the essays which are of interest you. We hope you enjoy the read!

If you have enjoyed VIDES 2016 - Volume 4 you might also like to read VIDES 2015 - Volume 3, VIDES 2014 - Volume 2 and VIDES 2013 - Volume 1.

Visit the website https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/mst-in-literature-and-arts

Description

This literature and arts course brings together the creative, intellectual and manufactured output of people in the past. It has a twofold aim – to explore the past through the lens of human creativity, and to inform our understanding of that creativity by studying the context within which it emerged. It is therefore an interdisciplinary programme which encompasses literature, art and architectural history, history, philosophy and theology. Based in Oxford, and taking full advantage of the remarkable human and cultural resources which this university has at its disposal, the literature and arts course is designed around three sequential periods of British history, from Early Modern (c.1450) to the early twentieth century (c.1914). By studying each period through a range of disciplines, students will acquire a broad and multi-faceted picture of the past. In this framework giant achievements such as Milton’s poetry or Wren’s architecture can be understood not only as products of their times but also in so far as they stand as uniquely inspired statements, or as harbingers of future developments.

Interdisciplinary study raises challenges for a student in terms of methodologies. How do I analyse and interpret a picture when I have only ever worked with text? A poem when I have only worked with documentary sources? A building when I have only ever studied abstract ideas? How do I make viable connections between these different areas of study? An online element offered towards the beginning of the course will provide the opportunity to discover, practise and develop these skills, and to engage with current theoretical discourses concerning the way scholars relate with their source material. Similarly a more advanced on-line component in the second year will focus on interdisciplinary research skills, including trying out those skills by contributing to a small volume of papers on a subject related to the chosen dissertation topic.

Whilst focusing on British history and culture, the course will begin with an introductory unit which sets Britain in a world context and explores her cultural relationship with the rest of the world since the sixteenth century. Using the layout of the Ashmolean museum’s international collections with its emphasis on global interaction, this unit will principally be concerned with the formation of British culture through the stimuli of influences beyond Europe.

The literature and arts course aims to enable students to specialise in certain disciplines and ultimately in a particular historical period, whilst structuring their learning within a strong contextual and critical framework. It aims to enable students to make the most of the university’s resources (e.g. its libraries, computer facilities, museums and historic monuments), to provide a high quality of academic and pastoral support, and to maximise the potential for learning within a peer group. It sets out to encourage a richly democratic view of cultural history in which all men’s and women’s lives play their part.

Programme details

Structure of the Literature and Arts Course
Year One

Two core courses in year one will introduce students to post-graduate research skills and methodologies and use a series of case studies to explore some of the challenges inherent in the practice of interdisciplinary study.

Students will also take two options during year one, which will allow them to begin to specialise either by period or theme.

Year Two

A third option at the start of year two will enable students to gain wide-ranging insight into their chosen area of study before deciding on their dissertation topic. A final core course in cultural theory will prepare the student for the writing of the dissertation. This involves writing an article for and contributing to the production process of the course's online journal, Vides. The dissertation occupies the final two terms of year two.

Core Courses

Core courses will be both residential and delivered through online distance learning modules.

Residences: students will attend tutorials, seminars and lectures during five-day residences in October, February and late June/July in year one and in October of year two, plus an initial residential induction weekend, prior to the first core course. Residences will account for eighty face to face teaching hours over the two years (structured around intensive discussion in seminars).

Distance-learning: these modules are fully supported by a dedicated Virtual Learning Environment. Students will engage in on-line group discussions using the course website and email. Students will also have access to the electronic on-line resources of Oxford University's Library Services, including the Bodleian Library, and all other University libraries, including the English Faculty Library, the History Faculty Library, the Philosophy Faculty Library and the Theology Faculty Library. These modules are designed such that students need not have a sophisticated understanding of IT; materials may be provided in a variety of ways to suit the student's preference and situation.

In keeping with the Oxford ethos of tutorial instruction, individual tutorials and supervisions will be an integral part of the programme, most notably with regard to the dissertation. Individual supervision will be undertaken both face-to-face and by e-mail.

Options

Each of the options residences is structured in the same way, beginning with an historical introduction to the period and ending with a plenary discussing where connections can be made between the subjects studied through the week. The options are taught in the mornings and afternoons and represent a range of disciplines, specifically Literature, History, Visual Culture and Philosophy/Theology/History of Ideas. Each student chooses two options out of four offered. Please note that due to timetabling constrictions it is not always possible to allocate each student to their preferred options. The following list indicates the subjects which were available in 2014/15, there may be some changes for 2016.

Late Medieval and Early Modern
Shakespeare in History - Dr Lynn Robson
Tudor Monarchy– Dr Janet Dickinson
The Role of Wit, Conceit and Curious Devices in Tudor and Jacobean Art and Architecture - Dr Cathy Oakes
The Uses of History in Seventeenth-century England - Dr Gabriel Roberts

The ‘Long Eighteenth Century’
Writing, Money and the Market - Dr Carly Watson
British Collectors and Classical Antiquities – Dr Stephen Kershaw
The British Empiricists: Locke, Hume and Berkeley – Dr Peter Wyss
Overseas Trade and the Rise of Britain as a Superpower - Dr Mike Wagner

The ‘Long Nineteenth Century’
Love and Sex in the Victorian Novel - Dr David Grylls
Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Late Nineteenth Century British Culture – Professor Barrie Bullen
The British Empire and the Indian Mutiny– Dr Yasmin Khan
'Habits of Heart and Mind' - Victorian Political Culture – Professor Angus Hawkins

Dissertation

A dissertation of 11,000 words will be the focus of the final two terms of the second year.

The final core course, delivered in Hilary term of the second year, is envisaged both as a graduate-level survey of relevant cultural theory, which will provide the necessary intellectual contexts for the students' chosen dissertation topics, and as an opportunity to fine-tune the students' research and writing skills in preparation for the dissertation. After completing Vides, students will decide on their dissertation subject in consultation with the Course Director. They will be advised on reading lists and a timetable of work by their dissertation supervisor.

The dissertation is intended to demonstrate the student's knowledge and awareness of more than one subject discipline in this final piece of assessment.

Who should take the course?

The design of the Masters Degree in Literature and Arts is part-time over two years, and as such it is intended for gifted students who, due to their obligations to professional work or caring duties, would otherwise be unable to pursue higher degrees. The MSt in Literature and Arts is taught in the format of regular short residences in Oxford, together with an element of closely-monitored distance-learning.

The course is ideal for the following:

- Graduates in Humanities disciplines who have entered employment, but who wish to maintain their momentum of study progressing to a postgraduate qualification. This group will include teachers, librarians, and archivists, and others involved in humanities-related professions.

- Humanities graduates who would like to study part-time because of other responsibilities (including caring roles).

- Graduates who have reached a stage in life where they wish to pursue a new area of study, either for personal development, or to establish new career paths.

While the Masters Degree in Literature and Arts can be seen as a stand-alone qualification, it will also prepare students for doctoral work.

Find out how to apply here - http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/applying-to-oxford

Read less

This MA provides a structured introduction to the postgraduate study of the history and philosophy of art.

This programme allows you to spend your first term at our Canterbury campus with full access to its excellent facilities. For the spring term you relocate to our Paris centre to study in a historic corner of Montparnasse. This programme can also be studied in Paris only.

Particular focuses include contemporary art, photography, Renaissance art, medieval art, 18th-century British painting, 19th-century French painting, modernism, aesthetics and the philosophy of art and film. You may elect to take a Philosophy of Art & Aesthetics pathway, which draws on the expertise of our Aesthetics Research Group.

The programme is intended for graduates in art history, philosophy and cognate subjects, such as fine art. It gives you the opportunity to pursue your interest in visual art at advanced level, to develop a high level of expertise in topics in history and philosophy of art and to prepare for doctoral research in history of art or philosophy of art.

Visit the website https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/99/history-and-philosophy-of-art-paris

About the Department of History & Philosophy of Art

The History & Philosophy of Art Department provides opportunities for graduate study with well-established researchers in the fields of art history, philosophy of art and aesthetics. Staff research covers contemporary art and aesthetics, modernism, theories of art, the historiography of art and the Cold War; biographical monographs, the photograph (in its historical, contemporary and critical contexts), and the historical interplay of image, theory and institutions from the Renaissance to the present (especially European and North American).

Developing areas of interest include the cultural and historical significance of the print, and the role of performance and new media in contemporary art practices. In particular, postgraduates have the opportunity to participate in the activities of the multidisciplinary Aesthetics Research Centre and the Art History and Visual Cultures Research Centre. There is also a full programme of visiting speakers from across the constituent subject areas within the School of Arts, which includes Film and Drama.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. Most programmes will require you to study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also have the option to take modules from other programmes so that you may customise your programme and explore other subject areas that interest you.

HA838 - Key Concepts and Classic Texts in History and Philosophy of Art (30 credits)
HA841 - Modern Art in Paris (30 credits)
HA898 - History & Philosophy of Art Dissertation (60 credits)

Assessment

Assessment is by two assignments per module and the dissertation.

Programme aims

This programme aims to:

- provide you with a focused programme of taught postgraduate study in history and philosophy of art

- provide you with a taught foundation for subsequent postgraduate research

- enable you to acquire or deepen your knowledge and understanding of the historical and contemporary topics within the history of art and philosophy of art

- enable you to develop your art historical and philosophical skills beyond that expected of an undergraduate

- enable you to develop, articulate and defend art historical and philosophical ideas as they relate to art

- enable you to engage with historical and contemporary theoretical thought about the arts from art historical and philosophical perspectives.

Study support

Postgraduate resources
There is a large and wide-ranging library holding for History & Philosophy of Art, covering the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, aesthetics and contemporary visual communications. There is a substantial stock of periodicals, online access to e-journals and a slide library with well over 100,000 images, covering areas such as contemporary art, visual cultures, garden history and the film still, as well as traditional media. Kent is ideally located for access to galleries in London and on the continent.

In 2010, we moved into the purpose-built, and RIBA award-winning, Jarman Building located at the centre of the Canterbury campus. The new building is home to the Studio 3 Gallery and a range of teaching and social spaces as well as a dedicated postgraduate centre.

Support
All postgraduate students are offered research skills training and the opportunity to take part in reading groups and research seminars at departmental, school and faculty level. Research students have the added opportunity for funded conference attendance. There is also a dedicated student support office at our Canterbury campus, which can offer support and guidance throughout your studies, in addition to an office in Paris.

In recent years, several members of the History & Philosophy of Art Department, both full-time and part-time, have been awarded University prizes for excellence in student support, curriculum innovation and research-based teaching – an ethos which we seek to extend to the postgraduate community.

Dynamic publishing culture
Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books. Among others, they have recently contributed to: British Journal of Aesthetics; Art History; History of Photography; Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism; Journal of Visual Arts Practice; and The Philosophical Quarterly.

Global Skills Award
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme (http://www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/skills/programmes/gsa.html). The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability

Research areas

The Department has a collective interest in developing interdisciplinary projects, including projects informed by art history and philosophy of art or aesthetics. Shared areas of research interest include: photography, art theory from the Renaissance to recent times and contemporary art.

Careers

Arts postgraduates have gone on to work in a range of professions, from museum positions and teaching roles to marketing and gallery assistants. Our graduates have found work with Tate Britain, the V&A, Museum of Childhood and other arts, culture and heritage-related organisations.

Find out how to apply here - https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/apply/

Read less

This MA provides a structured introduction to the postgraduate study of the history and philosophy of art. Particular focuses include contemporary art, photography, Renaissance art, medieval art, 18th-century British painting, 19th-century French painting, modernism, aesthetics and the philosophy of art and film. You may elect to take a Philosophy of Art & Aesthetics strand.

The MA gives you the opportunity to pursue your interest in visual art at advanced level, to develop a high level of expertise in topics in history and philosophy of art, and to prepare for doctoral research in history of art or philosophy of art.

The programme is also available at split site between Canterbury and Paris.
https://www.kent.ac.uk/arts/study/postgraduate.html

About the Department of History & Philosophy of Art

The History & Philosophy of Art Department within the School of Arts, provides opportunities for graduate study with well-established researchers in the fields of art history, philosophy of art and aesthetics. Staff research covers contemporary art and aesthetics, modernism, theories of art, the historiography of art and the Cold War; biographical monographs, the photograph (in its historical, contemporary and critical contexts), and the historical interplay of image, theory and institutions from the Renaissance to the present (especially European and North American).

Developing areas of interest include the cultural and historical significance of the print, and the role of performance and new media in contemporary art practices, which draw upon our links with other subjects within the School of Arts and the Faculty of Humanities. In particular, postgraduates have the opportunity to participate in the activities of the multidisciplinary Aesthetics Research Centre and the Art History and Visual Cultures Research Centre. There is also a full programme of visiting speakers from across the constituent subject areas within the School of Arts, which includes Film and Drama.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. Most programmes will require you to study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also have the option to take modules from other programmes so that you may customise your programme and explore other subject areas that interest you.

HA898 - Philosophy of Art Dissertation (60 credits)
HA838 - Key Concepts and Classic Texts in History and Philosophy of Art (30 credits)

Assessment

Assessment is by coursework and the dissertation.

Programme aims

This programme aims to:

- provide you with a focused programme of taught postgraduate study in history and philosophy of art

- provide you with a taught foundation for subsequent postgraduate research

- enable you to acquire or deepen your knowledge and understanding of the historical and contemporary topics within the history of art and philosophy of art

- enable you to develop your art historical and philosophical skills beyond that expected of an undergraduate

- enable you to develop, articulate and defend art historical and philosophical ideas as they relate to art

- enable you to engage with historical and contemporary theoretical thought about the arts from art historical and philosophical perspectives.

Study support

Postgraduate resources
There is a large and wide-ranging library holding for History & Philosophy of Art, covering the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, aesthetics and contemporary visual communications. There is a substantial stock of periodicals, online access to e-journals and a slide library with well over 100,000 images, covering areas such as contemporary art, visual cultures, garden history and the film still, as well as traditional media. Kent is ideally located for access to galleries in London and on the continent.

In 2010, we moved into the purpose-built, and RIBA award-winning, Jarman Building located at the centre of the Canterbury campus. The new building is home to the Studio 3 Gallery and a range of teaching and social spaces as well as a dedicated postgraduate centre.

Support
All postgraduate students are offered research skills training and the opportunity to take part in reading groups and research seminars at departmental, school and faculty level. Research students have the added opportunity for funded conference attendance. There is also a dedicated student support office at our Canterbury campus, which can offer support and guidance throughout your studies, in addition to an office in Paris.

In recent years, several members of the History & Philosophy of Art Department, both full-time and part-time, have been awarded University prizes for excellence in student support, curriculum innovation and research-based teaching – an ethos which we seek to extend to the postgraduate community.

Dynamic publishing culture
Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books. Among others, they have recently contributed to: British Journal of Aesthetics; Art History; History of Photography; Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism; Journal of Visual Arts Practice; and The Philosophical Quarterly.

Global Skills Award
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme (http://www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/skills/programmes/gsa.html). The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability.

Research areas

The Department has a collective interest in developing interdisciplinary projects, including projects informed by art history and philosophy of art or aesthetics. Shared areas of research interest include: photography, art theory from the Renaissance to recent times and contemporary art.

Careers

Arts postgraduates have gone on to work in a range of professions, from museum positions and teaching roles to marketing and gallery assistants. Our graduates have found work with Tate Britain, the V&A, Museum of Childhood and other arts, culture and heritage-related organisations.

Find out how to apply here - https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/apply/

Read less

Develop your understanding of history and of the nature of historical research with this flexible course that encourages you to develop as independent researcher.

Course overview

The MA Historical Research is for students who want to develop their understanding of history and of the nature of historical research. It is a flexible course that will encourage you to develop as an independent researcher. You will be able to pursue your interests in history while discovering the ways in which historians work. You will also engage with the intellectual, practical and social facets of the profession.

Core modules emphasise the nature of the discipline or historical research, its evolution (History in the Past or Historians on History) and the preparatory work for independent research (The Profession of the Historian or the Dissertation Feasibility Study). These modules will give you the grounding needed to engage with your own research project in the dissertation module.

Design your MA studies according to your preferred methods of learning. If you prefer to work independently you may choose to opt for the Extended History Dissertation, whereas if you prefer more taught elements you can opt for the History Dissertation. This will allow you to place more or less emphasis on independent work and research. The Extended History Dissertation is a great opportunity for those wanting to move on to further research or who want to develop a career in which research is a key element. In both cases, the project will be negotiated with the teaching team to reflect both you and your lecturers’ research interests.

The course is designed to implement the research-led curriculum of the university in which you become involved in research through the guidance of research-active members of staff - all staff members on the teaching team are research active.

You will graduate with a firm grounding in the way history evolves through an understanding of the nature of the discipline in all its diversity and of the challenges it faces. This, combined with an engagement with a specific subject area, will foster a critical understanding of history, necessary for a wide range of careers in research, academia, law, journalism and the cultural sector.

Course content

The course mixes taught elements with independent research and self-directed study. There is flexibility to pursue personal interests in considerable depth, with guidance from Sunderland's supportive tutors.

Core module:
-History in the past (15 Credits)
-Historians on History (15 Credits)
-History in the past (15 Credits)
-Historians on History (15 Credits)
-Dissertation Feasibility study (30 Credits)
-The profession of the historian (15 Credits)
-The Profession of the historian (Symposium/Webinar) (15 Credits)

Dissertation modules:
-History Dissertation (60 Credits)
-Extended History Dissertation (90 Credits)

Optional modules (for students choosing the Dissertation module HISM40) would typically include:
-Suicide Until the Reformation
-Suicide Since the Reformation
-Law, Family and Community Relations 1550-1800
-Law, Treason and Rebellion 1550-1800
-Britain Between the Wars: The Changing Party System
-Britain Between the Wars: The Challenges of the Inter War Years
-Foundations of Liberty - Obedience and Resistance
-Foundations of liberty - Religious toleration
-Human Rights in History: Ideas and Movements
-Human Rights in History: Organizations, Activists and Campaigns
-Revolution in Science and Art 1870-1920
-Revolution in Science and Art 1870-1920

You will normally choose your options during the induction week when the full list of optional modules available that year will be presented to you. The number of optional modules offered will depend on the size of the cohort and the availability of staff. Not all options will be available every year. In any one academic year no more than three optional modules (3 x 15 credits) will be offered. Optional modules all run in Semester 2.

Facilities & location

The University of Sunderland has excellent facilities that have been boosted by multi-million pound redevelopments.

University Library Services
We’ve got thousands of books and e-books on topics related to history, with many more titles available through the inter-library loan service. We also subscribe to a comprehensive range of print and electronic journals so you can access the most reliable and up-to-date academic and industry articles.

Some of the most important sources for your course include:
-House of Commons Parliamentary Papers including bills, registers and journals
-Early English Books Online, which provides digital images of virtually every work printed in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and British North America during 1473-1800
-Eighteenth Century Collections Online, which provides 136,000 full-text publications from 1701-1800
-Periodicals Archive Online, which provides digitised literary journals
-Archival Sound Recordings with over 12,000 hours of recordings
-JSTOR (short for ‘Journal Storage’), which provides access to important journals across the humanities, social sciences and sciences
Lexis, which provides access to legal information as well as full-text newspaper articles
-Nineteenth Century British Library Newspapers, with full runs of 48 titles
-Screen Online (BFI), which is an online encyclopaedia of British film and television, featuring clips from the vast collections of the BFI National Archive
-SocINDEX with full-text articles, which is probably the world's most comprehensive and highest-quality sociology research database

Archives
The Murray Library at the University also contains the physical archive of the North East England Mining Archive and Resource Centre. This contains mining records, technical reports, trade union records and health & safety information.

IT provision
When it comes to IT provision you can take your pick from hundreds of PCs as well as Apple Macs in the David Goldman Informatics Centre and St Peter’s library. There are also free WiFi zones throughout the campus. If you have any problems, just ask the friendly helpdesk team.

Course location
The course is based at the Priestman Building on City Campus, just a few minutes from the main Murray Library and close to Sunderland city centre. It’s a very vibrant and supportive environment with excellent resources for teaching and learning.

Employment & careers

This course is relevant to a wide range of professions, highlighting as it does critical and analytical skills and an ability to develop and effectively advance an argument. A large number of transferable skills will be gained: research skills, writing skills, presentation skills, analytical and critical skills. These will be valuable in a huge range of careers and activities.

The course has been designed with employability in mind, with a focus on the way research skills can be transferred to the work place.

History by nature is a subject that includes a number of transferable skills such as critical thinking, collecting and analysing data critically, working independently and to a deadline, developing a coherent argument, writing, and oral skills. The QAA Subject Benchmark statement for History (December 2014) lists the some following (§3.3):
-Self discipline
-Independence of mind, and initiative
-A questioning disposition and the ability to formulate and pursue clearly defined questions and enquiries
-Ability to work with others, and to have respect for others' reasoned views
-Ability to gather, organise and deploy evidence, data and information; and familiarity with appropriate means of identifying, finding, retrieving, sorting and exchanging information
-Analytical ability, and the capacity to consider and solve problems, including complex problems to which there is no single solution
-Structure, coherence, clarity and fluency of both oral and written expression
-Imaginative insight and creativity
-Awareness of ethical issues and responsibilities that arise from research into the past and the reuse of the research and writing of others

These transferable skills will be fostered through each module and particularly emphasised in core modules. Furthermore, the research skills module The profession of the historian Symposium/Webinar will involve the organisation of a mini symposium. You will be expected to engage with some of the administrative and practical skills involved in organising an academic event.

During the dissertation feasibility study, you will be expected to deliver papers to an audience of staff and peers, allowing you to practice your oral and presentational skills.

MA Historical Research graduates can expect to be employed in:
-Teaching
-Archives
-Libraries
-Museums
-Journalism
-Law

Read less

The Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies offers an exciting new opening for graduates of all disciplines to pursue a taught postgraduate qualification in historical studies. This one-year part-time course offers a unique opportunity for students to combine focused study of key historical themes and concepts in British and Western European history with either a broad-based approach to history or with the opportunity to specialise by period or in a branch of the discipline (political, social, economic, art, architectural and local). The course culminates in the research and preparation of a substantial dissertation.

The Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies forms part of a two-year Master's programme. Students who successfully complete the Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies are eligible to apply to the Master's of Study in Historical Studies (https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/mst-in-historical-studies).

This Historical Studies course offers a stimulating and supportive environment for study. As a student of Oxford University you will also be entitled to attend History Faculty lectures and to join the Bodleian Library. The University’s Museums and Art Galleries are within easy walking distance.

Visit the website https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/postgraduate-certificate-in-historical-studies

Course content

Unit 1: Princes, States, and Revolutions
The first unit examines the interaction between the state and the individual from medieval to modern times and focuses upon authority, resistance, revolution and the development of political institutions. It introduces the development of scholarly debate, key historical themes and the critical analysis of documentary sources. Students explore disorder and rebellion in medieval and early modern England; the causes and impact of the British Civil Wars; and the causes and impact of the French Revolution.

Unit 2: European Court Patronage c.1400
The second unit explores cultural patronage in late medieval Europe and examines the diverse courtly responses to shared concerns and experiences, including the promotion of power and status; the relationship between piety and power; and the impact of dominant cultures. It introduces comparative approaches to history, the critical analysis of visual sources and the methodological issues surrounding the interpretation of material culture and the translation of written sources. Students compare the courts of Richard II of England, Philip the Bold and John the Fearless of Burgundy, Charles V and Charles VI of France, and Giangaleazzo Visconti of Milan.

Unit 3: Religious Reformations and Movements
The third unit examines the role of organised religion and religious movements in the lives of people in the past. It utilises case studies from different historical periods to explore the impact of local circumstances upon the reception and development of new ideas and further encourages engagement with historical debate and the interpretation of documentary and visual sources. Students explore: medieval monasticism; the English and European reformations of the sixteenth century; and religion and society in nineteenth-century England, including the rise of nonconformity, secularism and the Oxford Movement.

Unit 4: Memory and Conflict
The fourth unit focuses upon a central theme in the study of twentieth-century European history: how societies have chosen to remember (and forget) violent conflicts, and the relationship between public and private memory. It explores the challenges faced by historians when interpreting documentary, visual and oral sources in the writing of recent history. Students examine the theoretical context and methodological approaches to the study of memory and consider two case studies: World War I and the Spanish Civil War.

Unit 5: Special Subjects
In the final unit, students study a source-based special subject and research and write a dissertation on a related topic of their own choice. A range of subjects will be offered, varying from year to year, allowing specialization across both time periods and the historical disciplines. Examples include:

- Visualising Sanctity: Art and the Culture of Saints c1150-1500
- The Tudor Court
- The English Nobility c1540-1640
- The Great Indian Mutiny and Anglo-Indian Relations in the Nineteenth Century
- The British Empire
- Propaganda in the Twentieth Century

The on-line teaching modules

The first module provides a pre-course introduction to history and post-graduate study skills. The second focuses upon the analysis and interpretation of material sources, such as buildings and images and the third upon the analysis and interpretation of a range of documentary sources. All include a range of self-test exercises.

Libraries and computing facilities

Registered students receive an Oxford University card, valid for one year at a time, which acts as a library card for the Departmental Library at Rewley House and provides access to the unrivalled facilities of the Bodleian Libraries which include the central Bodleian, major research libraries such as the Sackler Library, Taylorian Institution Library, Bodleian Social Science Library, and faculty libraries such as English and History. Students also have access to a wide range of electronic resources including electronic journals, many of which can be accessed from home. Students on the course are entitled to use the Library at Rewley House for reference and private study and to borrow books. The loan period is normally two weeks and up to eight books may be borrowed. Students will also be encouraged to use their nearest University library. More information about the Continuing Education Library can be found at http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/conted.

The University card also provides access to facilities at Oxford University Computing Service (OUCS), 13 Banbury Road, Oxford. Computing facilities are available to students in the Students' Computing Facility in Rewley House and at Ewert House.

Course aims

The Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies course is designed to:

- provide a structured introduction to the study of medieval and modern British and European history;

- develop awareness and understanding of historical processes, such as continuity and change, comparative perspectives and the investigation of historical problems;

- provide the methodology required to interpret visual arts as historical evidence;

- equip students to evaluate and interpret historical evidence critically;

- promote interest in the concept and discipline of history and its specialisms;

- enable students to develop the analytical and communication skills needed to present historical argument orally and in writing;

- prepare students for progression to study at Master's level.

By the end of the course students will be expected to:

- display a broad knowledge and understanding of the themes and methodologies studied;

- demonstrate a detailed knowledge and understanding of key topics, the historical interpretation surrounding them and the relationship between local case-studies and the national perspective;

- utilise the appropriate critical and/or technical vocabulary associated with the disciplines, periods and themes covered;

- identify underlying historical processes, make cross-comparisons between countries and periods and explore historical problems;

- assess the relationship between the visual arts and the cultural framework within which they were produced;

- evaluate and analyse texts and images as historical evidence and utilise them to support and develop an argument;

- develop, sustain and communicate historical argument orally and in writing;

- reflect upon the nature and development of the historical disciplines and their contribution to national culture;

- demonstrate the skills needed to conduct an independent research project and present it as a dissertation within a restricted timeframe.

Assessment methods

The Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies is assessed through coursework. This comprises: four essays of 2,500 words each, two source-based exercises of 1,500 words each and a dissertation of 8,000 words. Students will write one essay following each of the first four units and the dissertation following unit 5. There will be a wide choice of assignment subjects for each unit and students will select a dissertation topic relating to their special subject with the advice of the course team. Students will be asked to write a non-assessed book review following the first pre-course online module and the source-based exercises will follow the second and third online modules.

Assignment titles, submission deadlines and reading lists will be supplied at the start of the course.

Tuition and study

A variety of teaching methods will be used in both the face-to-face and online elements of the course. In addition to lectures, PowerPoint slide presentations and tutor-led discussion, there will be opportunities for students to undertake course exercises in small groups and to give short presentations on prepared topics.

University lectures

Students are taught by the Department’s own staff but are also entitled to attend, at no extra cost, the wide range of lectures and research seminars organised by the University of Oxford’s History Faculty. Students are able to borrow books from both the Department’s library and the History Faculty Library, and are also eligible for membership of the Bodleian Library.

Find out how to apply here - http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/applying-to-oxford

Read less

The MPhil in History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine is a full-time 9-month course that provides students with the opportunity to carry out focused research under close supervision by senior members of the University. Students will acquire or develop skills and expertise relevant to their research interests, as well as a critical and well informed understanding of the roles of the sciences in society. Those intending to go on to doctoral work will learn the research skills needed to help them prepare a well planned and focused PhD proposal. During the course students gain experience of presenting their own work and discussing the issues that arise from it with an audience of their peers and senior members of the Department; they will attend lectures, supervisions and research seminars in a range of technical and specialist subjects central to research in the different areas of History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine.

The educational aims of the programme are:

- to give students with relevant training at first-degree level the opportunity to carry out focussed research in History, Philosophy of Science and Medicine under close supervision;
- to give students the opportunity to acquire or develop skills and expertise relevant to their research interests;
- to enable students to acquire a critical and well informed understanding of the roles of the sciences in society; and
- to help students intending to go on to doctoral work to acquire the requisite research skills and to prepare a well planned and focussed PhD proposal.

Visit the website: http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/hphpmpstm

Course detail

The MPhil course is taught by supervisions and seminars and assessed by three research essays and a dissertation.

The topics of the essays and dissertation should each fall within the following specified subject areas:

1. General philosophy of science
2. History of ancient and medieval science, technology and medicine
3. History of early modern science, technology and medicine
4. History of modern science, technology and medicine
5. History, philosophy and sociology of the life sciences
6. History, philosophy and sociology of the physical and mathematical sciences
7. History, philosophy and sociology of the social and psychological sciences
8. History, philosophy and sociology of medicine
9. Ethics and politics of science
10. History and methodology of history, philosophy and sociology of science, technology and medicine

Format

The MPhil seminars are the core teaching resource for this course. In the first part of year these seminars are led by different senior members of the Department and focus on selected readings. During the rest of the year the seminars provide opportunities for MPhil students to present their own work.

Students are encouraged to attend the lectures, research seminars, workshops and reading groups that make the Department a hive of intellectual activity. The Department also offers graduate training workshops, which focus on key research, presentation, publication and employment skills.

The MPhil programme is administered by the MPhil Manager, who meets all new MPhil students as a group in early October, then sees each of the students individually to discuss their proposed essay and dissertation topics. The Manager is responsible for finding appropriate supervisors for each of these topics; the supervisors are then responsible for helping the student do the research and writing needed for the essays and the dissertation. Students will see each of their supervisors frequently; the MPhil Manager sees each student at regular intervals during the year to discuss progress and offer help and advice.

Supervisions are designed to provide students with the opportunity to set their own agenda for their studies. The supervisor's job is to support the student's research, not to grade their work – supervisors are formally excluded from the examination process.

See the website http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/hphpmpstm

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will have:

- Knowledge and Understanding -

- developed a deeper knowledge of their chosen areas of History, Philosophy of Science and Medicine and of the critical debates within them;
- acquired a conceptual understanding that enables the evaluation of current research and methodologies;
- formed a critical view of the roles of the sciences in society.

- Skills and other attributes -

By the end of the course students should have:

- acquired or consolidated historiographic, linguistic, technical and ancillary skills appropriate for research in their chosen area;
- demonstrated independent judgement, based on their own research;
- presented their own ideas in a public forum and learned to contribute constructively within an international environment.

Assessment

- A dissertation of up to 15,000 words. Examiners may request an oral examination but this is not normally required.
- Three essays, each of up to 5,000 words.

Students receive independent reports from two examiners on each of their three essays and the dissertation.

Continuing

The usual preconditions for continuing to the PhD are an overall first class mark in the MPhil, a satisfactory performance in an interview and agreement of the PhD proposal with a potential supervisor.

How to apply: http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/applying

Funding Opportunities

- Rausing Studentships
- Raymond and Edith Williamson Studentships
- Lipton Studentships
- Wellcome Master's Awards

Please see the Department's graduate funding page for more information: http://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/studying/graduate/funding.html

General Funding Opportunities http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/finance/funding

Read less

About the course

The MA History of Wales is this department’s flagship Masters programme, as the world’s leading centre of teaching and research in Welsh history from the medieval to the modern period. It offers you the opportunity to explore the history of Wales from a variety of thematic and chronological perspectives, to develop your research skills in Welsh history (including Welsh language tuition), and to pursue your own research project in an aspect of Welsh history under expert supervision from a specialist in the field.

Our Masters programme in the History of Wales draws on the unrivalled expertise of our team of Welsh historians in the department to offer a degree scheme suitable both for those who have studied Welsh history in the past and those for whom it is a new field of study.

In Semester 1, you’ll follow a core module which introduces you to key themes and debates in Welsh history. This is followed in Semester 2 by a range of options covering topics in Welsh history from the medieval to the modern period.

Alongside this study you will benefit from specialist research training tailored to your particular research interests: for instance, palaeography; the use of public opinion data or private correspondence; visual and sound media; newspapers and broadcast sources; oral history, etc., as well as tuition in the Welsh language.

There are also classes to help you research and write your MA dissertation, an original research project (15,000 words) undertaken by you and written over the course of the year under the close supervision of a specialist within the Department.

All our lecturers are active researchers who publish their work, and you will benefit from being taught the latest historical theories and techniques. In the most recent Research Excellence Framework (2014) assessment the university was placed in the top 50 institutions for research power and intensity. It submitted 77% of eligible staff and 95% of the university's research was of an internationally recognised standard.

This degree will suit you:

• If you wish to study the History of Wales at an advanced academic level;
• If you desire a strengthen your critical and scholarly abilities through engagement with historical sources;
• If you wish explore your enthusiasm for this exciting and highly satisfying subject;
• If you aim to foster transferable skills and engage in professional and personal development for entering employment.

Course content

Core modules:

Dissertation: Welsh History *
Research Methods and Professional Skills in History
The Making of Modern Wales

Optional modules:

Class and Community in Wales 1850 - 1939
Gerald of Wales
Information and Society
Landownership and Society in Wales
Media History: An Introduction
Political Culture in Modern Britain, Europe and the Usa
Post Medieval Palaeography and Diplomatic
Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis
Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis (1120)
Sources for Postgraduate Research in the Modern Humanities and Social Sciences
Working with History

* Also available partially or entirely through the medium of Welsh

Contact time

Approximately 6 hours a week in the first two semesters. During semester three you will arrange your level of contact time with your assigned supervisor.

Assessment

The course is assessed through a diverse range of assignments, including the 15,000 word MA dissertation.

Careers & Placements

Many of our Masters graduates go on to PhD study and academic careers. Others apply their skills in heritage administration, in tourism, museums and archives, or related branches of public administration, the civil service and local government, or go on to careers in related fields such as teaching, journalism or the broadcast media.

Work placements in collaboration with the National Library of Wales, the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments in Wales, or another of the heritage agencies based in and around Aberystwyth, are available for course credit in some schemes (please contact us for further information).

Employability

Every element of the Aberystwyth Masters in the History of Wales enhances your employability. Alongside the development of your subject-specific knowledge and experience, an especially noteworthy strength of this course is the emphasis on personal development. As an emerging Master historian, your strengthened research and critical faculties will make you a strong candidate for any post where ideas and topics need research, analysis, discussion, expansion and classification.

Throughout the course you will demonstrate initiative and self-motivated learning, supported by the crucial self-awareness to be flexible and independently-minded. Allied with strengthened skills in communication, you will be fully confident in framing coherent and insightful questions and expressing them in oral and written form.

Employers in every industry value such skills and the pattern of creativity, research, analysis and discussion you will undertake in this course creates highly marketable skills which will, upon graduation, stand you in excellent stead for entry into the jobs market. The organisational skills you will learn on this course will help you direct and therefore make the most of your individual flair, bringing a balance of skills that prospective employers will find attractive.

Advanced Skills in Writing and Reporting

This course will encourage precision in your writing abilities, not only in the historical transcription and calendaring skills relevant to certain modules, but also in reporting, presenting and adhering to specific editorial rules in your assignments. You will be trained in editorial methods of historical texts, their development and the principles of authentication. Strong emphasis is placed on applying theory to practice so your individual skills in the interpretation and transcription of manuscript sources will be stretched. This practical demonstration of theory ensures that our Masters graduates are adaptable and can apply their written expertise to the demands of the modern workplace.

As the assessment for this Masters course is done through essay-writing, tutorial and seminar presentation, culminating in the 20,000 word dissertation, you will receive much practice in writing and reporting, as well as rigorous feedback on your submissions. This will develop in you a thorough knowledge of the structure, conventions and development of written communications, which will, in turn, make your writing clear, accurate and authoritative. These skills will stand you in good stead for your future progression into employment.

A host of employers look for accuracy, thoroughness, an eye for detail and the ability to find and prove connections across broad subject matter, and you certainly will have proven yourself, simply by graduating from this prestigious MA course.

Read less

The study of the history of art at Leeds has an international reputation for its innovative, rigorous, diverse and critically engaged approaches. Previously called MA History of Art, the name has been changed for 2018 to highlight the established strengths of this course with its emphasis on social and political approaches to art history.

At the cutting edge of the discipline, the MA in the Social History of Art builds on a unique legacy of dynamic and challenging scholarship, and continues to test the parameters of the discipline and shape wider debates in the field.

Around a shared commitment to understanding art as central to the production and reproduction of the social worlds we inhabit, our key research strengths lie in feminist, gender and Jewish studies, on questions of materialism and materiality, the postcolonial and the ‘non-Western’, as well as in provocations of those fields of art history considered more ‘established’, from Medieval and Renaissance up to the contemporary.

We combine an exceptional range of optional modules, core modules on methodology and advanced research skills, and self-directed research leading to a dissertation on a topic of your own choice.

Specialist facilities

The School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies offers a modern and well-equipped learning environment, complete with professionally laid out studios and versatile exhibition spaces in a beautiful listed building, fully redesigned and refurbished, at the heart of the University campus.

The University incorporates world-class library resources and collections, the Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, Treasures of the Brotherton, the Museum of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine, ULITA – an Archive of International Textiles and the [email protected] performance venue.

The world class Brotherton Library holds a wide variety of archive and early printed material in its Special Collections which are available for use in your independent research. Our other library resources are also excellent, and the University Library offers a comprehensive training programme to help you make the most of them.

Course content

Across both semesters, you’ll take core modules. These will enable you to develop practical skills for advanced-level research, and to engage critically with key debates in art history from the foundations of the discipline up to contemporary approaches.

Alongside this, you’ll work in depth on specialist topics, with choices from an array of optional modules covering a considerable chronological and geographic range with diverse critical and methodological approaches.

The development of your research skills and specialist knowledge will ultimately be focused in the writing of your dissertation – an independent and self-devised research project, which you will undertake with the guidance of your supervisor.

If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.

Course structure

These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.

Compulsory modules

• MA History of Art Core Course 30 credits
• Advanced Research Skills 1 5 credits
• Advanced Research Skills 2 5 credits
• Art History Dissertation 50 credits

Optional modules

• Reading Sexual Difference 30 credits
• The Margins of Medieval Art 30 credits
• Unfinished Business: Trauma, Cultural Memory and the Holocaust 30 credits
• Movies, Migrants and Diasporas 30 credits
• Aesthetics and Politics 30 credits
• Intersecting Practices: Questioning the Intersection of Contemporary Art and Heritage 30 credits
• Encountering Things: Art and Entanglement in Anglo-Saxon England 30 credits
• Anthropology, Art and Representation 30 credits
• Unmaking Things: Materials and Ideas in the European Renaissance 30 credits
• Individual Directed Study 30 credits

For more information on typical modules, read Social History of Art MA Full Time in the course catalogue

For more information on typical modules, read Social History of Art MA Part Time in the course catalogue

Learning and teaching

We use a range of teaching methods including lectures, online learning, seminars and tutorials. However, independent study is crucial to the programme ― it allows you to prepare for classes and assessments, build on your skills and form your own ideas and research questions.

Assessment

Our taught modules are generally assessed through essays, which you will submit at the end of the semester in which you take each module.

Career opportunities

This programme will develop your visual, critical and cultural awareness and expand your subject knowledge in history of art. In addition, it will equip you with sophisticated research, analytical, critical and communication skills that will put you in a good position to succeed in a variety of careers.

Our graduates have pursued careers as curators and education staff in museums and galleries and worked for national heritage organisations, as well as in journalism, publishing, arts marketing, public relations, university administration and teaching. Others have transferred the skills they gained into fields like the insurance industry, independent style editing and freelance writing on fashion, arts and culture.

Many of our graduates have also continued with their research at PhD level and secured external funding to support them – including AHRC scholarships. A large proportion of our former research students are now developing academic careers in the UK, Europe, Asia, USA and Canada.

Careers support

We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.

Read less

If you do not have the appropriate undergraduate preparation to embark on one of our MA courses, you may apply for our nine-month Graduate Diploma in Art History and Theory, which can constitute a qualifying year for the relevant MA course.

Our Graduate Diploma consists of eight modules at 3rd-year undergraduate level (up to two of these can be at 2nd-year level). You must complete the appropriate coursework and examinations, and can also write a project on a topic of your choice if this is agreed with your course director.

At Essex, you have the freedom to study what most interests you. Some of the topics you may choose to explore include the history of photography; modern and contemporary art; curatorial practice and exhibition design; as well as more vernacular forms of visual culture, such as body art and activist placards.

Regardless of the topics you pursue, we are committed to research-based teaching, with a particular emphasis on bringing the approaches of art history into contact with other disciplines and discourses. In so doing, we seek to facilitate a critical engagement with artworks and forms of visual culture, both within and beyond the traditional canons of art history.

On campus, the Essex Collection of Art from Latin America (ESCALA), Europe’s largest collection of contemporary art from Latin American, will provide an invaluable resource for studying art and curatorial practice first-hand.

One of the major reasons for choosing Essex is the quality of the education you will receive. We are 6th in the UK for research excellence, with 89% of our work rated “world-leading” or “internationally excellent” (REF 2014). We also achieved an exceptional 95% student satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey.

Our expert staff

Essex Art History features a dynamic group of art historians who investigate the production and reception of images and built environments, across cultures and media from the early modern period to the present. Our staff are experts on topics as diverse as activist art, 19th-century medical photography, the art of Latin America, urbanism, exhibition design and body art.

We also have significant experience in curation and public engagement. Recent projects include:
-Dr Gavin Grindon curated a section of Banksy’s Dismaland show and co-curated the Disobedient Objects exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, which was one of the most well attended shows in the museum’s history.
-Dr Matt Lodder has acted as contributor for various television shows on body art and body modification, including the Today programme, the Jeremy Vine Show, Sky News, BBC Breakfast News, ‘Coast’, and National Geographic’s ‘Taboo’.
-Dr Natasha Ruiz Gómez co-organised a major conference on Collect, Exchange, Display: Artistic Practice and the Medical Museum at the Hunterian Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, London.

Specialist facilities

At Essex, you have the best of both worlds: on the one hand, you are part of a tight-knit, campus community with close ties to several small but excellent museums in the nearby town of Colchester; on the other hand, you can travel from campus to London in an hour, which puts the world’s best museums and galleries at your fingertips.

Our facilities enable you to gain curatorial experience and engage in object-based learning, a cornerstone of our approach when teaching the history of art and its modes of display:
-Our Essex Collection of Art from Latin America (ESCALA) is the most comprehensive Latin American art research resource in the UK and has a state-of-the-art teaching and research space. Many of our students gain work and research experience through our collection
-Our onsite gallery Art Exchange runs an on-going programme of contemporary art exhibitions, talks and workshops by curators and artists, as well as exhibitions organised by our postgraduate curatorial students
-Enjoy regular visits to London galleries, including Tate Modern, Tate Britain, the National Gallery and the Royal Academy of Arts, as well as many independent and alternative spaces
-Colchester’s iconic Firstsite gallery features an exciting programme of contemporary art exhibitions, film screenings and talks, and exhibitions organised by our students

Your future

The visual arts and culture industries have become an increasingly significant part of the national and international economy, and art history graduates leave Essex with the skills to take advantage of this growing opportunity.

Graduates from our programmes are ideally prepared for roles in the media, in advertising, in museums and galleries, in education (in schools, universities, and cultural institutions), as conservators, as auctioneers, dealers and antiques specialists, in charities, in publishing, as specialist arts lawyers, as PR agents, in fashion, or to run their own galleries.

Our recent graduates have gone on to work in a wide range of roles including:
-A member of the valuation team at Sotheby’s (New York)
-Head of Learning at firstsite (a contemporary arts centre in Colchester)
-Visual Merchandising Manager at John Lewis (Oxford Street, London)

We also offer research supervision for students who wish to continue their studies with a PhD or an MPhil. We cover the major areas of European art, architecture and visual culture from 1300 to the present, as well as the art and architecture of Latin America.

We work with our university’s Employability and Careers Centre to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.

Example structure

Postgraduate study is the chance to take your education to the next level. The combination of compulsory and optional modules means our courses help you develop extensive knowledge in your chosen discipline, whilst providing plenty of freedom to pursue your own interests. Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field, therefore to ensure your course is as relevant and up-to-date as possible your core module structure may be subject to change.

Graduate Diploma - Art History and Theory
-Art & Ideas III (optional)
-Curatorial Project
-Art, the Law and the Market (optional)
-Contemporary Art: 1980 to the Present (optional)
-Dissertation - Final Year Art History and Theory (optional)
-Final Year Dissertation Project (optional)
-Inventing the Future: Early Contemporary 1945-1980 (optional)
-Photography in History (optional)
-Reworking the Past (optional)
-Study Trip Abroad (Final Year) (optional)
-Study Trip Abroad (Year 2) (optional)
-Art and Power (optional)
-The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction: Film, New Media, Software and the Internet (optional)
-Visualising Bodies (optional)
-Picturing the City I (optional)
-After Impressionism: European Art From Van Gogh to Klimt (optional)
-Becoming Modern: European Art From Futurism to Surrealism (optional)
-Art in Latin America (optional)
-Art and Ideas II: More Art, More Ideas - Critique and Historiography in the History of Art (optional)
-Collect, Curate, Display (optional)
-Picturing the City II (optional)

Read less

Who is this programme for?:

The degree is suitable for students with an interest in anthropological approaches to diverse aspects of tourism as a cultural force in the contemporary world, from sustainable development to cultural heritage. Our students come from all over the world, following BA study, a masters degree in another field, or work and travel experience. This combination of diverse backgrounds and skills creates a uniquely stimulating intellectual environment. Many of our graduates go on to a PhD; others pursue careers in research and consulting; NGOs; museums and other cultural institutions; travel-writing; alternative tourism enterprises; and government agencies.

Visit the website http://www.soas.ac.uk/anthropology/programmes/ma-anthropology-of-travel-and-tourism/

Programme Overview

The SOAS MA Anthropology of Travel and Tourism enables students to pursue specialist interests in global voluntary mobility while gaining advanced training in social and cultural anthropology in a world-leading department. Combining a rigorous set of core courses with options to suit each student’s unique interests, the programme is designed to accommodate students with or without a prior degree in Social Anthropology.

Students will develop expertise in anthropological theory and practice; learn to undertake ethnographic research; and gain comprehensive grounding in the anthropological study of travel and tourism, including issues of development, political economy, cultural change, heritage, cross-cultural encounter, representation and meaning, space and place, commodification, and interconnections between diverse histories and cultures of travel worldwide.

Tourism is not only a culturally and historically shaped form of travel, but a complex social field that spans the globe, comprised of diverse actors, institutions, activities, and modes of interaction that overlap with and cross-cross other forms of global interconnection. As a whole, it comprises the world's largest industry and the single greatest peacetime factor moving people around the globe.

Both a manifestation and a medium of globalisation, tourism has profound significance in multiple realms of human life—economic, environmental, material, social, and cultural. This makes it an ideal lens through which to explore core themes in contemporary social anthropology, such as identity and alterity, political economy, development, heritage, locality, representation, imagination, commodification, and the global circulation of people, objects, ideas, images, and capital.

The MA programme draws upon:

- the emerging body of theoretically sophisticated, ethnographically rich work involving tourism and travel;

- a thorough grounding in the history and contemporary theoretical trends of social-cultural anthropology;

- close engagement with noted and rising scholars in the field, via the programme's Colloquium Series in the Anthropology of Tourism and Travel, as well as opportunities for informal dialogue with visiting anthropologists and sociologists of tourism;

- other areas of expertise in the Department of Anthropology, including anthropology of development, migration and diaspora, museums and material culture, anthropology of food, global religious movements, anthropology of media, human rights, and anthropology of globalisation;

- the unparalleled concentration of area expertise among SOAS' academic staff, covering Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, together with their diasporas;

- the opportunity to engage with numerous other units at SOAS, such as the Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies, the Food Studies Centre, and the Centre for Media Studies, among many others; and

- the vibrant intellectual and cultural life of the School, the University of London, and the city of London itself—a global tourist destination inviting study on a daily basis.

Prospective students are encouraged to contact the Director of Studies, Dr Naomi Leite, at an early stage of their application in order to seek advice on the most appropriate options for study.

View a sampling of past MA dissertation titles (http://www.soas.ac.uk/anthropology/programmes/ma-anthropology-of-travel-and-tourism/ma-anthropology-of-travel-tourism-dissertations.html)

View profiles of alumni and current students (http://www.soas.ac.uk/anthropology/programmes/ma-anthropology-of-travel-and-tourism/student-profiles.html)

Language Study

Beginning in 2016-27, the MA programme will also be available as a 2- or 4-year (full- or part-time) MA Anthropology of Travel and Tourism with Intensive Study of Arabic, Japanese, or Korean (other languages likely to be added). For information, contact Director of Studies Dr Naomi Leite.

All SOAS MA students, regardless of department or degree, are entitled to register for one language course for free through our Language Entitlement Programme (LEP). This course is additional to your regular syllabus and is not for credit. Languages normally available include Arabic, Chinese, French, Hebrew, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swahili, Turkish and Urdu. Others are often offered. You must sign up before instruction begins and space fills quickly. Learn more and reserve your place here: Language Entitlement Programme (http://www.soas.ac.uk/languagecultures/studentinfo/language-entitlement-programme/)

Email: [email protected]

Programme Structure

The SOAS MA in the Anthropology of Travel and Tourism is designed to offer students a chance to pursue specialist interests via a considered selection of courses to suit their individual needs. It provides:

1. a broad-based MA programme for students with some background in issues of tourism/travel who wish to enhance their knowledge in light of contemporary anthropological research.

2. a special-interest MA which will enable students to study topics involving tourism/travel in-depth, in relation to a specific theoretical approach or region.

The programme consists of four units, comprised of a combination of full-year (1 unit) and half-year (.5 unit) courses.

Teaching & Learning

The learning environments making up the MA programme in Anthropology of Travel and Tourism run the gamut from lecture halls to intimate seminar rooms, suiting a wide range of learning styles. Study a language; take a course (or two) in anthropology of human rights, development, globalisation, religion, or gender, among many others; choose a course in another department that catches your interest and contributes to your dissertation plans, from world music to development studies.

The academic staff in the Department of Anthropology are dynamic, experienced teachers who are widely recognised for their expertise and enjoy working directly with students. Renowned scholars from other institutions also come to share their knowledge: nearly every day of the week, the SOAS Anthropology Department has a public lecture series running, including series in the general Social Anthropology, Anthropology of Food, Migration and Diaspora Studies, and, of course, Anthropology of Tourism and Travel.

In addition to these formal settings for learning, our students also learn from one another. Hailing from around the globe and bringing diverse life experiences to bear on their studies, all MA students in the Department of Anthropology can take courses together, making it a rich environment for intellectual exchange. Students also benefit from campus-wide programmes, clubs, study groups, and performances.

Many students in the MA Anthropology of Travel and Tourism opt for hands-on learning via the half-unit Directed Practical Study in Anthropology of Tourism course, with placements in leading UK-based NGOs like Equality in Tourism and Tourism Concern, among others, as well as in private tour operator firms, providing background material for future research.

While students in the MA Anthropology of Travel and Tourism may take a language course for credit, all SOAS MA students, regardless of department or degree, are also entitled to register for non-credit free courses in a single language through the Language Entitlement Programme (LEP). Languages normally available include Arabic, Chinese, French, Hebrew, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swahili, Turkish and Urdu. Others may also be offered.

Destinations

For more information about Graduate Destinations from this department, please visit the Careers Service website (https://www.soas.ac.uk/careers/graduate-destinations/).

Find out how to apply here - http://www.soas.ac.uk/admissions/pg/howtoapply/

Read less

This two year course uniquely combines a professional course; that is, an ARB/RIBA Part 2 course with a Cambridge Master’s degree in Philosophy. It provides advanced teaching, research and practice opportunities in environmental design, including the social, political, historical, theoretical and economic aspects of architecture, cities and the global environment.

The course is a hybrid of independent research through design and a structured technical learning resource. It is designed for mature students that join the program with a distinct area of interest and provides guidelines to their scientific research, access to specialists of various fields relevant to their studies, and a matrix of deliverables that foster an informed body of work underpinned by a sophisticated set of design and presentation techniques.

The main outcome is a design thesis consisting of a detailed design proposition, supported by a written argument of up to 15,000 words. This is preceded by four essays or design exercises equivalent of 3,000 - 5,000 words. The course is closely connected with research interests within the Department’s Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies. A number of the academics and researchers teach and supervise on the course.

Key benefits

- In the 2014 Research Excellent Framework, Cambridge Architecture’s research work was ranked 1st in the UK, achieving the highest proportion of combined World Leading research. 88% of the research produced by the Department was rated as World Leading or Internationally Excellent (Unit of Assessment 16: Architecture, Built Environment and Planning). This consolidates our top ranking established in the previous Research Assessment Exercise of 2008.

- Ranked 1st for Architecture by the Guardian's 2015 University Guide.

Visit the website: http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/aharmpaud

Course detail

The programme propagates a twofold understanding of environmental design and mediates between its technical/architectural, and social/political aspects. Both trajectories are studied within a specific geographic area/region, its local set of conditions and global entanglements setting the parameters for each student’s research. Based on the area/region’s characteristics, students speculate on the expansion and adaptation of one of its specific traits and its environmental performance. The outcome of this first part of the course is an experimental adaptation of an indigenous typology, producing a speculative environmental prototype. This prototype is examined scientifically and tectonically, using real and virtual modelling alongside various other media and serves a particular demand and a specific set of site conditions. Complementing this tectonic first part, the design direction of the second part of the course is broader in scale and highly speculative in nature. It draws upon the technical findings of the initial research, but focuses on the socio-political conditions and cultural traditions shaping the area of focus in order to build a set of far-reaching proposals. Together, both parts of this research through design result in a heightened understanding of the performance/efficiency/specificity of a certain environmental issue and the environment it is embedded in.

Format

The course is structured by two terms focusing on design and detailed technical analysis (residence in Cambridge), an interim field work period (elsewhere), and a third term focusing on regional analysis/research (residence in Cambridge). These complementary term components, together with the practice placement, provide an opportunity to explore distinct interests within design practice in various settings, whilst offering a sound framework to pursue meaningful research.

Candidates are free to choose a geographic area/region of their interest that frames their study throughout the programme. Following an initial familiarization with their chosen specific locality and a global assessment of the given environment at hand, students are expected to identify a technical/architectural issue that is indigenous or characteristic to the area/region of interest and holds potential to develop.

The focus shall be primarily with issues of contemporary construction, not excluding the consideration of historical or traditional building methods that are still prevalent. More generally, candidates develop an understanding of the complexity of environments and their various aspects being inseparable from, and integrated with each other. More importantly, however, students will develop highly particular areas of expertise that they may draw on for the remainder of the course.

The programme positively encourages students to develop complex architectural proposals that meet RIBA/ARB criteria for Part II exemption and to acquire knowledge and develop and apply research skills in the following areas:

- role of environmental and socio-political issues in architecture and urban design
- The wider environmental, historical, socio-cultural and economic context related to architecture and cities
- The building science and socio-political theories associated with architecture and urban design
- Modelling and assessment of building and urban design
- Monitoring and surveying of buildings and urban environments
- Human behaviour, perception and comfort, and their role in building and urban characteristics
- Research methods and their application through academic and design methods.

In so doing, the candidates develop the following skills:

Intellectual Skills

- Reason critically and analytically
- Apply techniques and knowledge appropriately
- Identify and solve problems
- Demonstrate independence of mind

Research Skills

- Identify key knowledge gaps and research questions
- Retrieve, assess and identify information from a wide range of sources
- Plan, develop and apply research methods
- Apply key techniques and analytical skills to a new context
- Report clearly, accurately and eloquently on findings

Transferable Skills

- Communicate concepts effectively orally, visually and in writing
- Manage time and structure work
- Work effectively with others
- Work independently
- Retrieve information efficiently
- Assimilate, assess and represent existing knowledge and ideas

Assessment

The design thesis represents 60% of the overall mark and consists of a:

- written dissertation of not more than 15,000 words (20%). The word count includes footnotes but excludes the bibliography. Any appendices will require the formal permission of your Supervisor who may consult the Degree Committee. Students submit two hard copies and one electronic copy of their thesis for examination at the end of May.

- design project (40%) submitted for examination at the end of July in hard and electronic copy.

Candidates present their design thesis to examiners at an Exam Board held at the end of the second year. Students must remain in or be prepared to return to Cambridge to attend the examination.

- Four essays or equivalent exercises of 3,000 - 5,000 words, including footnotes/endnotes but excluding the bibliography, on topics approved by the Course Directors will be presented for examination. The first three of these essays are submitted during Year 1; one at the beginning of the Lent (Spring) Term and two at the beginning of the Easter (Summer) Term. The remaining essay is submitted at the beginning of the Easter (Summer) Term in Year 2.

The first essay constitutes an essay or equivalent (5%) and an oral presentation (5%), the second is a pilot study (10%) and the third is a design submission (10%). The final essay is a project realisation essay (10%).

- The course requires regular written, visual and oral presentations in the Studio. Effective communication of research findings and design concepts are an important criterion in all areas of the students' work, and assessed at all stages.

- A logbook of work and research carried out during the fieldwork period will be presented at the beginning of the Easter Term of Year 2 for assessment. The logbook is not awarded a mark.

Continuing

To continue to read for the PhD degree following the course, MPhil in Architecture & Urban Design students must achieve an overall average score of at least 70%. Continuation is also subject to Faculty approval of the proposed research proposal, and, the availability of an appropriate supervisor.

How to apply: http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/applying

Funding Opportunities

Candidates for this course (which is not considered to be a 'research track' masters course) who are considered 'Home' for fees purposes are not eligible for most funding competitions managed by the University. Home students usually fund themselves and take out a loan from the Student Loans Company (see: http://www.slc.co.uk/).

General Funding Opportunities http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/finance/funding

Read less