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Masters degrees in Social History offer advanced study of the underlying processes which drive change within society, and the ways in which societies have grown and developed throughout history.
Related subjects include Political History and Heritage Studies. Entry requirements normally include an undergraduate degree in a relevant subject such as History, Sociology or Anthropology.
Durham's MA in Social and Economic History at Durham provides training in research methods for historical topics in any aspect of social and economic history. The MA provides quantitative and qualitative research methods appropriate to a wide range of historical approaches. Accredited by the ESRC, this MA is part of our four year funding scheme offered by the North-East Doctoral Training Centre. You can apply for 1+3 funding for this MA followed by a PhD in any aspect of social and economic history with expert supervision available within the Department – and with our partner institution in the NEDTC at Newcastle University. This includes African history, and aspects of governance, as well as traditional social and economic topics. For further information on funding see further below.
The MA programme is shared with the School of Applied Social Science and will help you to build an awareness of the contemporary boundaries of social and economic history and to master advanced understanding of the concepts and methods with which it may be interrogated. It seeks to equip you with a diverse portfolio of research techniques and approaches to enable you to undertake extended independent research in your dissertation, and to make your own contribution to the field. The skills provided by this MA are also transferrable to a wide range of careers.
Durham has a long tradition of economic and social history, on which this MA draws. The breadth of possible subjects for study mirrors the comprehensive and global nature of the department staff: from medieval Europe to modern-day Africa, and from north-east England to the global economy. Durham's History Department is situated in the historic setting of the World Heritage Site, which includes Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle. Students of social and economic history at Durham benefit from the rich archival and manuscript resources in the collections of the University (at Palace Green Library - especially the Sudan Archive - and Ushaw College) and in the Cathedral Library, while the wider regional resources for study of the period are also highly significant: the landscape of industrial revolution and of post-industrial response, of globalisation and regional identity.
The MA in Social and Economic History is a one-year full-time programme (or two-years part-time). All students are allocated a supervisor at the beginning of the first term, and s/he guides each student through the year.
You will take 30 credits of core modules from History: Themes, Reading and Sources (30 credits); and 30 credits of core modules from the School of Applied Social Sciences: Perspectives on Social Research (15 credits) AND EITHER Qualitative Research Methods in Social Science (15 credits) OR Fieldwork and Interpretation (15 credits). You will write a 60-credit dissertation (15,000 words) supervised by a member of academic staff in the History Department. You will also choose a 30-credit optional module in History; AND 30 credits of optional modules from Social Sciences: EITHER Statistical Exploration and Reasoning (15 credits) and Quantitative Research Methods in Social Science (15 credits) OR Applied Statistics (30 credits).
The programme is structured as follows:
Michaelmas Term (October-December)
Epiphany Term (January-March)
Easter Term (April-June), and the summer vacation (until early September)
The programme is delivered primarily through small group seminar teaching with some larger classes, and lecture-style sessions. Termly division of contact hours between terms depends on student choice. Skills modules are taught through seminars or classes and are usually more contact-hour-intensive. Optional modules are taught in seminars and provide a total of 20 contact hours. Dissertation supervision involves 8 hours of directed supervision, individually with a dedicated supervisor. Social science modules are taught through lectures, seminars, workshops, and practical classes.
Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study History at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).
The MA by Research in History is a research degree pursued over one year full-time or two years part-time. Students on the History research programme undertake research under the supervision of History staff, and produce a thesis that makes an original contribution to knowledge and understanding of some aspect of the past.
The expertise of the Department of History and Classics spans from the ancient cultures and languages of ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome to the history of late twentieth- and early twenty-first-century Europe. The research of our staff and postgraduates is integral to the life of the Department of History and Classics, and it means that Swansea is a dynamic, exciting, and stimulating place to study.
History and Classics is part of the Research Institute for the Arts and Humanities (RIAH: http://www.swansea.ac.uk/riah/), which organises a large number of seminars, conferences, and other research activities. There are also a number of research groups which act as focal points for staff and postgraduates, including: the Richard Burton Centre for the Study of Wales, Centre for Ancient Narrative Literature (KYKNOS), Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Research (MEMO), and the Centre for research into Gender in Culture and Society (GENCAS).
As a student of the History research programme you have access to skills and training programmes offered by the College of Arts and Humanities and the University.
The MA by Research in History is ideal for those who would like to do an initial research degree, either as a stand-alone culmination to their studies or with a view to further, subsequent research, e.g. in form of a PhD. Research proposals are invited on any topic in medieval, early modern, or modern history for which staff can provide supervision.
For informal enquiries regarding the MA by research in History programme please contact: Dr Fritz-Gregor Herrmann ([email protected]).
Research interests in the Department of History and Classics include:
Medieval History
• The Anglo-Norman ‘Realm’ and the Angevin Empire
• Capetian France, especially the monarchy, aristocracy, and religious orders
• The Cathars and the Albigensian Crusade
• Charters and the documentary records of medieval France and England
• The Mediterranean world, especially the Crusades, later medieval Italian society and politics, and the Italian Renaissance, including art history
• England and Wales in the central and late Middle Ages, including the aristocracy and gentry, the Welsh Marches, urban history, law and crime, women and the law, religious belief and practice, and education and literacy
• Gender and the life cycle in late medieval Europe
• Medieval frontier societies and borderlands, and concepts of frontiers from the late Roman Empire to the present day
Early Modern History
• Most aspects of British history between 1500 and 1800, especially religious, scientific, cultural and gender history
• The history of health and medicine in early modern Britain
• History of Disabilities
• The Portuguese Empire
• The Reformation and Counter-Reformation
• Science, intellectual life, collecting and museums in early modern Europe
• The social history of early modern sex and marriage
• Crime and witchcraft
• The Enlightenment, republicanism and international relations in the eighteenth century
Modern History
• Most aspects of Welsh history, especially industrial society
• The cultural, intellectual and urban history of nineteenth-century and twentieth-century Britain
• Modern international history
• The United States since 1750, in particular slavery, the South and the Civil War
• The economic and imperial history of Britain in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
• Emigration and urbanisation in the British Isles between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries
• The political history of the UK since 1800
• Military and society in Europe between 1750 and 1815
• Austrian and German history in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
• Austrian, German and Central European history, especially in the fields of urban, labour and post-1945 history
• Modern economic history
• Quantitative aspects of British economic growth from the sixteenth to the twenty-first centuries
• Anti-capitalist and socialist political economy
• Policing and police forces in twentieth-century Europe
• Italian fascism
• Allied Occupation of Italy
• Contemporary French and Italian social an d cultural history
• Memory studies and oral history of twentieth-century Europe
• History of protest and activism in the 1960s and 1970s
Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study History at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).
The MA in History is an exciting programme that covers a wide range of topics in history from the Middle Ages onwards.
The wide-ranging expertise of Swansea University's historians offers the study of British, European, American or Asian History. The History MA allows students to explore the history of art and culture, empire, gender, politics, religion, sexuality and science.
Students on the MA History programme are introduced to key concepts that shape the study of history. The MA in History students benefit not only from the unusual concentration of historians at Swansea, but also from the existence of the College of Arts and Humanities Research Centres, the Callaghan Centre for the Study of Conflict, Power and Empires and the Richard Burton Centre.
History MA students benefit from the the College of Arts and Humanities' Graduate Centre. The Graduate Centre fosters and supports individual and collaborative research activity of international excellence and offers a vibrant and supportive environment for students pursuing postgraduate research and taught masters study including the MA in History programme. The Centre provides postgraduate training to enhance academic and professional development and facilitates participation in seminar programmes, workshops and international conferences.
The full-time History course structure is split across the year with three modules taken in each academic semester (a total of six modules) and then a dissertation over the summer. History students study three compulsory modules and three optional modules. The dissertation is written on a specialist research topic of the student's choosing.
Part-time study for MA in History is available.
- To acquire advanced knowledge and understanding of a range of topics related to history.
- To develop theoretical and methodological skills relevant to all aspects of the study of history.
- To lay a solid foundation of knowledge and analytical and presentational skills for further research work in the field.
Modules on the History course typically include:
• Historical Methods and Approaches
• New Departures in the Writing of History
• Communicating History
• Directed Reading in History
• From Princely Possessions to Public Museums: A History of Collecting and Display
• Power, Conflict, and Society in the Modern World
• Venice and the Sea
• Medieval Manuscripts
• Fascism & Culture
Students from a history or related background. Students interested in preparation for postgraduate research, MPhil or PhD, or who wish to develop skills and knowledge related to history.
All staff in the Department of History and Classics are research active and publish books and articles in their areas of expertise. Staff and students are members of a range of Arts and Humanities research centres: the Callaghan Centre for the Study of Conflict, Power and Empire, the Richard Burton Centre for the Study of Wales and the Research Groups: MEMO: the Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Research and GENCAS: the Centre for Research into Gender in Culture and Society. Regular research seminars and lectures are run through these groups and through the Research Institute for Arts and Humanities (RIAH) giving students including those of the MA in History programme access to cutting-edge research.
Career expectations are excellent for History graduates. MA degree holders in History may move on to doctoral study or enter employment in such areas as museums, heritage and tourism; marketing, sales and advertising; business, art, design and culture; media and PR; social and welfare professions; humanitarian organisations; the civil service, and education.
“I graduated with a First-Class Honours BA History degree and an MA in History from Swansea University. My four years of study here were truly the most enjoyable of my life so far! The lecturers, tutors and all members of the History department were also incredibly friendly and always willing to help. The History MA was fully funded by a University Alumni bursary. The range of modules available to MA students is exceptional and the facilities here are fantastic. With a designated Arts and Humanities Postgraduate computer room and common-room area, as well as the University’s very own archives, Swansea is a great place to study History.”
Cath Horler, History, MA
Are you looking to undertake research training that will prepare you for research in the field of economic and social history?
Our MA in Social Research is particularly useful if you want to convert to the study of economic and social history, or if you have already studied in this area and wish to improve your skills. It is recognised by the Economic and Social Research Council as providing the requisite research training for a PhD so you can apply for funding for the MA to be the first (training) year of a four-year PhD.
Times Higher Education ranked the Department of History first in the country for its performance in the latest Research Excellence Framework exercise.
This programme provides research training that will prepare you to undertake research in the field of economic and social history.
You will study five core modules (full descriptions available below):
You will then choose one optional module from a range within the Department of History which may include:
You will complete the programme with a 15,000-word dissertation.
Many core elements of the programme are delivered by the College of Social Sciences, but you will have an opportunity to study subject-specific modules and your dissertation will be undertaken and supervised within the Department of History.
Support with academic writing
As a postgraduate student in the College of Arts and Law, you have access to the Academic Writing Advisory Service (AWAS) which aims to help your transition from undergraduate to taught Masters level, or back into academia after time away. The service offers guidance on writing assignments and dissertations for your MA/MSc programme with individual support from an academic writing advisor via tutorials, email and the provision of online materials.
International students can access support for English Language development and skills through the Birmingham International Academy (BIA).
Your degree will provide excellent preparation for employment and this will be further enhanced by a range of employability support services offered by the University.
The University's Careers Network provides advice and information specifically for postgraduates that will help you to develop an effective career and skills development strategy, and to make the most of your time with us at the University. The College of Arts and Law also has a dedicated careers and employability team to deliver tailored programmes of careers events and local support.
You will have opportunities to: meet employers face-to-face at on-campus recruitment fairs; attend employer presentations and skills workshops; receive individual guidance on your job applications, writing your CV and improving your interview technique; and access to comprehensive listings of hundreds of graduate jobs and work experience opportunities.
You will also be able to access our full range of careers support for up to two years after graduation.
Postgraduate employability: History
Birmingham’s History graduates develop a broad range of transferable skills that are highly valued by a range of employers. These skills include: familiarity with research methods; the ability to manage large quantities of information from diverse sources; the ability to organise information in a logical and coherent manner; the expertise to write clearly and concisely and to tight deadlines; critical and analytical ability; the capacity for argument, debate and speculation; and the ability to base conclusions on statistical research.
Some of our History postgraduates go on to use their studies directly, for example in heritage, museums or the armed forces; others use their transferable skills in a range of occupations from finance, to publishing, to fundraising. Employers that graduates have gone on to work for include: Royal Air Force; Ministry of Defence; University of Birmingham; Big Lottery Fund; Royal Air Force Museum; and University of Oxford.
The history of people, their societies and cultures is the focus of this programme, where you’ll explore how people have lived and died across periods and geographies.
Core modules will improve your research skills and introduce you to key concepts and issues in social and cultural history. You’ll also choose from a wide range of optional modules, allowing you to focus on societies and periods that interest you.
You could study apartheid in South Africa, communities and castes in India, birth and death in medieval Europe or social movements in the USA. You’ll be able to focus on gender, race and religion as well as other issues that have shaped the lives of individuals and communities.
Taught by expert researchers within the School of History and the Leeds Humanities Research Institute, this programme uses the latest approaches and thinking in social and cultural history to give you an insight into the lives of others.
We have a wealth of resources allowing you to explore topics that interest you. The world-class Brotherton Library and its Special Collections contain a huge number of early printed, archive and manuscript materials including the Liddle Collection on the First and Second World Wars, Leeds Library of Vernacular Culture, manuscript and commonplace books, travel journals and one of the best collections of cookery books and household manuals in the country.
Extensive collections of national, regional and local newspapers from over the years are available on microfilm, as well as cartoons and satirical prints from the British Museum and extensive collections of letters and correspondence. There’s even the Yorkshire Fashion Archive and M&S Archive on campus, allowing you to gain a real insight into popular culture over time.
This programme is also available to study part-time over 24 months.
From the beginning of the programme you’ll study core modules developing your knowledge and skills in social and cultural history, building your understanding of research methods and exploring central concepts and debates in the subject.
In both semesters, you’ll also have the chance to choose optional modules from a wide range on offer, allowing you to focus on issues, themes and societies that interest you. You could draw on the diverse expertise of our tutors to select modules across Indian, African, American, British and Latin American history.
You’ll also have the opportunity to work collaboratively with partner organisations, such as the West Yorkshire Archive Service, by studying the ‘Making History: Archive Collaborations’ optional module.
This programme will equip you with a broad skill set for historical research as well as a good base of subject knowledge. You’ll be able to demonstrate these with your dissertation, which allows you to conduct independent research on a topic of your choice. You’ll submit this by the end of the programme in September.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
We use a range of teaching and learning methods. The majority of your modules will be taught through weekly seminars, where you’ll discuss issues and themes in your chosen modules with a small group of students and your tutors. Independent study is also crucial to this degree, giving you the space to shape your own studies and develop your skills.
We use different types of assessment to help you develop a wide range of skills, including presentations, research proposals, case studies and essays, depending on the subjects you choose.
This programme will heighten your cultural and social awareness as well as allowing you to build your historical knowledge. You’ll also gain high-level research, analysis and communication skills that will prove valuable in a wide range of careers.
Graduates have found success in a wide range of careers in education, research and the private sector. Many others have continued with their studies at PhD level.
This MA allows you to develop an in-depth understanding of the history of health, medicine and society.
You’ll be trained in historical research methods and conceptual and methodological approaches to the history of health, medicine and society. You can combine British, European and African history under the guidance of leading researchers in History, History and Philosophy and Science and Medieval Studies. You’ll have the chance to focus on topics and periods that suit your own interests, whether that’s the history of health, medicine and society in the Middle Ages or the First World War.
Looking at the health of individuals, families and communities, you could study the human life course from birth to death, the experiences of medical practitioners and caregivers, medicine during periods of war and conflict, or the impact of health policy in different societies. It’s an exciting opportunity to explore how health and medicine have always been shaped by the social and cultural context.
Specialist resources
We have an exceptional range of resources to help you explore the topics that interest you. The world-class Brotherton Library holds a wealth of resources in its Special Collections, including historical works on health, medicine, cookery and medicinal uses of food, as well as extensive archival material about the history of medicine, surgery and nursing during the First World War and across the region since the eighteenth century.
You’ll be encouraged to participate in events run by the School of History’s lively ‘Health, Medicine and Society’ research group, including seminars, reading group sessions and a postgraduate symposium. You’ll also be able to attend a huge range of other events at the University of Leeds, including seminars at the Centre for History and Philosophy of Science and the Leeds Centre for Medical Humanities.
You’ll also have access to the University’s Museum of Science, Technology and Medicine, which is especially rich in its medical collections, and we have close links with the Thackray Medical Museum in east Leeds and its 47,000 medical objects.
The first semester will lay the foundations of your studies, introducing you to historical research methods, and key sources, debates and methodologies in the history of health, medicine and society. You’ll take part in a source analysis workshop and gain practical knowledge of documentary, visual and material sources in the university and local area which can be used to study the history of health, medicine and society.
You’ll also develop specialist knowledge of the development of the history of medicine and the social history of medicine as historical sub-disciplines, and the place of health and medicine within the discipline of history.
In Semester Two, you’ll build on this knowledge with your choice from a wide range of optional modules, including specialist topics such as birth , death and illness in the Middle Ages; Medicine and warfare in the 19th and 20th centuries or disease and sexuality in Africa. You’ll also have the opportunity to work collaboratively with partner organisations, such as the West Yorkshire Archive Service, by studying the ‘Making History: Archive collaborations’ module.
Throughout the programme, you’ll develop your knowledge across a variety of areas as well as key skills in research and critical analysis. You’ll showcase these skills when you complete your dissertation, which will be independently researched on a topic of your choice and submitted by the end of the programme in September.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
We use a range of teaching and learning methods. The majority of your modules will be taught through weekly seminars, where you’ll discuss issues and themes in your chosen modules with a small group of students and your tutors. Independent study is also crucial to this degree, giving you the space to shape your own studies and develop your skills.
We use different types of assessment to help you develop a wide range of skills, including presentations, research proposals, project reports and essays, depending on the subjects you choose.
This programme will heighten your cultural and social awareness as well as allowing you to build your historical knowledge. You’ll also gain high-level research, analysis and communication skills that will prove valuable in a wide range of careers.
Graduates have found success in a diverse range of careers in education, research and the private sector. Many others have continued with their studies at PhD level. Your knowledge and skills will appeal to a wide range of employers, including in the charitable, education, healthcare, and heritage sectors .
We offer different forms of support to help you reach your career goals. You’ll have the chance to attend our career groups, meeting students with similar plans, or you could become a paid academic mentor to an undergraduate completing their final-year dissertation. You could also apply for one of the internships we offer each year.
Examine the approaches and methods used by historians, and develop your knowledge of historical trends, processes and events of the past 300 years.
You will have the opportunity to explore a range of social and cultural developments in the history of Britain, Europe and the wider world. Whether working in small groups or individually, you will be guided by an expert teaching team throughout your course. Their historical research in areas such as urban history, the history of crime, environmental history, imperialism, sexuality and gender, migration, popular culture and social movements is of an international standing and will feed into your learning.
Your teaching team will give you the platform to reflect on historical interpretations of the past and also the skills and confidence to conduct your own independent research.
Research Excellence Framework 2014
Research Excellence Framework 2014: 38% of our research was judged to be world leading or internationally excellent in the Communication, Culture and Media Studies, Library and Information Management unit.
You will work in small groups or individually with research-active historians throughout your period of study. The School of Cultural Studies & Humanities has strengths in many areas and you will benefit from the expertise of our academic staff in a range of areas, including urban history, the history of crime, environmental history, imperialism, sexuality and gender, migration, popular culture and social movement history.
*These modules rotate on an annual basis. Not all modules listed may be available in your year of entry.
You will develop a range of transferable skills valued by employers in areas such as teaching, local government, administration, management, the civil service, marketing, public relations and the non-profit sector. Your course will also provide you with an excellent grounding should you want to pursue further postgraduate study.
The MRes in Economic and Social History will allow you to focus specifically on economic and social history and its methods of analysis, while giving you the opportunity to study other topics in international history, religious and cultural history, political history, naval or gender history.
You can select from option modules that include subjects such as ritual in the Middle Ages; witchcraft and the supernatural in the 16th and 17th centuries; sexuality; health, medicine; gender and the body; party politics and international diplomacy; and the impact of modern wars on culture, economy, society and memory.
The MRes provides essential training for PhD study in History, as well as an opportunity to develop particular interests in the history of different countries and periods through taught modules and a 25,000 word dissertation on a topic of your choosing within the MRes programme subject area.
- offers an excellent education in a very wide range of historical subjects and geographical locations over a broad time-span from Anglo-Saxon England to modern Western and Eastern Europe, some parts of Asia, North and South America, and Africa;
- produces graduates who are highly competent in subject-specific, core academic, and personal and key skills that are both relevant and transferable to employment;
- draws on the expertise of a number of highly respected research centres which are at the forefront of their respective disciplines;
- participation in joint seminar programmes offering insights into a very wide range of research cultures and specialisms;
- excellent preparation for students intending to continue on to doctoral-level research with a good track record in obtaining funding for further study.
Some examples of the optional modules which may be available are; Qualitative Methods in Social Research; Applied Quantitative Data Analysis; Philosophy of the Social Sciences ; Gender, Society and Culture in Early Modern England; Medieval Research Skills; Interpreting the Middle Ages; Supervised Independent Study in the Humanities; Supervised Independent Study in the Humanities; British Naval Power in the Era of Sail 1660-1815; Approaches to War and Society in the Twentieth Century; Medicine in Medieval and Early Modern England; Everyday Life in the Soviet Union; War 1450 to the Presen and Empires and Globalisation, c.1800-2000.
The modules listed here provide examples of what you can expect to learn on this degree course based on recent academic teaching. The precise modules available to you in future years may vary depending on staff availability and research interests, new topics of study, timetabling and student demand
This programme is aimed at students who have a specific topic of interest into which they wish to conduct their own research. It provides structured research training while at the same time enabling you to pursue a research project that you design yourself, in consultation with supervisors. It serves as both a self-contained research programme and as preparation for further study for a PhD.
Economic and social history addresses the historical processes underlying the evolution of modern society by employing a range of insights and approaches from the social sciences, including economics, sociology and social anthropology. The programme focuses on civil society, material culture, youth, gender, crime, cinema, economic growth and energy policy in a variety of historical contexts.
Edinburgh has a large and distinguished group of academics in this research area. Their specialist fields provide you with an outstanding range of options, both in terms of historical period and areas of the world.
Our building offers you exceptional, modern facilities, resources and study spaces, in a stunning location.
Our postgraduate students have access to:
All of our facilities are in addition to the multiple libraries and computer labs provided across the University’s estate. Many of our rooms overlook the Meadows.
Our location, right in the heart of Edinburgh, means you will be based close to the city’s cultural attractions and facilities, including a wealth of libraries, archives, museums and galleries, which provide uniquely rich support for the disciplines we teach.
The programme combines lectures, seminars, tutorials, and computer-lab sessions. It also includes Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) recognised research courses in research design and methodology skills.
The skills and theory imparted in the research-training courses, along with many of the assignments, are designed to feed directly into your final dissertation work.
You will be examined through coursework and will work towards an independently researched dissertation.
You will take the following three core courses:
In addition you will choose a pair of skills courses (ERSC funded students must take the first pair).
EITHER
OR
You will then take one further option course of your choice. Option courses change from year to year and those available when you start your studies may be different from those shown.
This programme is specifically designed for students who anticipate progressing to a doctoral programme, but it can also function as excellent preparation for a wide variety of careers.
Edinburgh College of Art: Postgrad study in Art, Design, Architecture, Music, History of Art
Understanding the sources, nature and consequences of human conflict has never been more vital for societies.
