The Russian Studies MA draws on the unique area studies expertise at the UCL School of Slavonic & East European Studies (SSEES) to offer a choice of modules unparalleled in depth and breadth, ranging from Russia's medieval history to its contemporary politics, from 19th-century literature to 21st-century film.
Russian culture is explored from a variety of perspectives. Students specialise in literature and culture, social sciences or history, or combine modules into an interdisciplinary programme. They are encouraged to develop their research skills, and many choose to learn Russian, or improve their command of Russian, through a language course.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of one of a choice of three core modules (30 credits), a choice of a Russian language module (30 credits) and/or optional modules (to a total of 90 credits), and a research dissertation (60 credits).
Core modules
This is a multidisciplinary programme. Nevertheless, students are required to gain a thorough methodological and theoretical grounding in disciplinary study and hence must choose between one of the following three modules:
Optional modules
90 credits from a range of options, which may include:
Dissertation/report
All MA students undertake an independent research project, which culminates in a dissertation of 10,000–12,000 words.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops, film viewings, tutorials and specialist language courses. Assessment is carried out through unseen examinations, long essays, coursework and the research dissertation.
Detailed module information
See full details of modules for this programme.
AHRC Scholarships may be available.
For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.
With their specialist knowledge and language skills, SSEES Master's graduates can be found in business, finance, the media, international agencies, charities, diplomacy, international security organisations, the law, and academia.
Some graduates advise the Russian, Polish, American, and other governments, and the European Commission.
Recent career destinations for this degree
Employability
Russia is one of the most exciting and important countries in the world, and SSEES is the ideal place in which to study it. Students who have successfully completed the programme have progressed to further academic research on the region, or have obtained employment in such organisations as the European Parliament and the Ministry of Defence, as well as roles in business, think tanks, NGOs, or similar, both in Britain and abroad. Networking is facilitated by two major collaborations led by SSEES: CEELBAS and the International Master's (IMESS). Scholarships, internship opportunities and excellent links with other universities in the region provide further benefits.
Careers data is taken from the ‘Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education’ survey undertaken by HESA looking at the destinations of UK and EU students in the 2013–2015 graduating cohorts six months after graduation.
SSEES is a world-leading specialist institution, and the largest national centre in the UK, for the study of central, Eastern and south-east Europe and Russia.
Located in Bloomsbury, SSEES offers an ideal location for scholars. The British Library, British Museum, University of London Library and other similar research centres are all close by.
The SSEES Library is unequalled in Britain for the depth and breadth of its collections, the majority of which are on open access in the SSEES building.
This MA provides a unique range of options from the early modern period to the present, covering lands where mighty empires and many nations have interacted and competed over the centuries: the Russian Empire, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Habsburg Monarchy, the Ottoman Empire, the German Empire, and their successor states.
Students are encouraged to choose from modules which are as diverse in geography as they are varied in approach. The programme is especially rich in modules exploring the relationship between power and culture. Several methods modules are available, including Methods of Area Studies Research (MASR).
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of one core module (30 credits), a choice from a range of optional modules (90 credits) and a research dissertation (60 credits).
Core module
Optional modules
Dissertation/report
All MA students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of approximately 10,000-12,000 words.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, presentations, and self study. Student performance is assessed through examinations, essays, a portfolio of work (which includes annotated bibliography, bullet-point presentation, encyclopaedia-style entry, and book review), oral presentation, document analysis, and the dissertation.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: History (SSEES) MA
With their specialist knowledge and language skills, SSEES Master's graduates can be found in business, finance, the media, international agencies, charities, diplomacy, international security organisations, the law, and academia.
Some graduates advise the Russian, Polish, American, and other governments, and the European Commission.
Recent career destinations for this degree
Employability
Students who have successfully completed this programme have moved into further academic research and doctoral studies, careers in teaching and careers in government, NGOs or the European Parliament. The regional specialism of this MA along with the opportunity to learn a language is attractive to employers. Networking is facilitated by two major collaborations led by SSEES: CEELBAS and the International Master's (IMESS). Scholarships, internship opportunities and excellent links with other universities in the region provide further benefits.
Careers data is taken from the ‘Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education’ survey undertaken by HESA looking at the destinations of UK and EU students in the 2013–2015 graduating cohorts six months after graduation.
The UCL School of Slavonic & East European Studies (SSEES) is a world-leading specialist institution, and the largest national centre in the UK, for the study of central, Eastern and south-east Europe and Russia.
Located in Bloomsbury, SSEES offers an ideal location for scholars. The British Library, British Museum, University of London Library and other similar research centres are all close by.
The SSEES Library is unequalled in Britain for the depth and breadth of its collections, the majority of which are on open access in the SSEES building.
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: SSEES - School of Slavonic & East European Studies
64% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
This MA provides students with the opportunity to study key concepts and approaches in political sociology and theoretical debates about the relationship between state and society, and identity and power. Graduates acquire a mix of in-depth area knowledge of Russia and Eastern Europe, research skills and theoretical understanding.
The programme centres on sociology but is interdisciplinary in nature, combining topics and methods from political science, anthropology, history, cultural studies and economics to analyse the relationships among individuals, groups, institutions, governments and their environments. Students choose two core modules in political sociology and social science methods and can then select thematic or area-based options as well as options to study Russian or another East European language.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of one core module (15 credits), one of a choice of four modules in social science methodology (15 credits), optional modules (90 credits) and a research dissertation (60 credits).
Core modules
Students take a 15 credits core module in Political Sociology and a 15 credit course from a list of options in social science methodology.
Optional modules
Dissertation/report
All MA students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 10,000-12,000 words.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, laboratory sessions, workshops, presentations, self-study and specialist language classes. Students are assessed by a variety of methods, including unseen examinations, long essays, coursework and a dissertation.
Detailed module information
See full details of modules for this programme.
For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.
With their specialist knowledge and language skills, SSEES Master's graduates can be found in business, finance, the media, international agencies, charities, diplomacy, international security organisations, the law, and academia.
Some graduates advise the Russian, Polish, American, and other governments, and the European Commission.
Recent career destinations for this degree
Employability
The MA opens up a range of opportunities and previous graduates from this programme have gone on to work in think tanks, political parties; national, European and international private and public sector organisations; and in the media and NGOs as political analysts. Other graduates have progressed to further academic study. Networking is facilitated by two major collaborations led by SSEES: CEELBAS and the International Master's (IMESS). Scholarships, internship opportunities and excellent links with other universities in the region provide further benefits.
Careers data is taken from the ‘Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education’ survey undertaken by HESA looking at the destinations of UK and EU students in the 2013–2015 graduating cohorts six months after graduation.
The UCL School of Slavonic & East European Studies (SSEES) is a world- leading specialist institution, and the largest national centre in the UK, for the study of central, Eastern and south-east Europe and Russia.
This MA allows you to study the social and cultural issues in the region in unparalleled breadth and depth and to develop analytical and research capacities, language skills and practical insights.
Our nationally unequalled specialist library and central London location provide an ideal environment for research, while our close contacts with employers, policy-makers and alumni afford excellent opportunities for networking and career development.
History at Winchester concentrates on different geographical scales of history, including local and global perspectives. It gives you the opportunity to engage with a range of approaches to the study of history, examining a range of historical subjects from ancient history to the present.
Start the course by exploring historical methods and research skills, followed by in-depth topic-based modules and the opportunity to devise and develop a specialist dissertation. The Approaches to the Past module, in the first semester, provides guidance on the different approaches to the study of history, including geographical scales of study and disciplinary approaches.
There are four core modules: Approaches to the Past, Research Methods and Skills, an Independent Study Presentation, and a dissertation. You also choose three special study modules from a long and varied list of options. Examples include Sport and Leisure in Victorian Britain; Reading and Writing the Holocaust: Historiography, Memory and Representation, 1945 to the Present; Public Health and Medicine in Modern Japan 1868–1952; and Female Agency and Rule in the Premodern Mediterranean 700–1700.
During the final summer of studies you write a 20,000-word dissertation, with specialist supervision. Research training for the dissertation is provided in a specialist module through a blend of electronic learning and face-to-face contact, which helps you complete a range of research tasks associated with the development of your dissertation. This leads to a Day Conference (Independent Study Presentation), in which you showcase your dissertation plans and their development, and debate themes in the study of history with external speakers.
Graduates of the course work in academia, teaching, archives, libraries, government and civil service, museums and conservation, as well as in a range of professions in the private sector, including financial consulting. The course provides a firm foundation for undertaking a postgraduate research degree or further training.
Graduates work in teaching, archives, libraries, government and civil service, museums and conservation. The programme provides a firm foundation for undertaking a postgraduate research degree or further training.
UK, EU, World
Students attend lectures, seminars, workshops, tutorials, a day conference and excursions. The teaching team is made up of highly respected and experienced researchers.
Teaching takes place: Evenings/ weekends, with some individual tutorials during the day.
Taught elements of the course take place on our King Alfred Campus (Winchester) or at our West Downs Campus (Winchester)
Assessment on the programme is largely by written assignments, usually a 4,000 word essay, and this applies to most modules. The dissertation is a substantial piece of independent research with full tutorial support. For this, students are required to write around 20,000 words on a subject of their choice covered by their study.
Our validated courses may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances.
We ensure all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes. Further details on assessment types used on the course you are interested in can be found on the course page, by attending an Open Day or Open Evening, or contacting our teaching staff.
We are committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to you on your academic progress and achievement in order to enable you to reflect on your progress and plan your academic and skills development effectively. You are also encouraged to seek additional feedback from your course tutors.
For more information about our regulations for this course, please see our Academic Regulations, Policies and Procedures
