Masters Degrees in USA History, United Kingdom

• Build a pathway, tailored to your personal and professional interests, through a range of optional modules and individual research projects
• Includes a unique pathway in public history and public engagement delivered by staff actively engaged in the media and eminent researchers in material culture
• Focus on building your own research network and engagement in social media
• Work with academics at the cutting edge of research

What will you study?

Sample modules:

• USA and China
• Early modern emotions
• Bolshevik visions
• Violence and conflict in twentieth century Africa
• Building a new Jerusalem: the emergence of the Labour Party at the turn of the twentieth century

Please note that all modules are subject to change. Please see our modules disclaimer for more information.

What career can you have?

Thanks to the possibility of building your own pathway within our MA programme, you can specialise in your preferred area.

You may continue your academic development with doctoral research, or pursue a career as a teacher, archivist, or in museums. Many of our students have specialised in local history and later progressed to jobs in the heritage and conservation sector.

In addition, your experience of individual research will help you to develop valuable transferable skills. You will have demonstrated your ability to understand and apply complex ideas; to collect and analyse large quantities of information; to manage your own time and motivate yourself; to construct reasoned and articulate arguments; and to reach carefully balanced judgements. This should equip you to embark upon a range of professional careers.

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The MA in English and American Studies prepares students for undertaking further research in the discipline, but it is also aimed at those who wish to broaden and deepen their critical engagement with English and American literature and culture. The structure of the MA is flexible, which means that you can choose to combine your interests in English and American culture, or you can choose to focus more exclusively on one or the other . The division of English, American Studies and Creative Writing at the University of Manchester provides a thriving environment, with its vibrant research culture, its close links to the Centre of New Writing, its involvement in the Manchester Literature Festival and its access to the world-class John Rylands research library.

While this MA offers you a range of exciting modules that are chronologically or geographically specific, all modules are informed by recent theoretical and historical developments that allow you to think about categories like `literature', `culture' and `history' in nuanced and fresh ways.

You can also choose 30 credits from our MA Modern and Contemporary Literature (subject to availability) to further extend the scope of your study.

Teaching and learning

In your first semester, you will choose 2 of 3 core modules (30 credits each), which will lay the groundwork for your coursework as well as preparing you to think about your dissertation. The core modules address questions that are at the heart of literary and cultural studies, and will give you conceptual tools relevant to all of the modules offered in the second semester. The core modules are entitled:
-The Times of Literature
-Space, Place and Text
-American Studies: Theories, Methods, Practice.

In the second semester, you will choose 4 out of 6 modules, each of which is weighted at 15 credits, allowing you the choice of a greater number of courses. You diversify your engagement with the field with these courses, each of which tackles a range of periods and literary/cultural productions. Some of the courses offer you the chance to engage with the holdings of the John Rylands Library. Each focuses on a body of work, or on a topic or critical question, situated in a particular context. The courses are:
-Treacherous Love: Translating the Medieval Past
-Shakespeare: Theory and Archive
-Before Sexuality: Bodies, Desires and Discourses, 1660-1900
-Revolutionary Poetics: 1789-1840
-Radical Subcultures
-Doing History in Public: Struggling over the American Past.

Students with an interest in American Studies take 6 modules in total, including, in semester one, the core course 'American Studies: Theories, Methods, Practice' plus the choice of one of the other core courses (as listed above).

Finally, students will write a 15,000-word dissertation, worth 60 credits, supervised by an academic member of staff.

Coursework and assessment

Students are required to take 180 credits of units as listed above.

The list of units on offer will be updated annually. Students may also choose up to 30 credits worth of units from another MA programme in place of one of their optional units, subject to the approval of the Programme Director.
Students will also attend seminars on such topics as how to study at MA level, how to research and write a Master's thesis, and career options.

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The MA in American Studies offers you the opportunity to develop an expertise in American literature and social and cultural history. Your studies will equip you with the methodological training you need to pursue your interest in America from different disciplinary perspectives.

The world-leading department has particular strengths in race, gender and identity, civil liberties, American cities, American landscape and the environment, popular culture, and comparative American Studies.

The MA in American Studies develops the critical powers you acquired as an undergraduate and provides the rigorous preparation needed for future employment or as preparation for doctoral research.

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About the course

Contemporary politics shows that there is more need than ever for critical understanding of the formative political, social, economic and intellectual trends in American history. This MA allows you to study the historical development of the United States from the first encounter between Europeans and Native Americans in the colonial period through to the end of the Cold War.

Our department

We are one of the largest, most active and successful centres for teaching and historical research both in the UK and internationally. Our academic reputation means that we are ranked third in the UK for research excellence (Research Excellence Framework 2014).

Our team of over 35 academic staff and 100 postgraduate students work together to create a thriving and supportive research culture. This vibrant community includes a regular research seminar series, covering a huge range of topics, and a range of research centres and networks exploring interdisciplinary themes. Our students also run an active Postgraduate Forum organising a wide variety of social and research events, and collaborating with staff and students both in Sheffield and further afield.

Our teaching

Our world-leading research informs what we teach. We offer a flexible degree structure with a wide range of modules covering a variety of periods, locations, themes and approaches.

An MA degree in history will further develop the range of transferable skills at your disposal. You will have the freedom to tailor your research and focus on the skills that are most important to you. We offer modules that are specifically designed to provide you with skills in public history – Presenting the Past, History Writer’s Workshop and Work Placement all give you real, hands-on experience.

Your future

These kinds of skills are why our graduates are successful in both further study and a wide range of careers – from taking PhDs, lecturing and working in the museum and tourist industry to business management, marketing, law and working in the media.

In addition to the personal and professional development you will experience through your modules, we offer dedicated careers support to enable you to successfully plan your future.

Studentships

University and AHRC Studentships are available. Please contact us or see our website for further details. You’ll need to submit your application by the appropriate funding deadline.

Teaching and assessment

You’ll be taught through seminars and individual tutorials. Assessment is by bibliographical and source-based exercises, written papers, oral presentation, and a 15,000 word dissertation.

Part-time study

All our masters can be taken part-time. Seminars are held during working hours (9am–6pm) – there are no lectures. The number of contact hours will vary over the two years, but you’ll usually have at least one two-hour seminar each week. You’ll take one core module each year and the rest of your course will be made up from optional modules giving you plenty of choice and flexibility over what you study.

Core modules

Research Presentation; Approaches to the American Past; Dissertation.

Examples of optional modules

Another Country: America and the Problem of Decolonisation; City Life in Jacksonian America, 1828-1850; Burying the White Gods: Indigenous People in the Early Modern Colonial World; A People’s Conflict: The Union and the US Civil War; Eighteenth-century British American Colonies.

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This programme is distinctive in its breadth and diversity, both chronologically and thematically. It draws on the wide range of American historical expertise available in the School. You will enrich your skills in independent research, critical analysis and presentations, and gain an in-depth understanding of the key topics and historiographical debates of this young nation’s dynamic past, spanning the American Revolution, the Cold War and the War on Terror.

You will attain a level of expertise and knowledge that will enable you to embark upon independent research at an advanced level in American history. The University of Edinburgh is home to one of the largest teams of American historians outside the United States, allowing us to provide courses and research supervision in a wide array of topics and time periods with world class expertise. The impressive combined resources of the University’s Main Library and the National Library of Scotland, home to one of the UK’s largest collections of Americana, will be on hand.

Programme structure

The compulsory courses are Historical Methodology; Historical Research: Skills and Sources; Themes in American Historiography.

Option courses previously available include: The Intellectual History of the American Revolution; Slavery in the British Atlantic World, 1650-1834; The American Civil War and Reconstruction; The Civil Rights Movement; Conservatism in the United States, c1930–c1990; The United States and the Vietnam War; The United States and the Cold War.

Career opportunities

Our students view the programme and a graduate degree from Edinburgh as an advanced qualification valued and respected by many employers.Those students interested in long-term academic careers consider the programme as preparation for a PhD.

The combination of specialised skills training courses and seminars, and the opportunity for independent research provides you with transferable skills that will be beneficial whatever path you choose. Graduates pursue work in related areas such as museums, policy think-tanks, national and international civil services, non-governmental organisations, galleries, libraries and historic trusts whilst others build on the transferable skills gained and enter areas as diverse as business, media, public administration and marketing.

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Introduction

The Master's of Research in Historical Research is a one-year course that is research-oriented and allows specialisation in particular research areas. Students are allocated an individual supervisor to direct their independent study and plan the curriculum to reflect their interests and needs. Students should maintain regular contact with supervisors through email and an agreed schedule of meetings to discuss their work and review draft submissions.

The Master's of Research (MRes) is designed
- to enable students to become well-trained historians
and
- to demonstrate their fitness to undertake research to doctoral level at Stirling or other universities in Britain and overseas. Both are achieved through the completion of independent study modules, field seminars and skills training, under supervision.

There are four variants of the MRes in Historical Research:
- MRes in Historical Research: The American Revolutionary Era
- MRes in Historial Research: Medieval Scottish History
- MRes in Historical Research: Environmental History
- MRes in HIstorical Research: Modern European History and Politics

Students are allocated an individual supervisor to direct their independent study and plan the curriculum to reflect their interests and needs.

Accreditation

The MRes programme and all constituent modules are constructed in line with the University's academic procedures and are fully assessed and externally examined. The programme is recognised by both the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Economic and Social Research Council both of whom have given PhD awards to outstanding Stirling graduates of the MRes.

Key information

- Degree type: MRes
- Study methods: Part-time, Full-time
- Duration: Full-time: 12 months Part-time: 24 months
- Start date: September
- Course Director: Dr Jim Smyth

Course objectives

This programme prepares you for further research:
- to co-ordinate the provision of additional or external skills training and to develop the application of research skills
- students will obtain practical experience of devising and applying a research method to interrogate primary sources
- qualitative and quantitative analyses
- the application of IT in information retrieval, especially bibliographical database software,
- communication skills, written and oral
- project design involving the conceptualisation of research questions and the presentation of data and data analysis

English language requirements

If English is not your first language you must have one of the following qualifications as evidence of your English language skills:
- IELTS: 6.5 with 6.0 minimum in each skill
- Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE): Grade C
- Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE): Grade B
- Pearson Test of English (Academic): 60 with 56 in each component
- IBT TOEFL: 90 with no subtest less than 20

For more information go to English language requirements https://www.stir.ac.uk/study-in-the-uk/entry-requirements/english/

If you don’t meet the required score you may be able to register for one of our pre-sessional English courses. To register you must hold a conditional offer for your course and have an IELTS score 0.5 or 1.0 below the required standard. View the range of pre-sessional courses http://www.intohigher.com/uk/en-gb/our-centres/into-university-of-stirling/studying/our-courses/course-list/pre-sessional-english.aspx .

Career opportunities

The MRes has been designed with three career destinations in mind:
- to prepare graduate students for further research at doctoral level
- as a route to an academic career
- as a higher degree in its own right

The MRes will also enhance continuing professional development, particularly in teaching, journalism, marketing, and heritage management through in-depth study of particular fields; by aiming to develop critical analytical skills and research techniques, the programme provides preparation for a wide variety of research-based careers in the public and private sectors.
Most of our graduates go on to study for a PhD either by continuing at Stirling or at another University in the UK, Europe or North America. Recent graduates have secured posts in firms and institutions as varied as Historic Scotland, Sea World, and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl).

Chances to expand your horizons
There is a lively series of guest lectures which students can attend on this programme.

Where are our graduates now?
The MRes has been designed with three career destinations in mind:
- to prepare graduate students for further research at doctoral level and as a route to an academic career
- as a higher degree in its own right
- to enhance continuing professional development, particularly in teaching, journalism, marketing, and heritage management through in-depth study of particular fields; by aiming to develop critical analytical skills and research techniques, the programme provides preparation for a wide variety of research-based careers in the public and private sectors

Employability

Skills you can develop through this programme
- command of a substantial body of historical knowledge
- understand how people have existed, acted and thought in the context of the past
- read and use texts and other source materials critically and empathetically
- appreciate the complexity and diversity of situations, events and past mentalities
- recognise there are ways of testing statements and that there are rules of evidence which require integrity and maturity
- reflect critically on the nature and theoretical underpinnings of the discipline
- marshall an argument, be self-disciplined and independent intellectually
- express themselves orally and in writing with coherence, clarity and fluency
- gather, organise and deploy evidence, data and information
- analyse and solve problems
- use effectively ICT, information retrieval and presentation skills
- exercise self-discipline, self-direction and initiative
- work with others and have respect for others’ reasoned views
- show empathy and imaginative insight
- prepare for further academic research such as a Phd

In addition, our students have the opportunity to further develop their transferable skills through voluntary internships working on collections of material held within the Division (The Scottish Political Archive and the University's own archive (e.g. UNESCO recognised Royal Scottish National Institution for mentally disabled children).

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Overview

The MRes in Humanities offers students the opportunity to produce a substantial piece of independent research and writing, and to undertake wide-ranging, systematic training in research skills and project management. Students will write a dissertation in a specific field or prepare a portfolio of compositions, recital or a media project with a named supervisor.

Supervision is available in all disciplines where the School has expertise:
- American Studies
- English
- History
- Media, Communications and Culture
- Music and Music Technology
- Philosophy
- Russian

You will be able to develop your research topic within the context of current debates and methodologies in relevant disciplines and within the humanities generally. The course will develop practical, critical and analytical research skills that can be deployed in a variety of professional and intellectual contexts. The programme is tailored to your research and career plans, and we recommend that you contact us before making a formal application.

The MRes degree is intended for applicants who already have a clear dissertation project (or equivalent, e.g. composition portfolio, performance or software development plan). In liaison with the supervisor and discipline lead, a plan of work in semester 1 and 2 is agreed and serves as preparation for the project as well as assessed work in its own right. When you submit your online application, please use your personal statement to describe the dissertation (or equivalent) project you intend to carry out (500-700 words). Include specific research questions and aims. What does the project intend to elucidate? Is any hypothesis proposed? How will the research be carried out (i.e. methodology)?

See the website https://www.keele.ac.uk/pgtcourses/humanitiesmres/

American Studies

American Studies is a multidisciplinary department devoted to the analysis of the United States from the foundations of the republic to the present day. As a long-established centre of excellence in research and teaching, we aim to offer a supportive and lively environment for pursuing top-quality postgraduate courses.

American Studies at Keele enjoys an outstanding national and international reputation. At every level of the postgraduate programme our aim is to give both clear expectations and supportive guidance to enable you to achieve your goal.

Our tutors are all active in research, and our teaching reflects our specialist strengths. There is considerable cross-fertilization of ideas within the department, and consequently an interest in multidisciplinary work. In US History and Politics, tutors (Chris Bailey, Jon Herbert, Jon Parker, Laura Sandy and Axel Schafer) specialize in the history of the Civil War era and the American South, Cold War society, religion and politics, intellectual history, the politics of the environment, the US Congress, the American presidency, the politics of education, state and local government, and electoral politics.

In American Literature and Culture, tutors, (Ian Bell, Oliver Harris, James Peacock and Tim Lustig) have research interests in nineteenth- and twentieth-century, in contemporary fiction, relations between literature and science, African American literature, film noir, cultural theory and cultural memory, Anglo-American modernism, trauma theory, and the Beat generation.

Course Aims

To enable students to research and write an extended dissertation, whilst developing practical, critical and analytical research skills that can be deployed in a variety of professional and intellectual contexts. Students will develop an understanding of the place of a specific research topic within current debates and methodologies in relevant disciplines, and within the humanities generally. The course will promote the ‘project management skills’ of defining and planning a project, meeting deadlines, and recording and reflecting on outcomes.

Course Content

Students follow a tailor-made programme, comprising three components totalling at least 180 credits.
- A 20,000 word dissertation (or equivalent composition or artistic production) is at the heart of the programme (90 credits).

- Research Training covering research skills and reflective practice in the humanities (2 x 15 = 30 credits).

- Research methods in the field relevant to the thesis topic (30 credits)

- Individual Research Orientation: a module tailored to the needs of the student (30 credits).

Teaching & Assessment

Assessment is by coursework, culminating in the 20,000 word dissertation (or the equivalent composition or artistic production). Research Training is assessed by a portfolio consisting of an annotated bibliography, a project outline and a reflective diary. Each of the other modules will be examined through a 4,000-5,000 word essay or approved equivalent.

The pass mark is 50%. A merit will be awarded where students obtain 60% or over for the dissertation (or equivalent project or performance) and an average of 60% on their other coursework. A distinction will be awarded where students obtain 70% or over for the dissertation, (or equivalent project or performance) and an average of 70% in their other coursework.

Additional Costs

Apart from additional costs for text books, inter-library loans and potential overdue library fines we do not anticipate any additional costs for this post graduate programme.

Discretionary Award:
A sum of £6,250 has been made available to students enrolling on taught postgraduate course in History by a former member of Keele staff. The money will be distributed at the discretion of the relevant programme director(s) and is available to students entering the programme in 2015 and/or 2016. No application is required.

Find information on Scholarships here - http://www.keele.ac.uk/studentfunding/bursariesscholarships/

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This MA draws on the wide range and depth of research and teaching expertise in UCL History to give students the opportunity to choose courses relating to a variety of historical periods and locations. The programme offers advanced level teaching by leading practitioners in a range of fields.

Degree information

Students will be introduced to key historical concepts and theories. The core course offers a forum for such debates, and also provides students with the technical and intellectual apparatus to pursue their own research interests under expert guidance.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. The programme consists of the core course (30 credits), between two and four optional modules (60 credits) and a research dissertation (90 credits).

Core modules
-History Dissertation
-Advanced Skills, Concepts and Theory for MA Historians

Optional modules - options may include the following:
-Propaganda and Ideology in Rome
-Identity and Power in Medieval Europe
-Political Thought in Renaissance Europe
-The Public Sphere in Britian, 1476–1800
-Gender and Sexuality in Modern Britain: 1850 to the present
-Crisis and Future in 19th-century European Thought
-Nations and States in Transnational Perspective
-Thinking Postcolonially: Britain and Empire in the 19th Century
-Charismatic Cosmopolitans: Intellectuals and International Institutions in the Interwar Period
-The United States and the World, 1776–1900
-Debating the General Crisis of the Seventeenth Century
-Adam Smith and the State
-Globalisation in the 20th Century
-The Origins of the American Civil war
-The Origins of the American Civil war

Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project on a topic in History, which culminates in a dissertation of up to 15,000 words.

Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars and tutorials. Some sessions will take place outside UCL in institutions such as the British Library, the National Archives, and the Institute of Historical Research. Students are assessed through written coursework, examination, and the dissertation.

Careers

Top career destinations for this degree:
-Office of Staff of Legal Assisting, UN (United Nations) and studying JD Law, Brooklyn Law School
-Research Degree: History, University College London (UCL)
-Interpretive Guide, City of New Westminster Museum and Archives and studying MA History, University College London (UCL)
-Graduate Recruitment Manager, Pareto Law
-PGDip Education, National Institute of Education (NIE) Singapore

Employability
This programme not only provides an outstanding foundation for those hoping to undertake PhD research and pursue an academic career, but is also popular with students wishing to go into journalism, the civil service, business, museum and heritage and the education sector. Debates, small group seminars and tutorials help students to acquire strong presentation and negotiation skills for their future careers. Likewise the analytical and research skills gained by students on this programme are highly valued by employers from a range of industries. There are many additional activities available, both within the department and the wider UCL community, to help students focus on employability skills whilst they are here, for example departmental careers talks and networking opportunities with history alumni.

Why study this degree at UCL?

UCL History enjoys an outstanding international reputation for its research and teaching.

The department is strongly committed to the intellectual development of all our students; if you come to UCL, you will receive individual supervision from leading historians.

Located in Bloomsbury, UCL History is just a few minutes' walk away from the exceptional resources of the British Library, the British Museum and the research institutes of the University of London, including the Warburg and the Institute of Historical Research. UCL is ideally located at the heart of various historical societies and academic communities.

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Would you like to participate in a dynamic and flexible course that can be tailored to meet your own individual interests and career aspirations?

The MA History course consists of broad, thematic taught modules that focus on the middle ages through to present day.

Offering an extremely flexible approach to study, this course incorporates three core modules - historical contexts, digital history and dissertation preparation - which you will study alongside two modules of your own choice, in subjects such as American history, British history, European history and early modern history.

In addition to the taught modules of this course you will also complete a dissertation that will be conducted under the careful guidance of our specialist academics.

Throughout your studies you will have access to our leading learning facilities and new Institute for the Humanities.

Northumbria has just launched its first MOOC (Massive Online Open Course) exploring the fascinating history and culture of the American South from colonial times to the 21st century.

Experience for free Northumbria's excellence in teaching and research with the University's Institute of Humanities, all from your own home.

This course has several available study methods - for more information, please view the relevant web-page:
2 years part time: https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/study-at-northumbria/courses/history-dtphtr6/

1-2 years full time distance learning: https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/study-at-northumbria/courses/history-ma-ft-dl-dtdhtr6/

2 years part time distance learning: https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/study-at-northumbria/courses/history-dtdhty6/

Learn From The Best

Throughout your studies you will benefit from working with our team of specialist academics who were recently ranked in the UK’s top 20 for the quality of their history publications (REF 2014).

Our academics are not only teaching their specialist subjects but also writing textbooks and adding new knowledge and perspectives to our understanding of the past.

When undertaking your dissertation you will be assigned a dedicated supervisor with specialist knowledge of your chosen subject area. They will guide you through your project with the help of our team of support staff.

Boasting doctorates, awards and extensive academic knowledge in their particular specialism, you can rest assured you are learning from the best.

Teaching And Assessment

The MA History course offers a programme of study that will empower you to problematise the past, set your own field of enquiry and test your ability to manage a yearlong project.

This course is primarily delivered via a classroom setting, with regular face-to-face supervision. This course can also be undertaken as a distance-learning course through a Virtual Learning Environment (VLR).

The assessment methods employed on this course include historical and historiographical essays, oral and written presentations, critical reviews and portfolios of work.

Your dissertation will form a large part of the assessment process and will be overseen by a supervisor who specialises in your subject area.

Module Overview
EF0126 - E.S.A.P. in FADSS Level 7 (Optional, 0 Credits)
HI7001 - Historical Contexts (Core, 30 Credits)
HI7004 - War and Peace in Historical Perspective (Core, 30 Credits)
HI7005 - Digital History and Research Methods (Core, 30 Credits)
HI7007 - The British Empire and its Imperial Rivals (Core, 30 Credits)
HI7010 - History Dissertation (Core, 60 Credits)

Learning Environment

Throughout the duration of your course you will have access to state-of-the-art facilities to support your learning experience.

Further facilities are available at the Institute for the Humanities, a special research space in the University’s Lipman Building. These include a resource room, specialist computing equipment and interview rooms. You will also have access to a designated Humanities Student Hub, providing space for self-study, group work or a rest in between teaching sessions.

You will receive support at every step of your learning journey through our on-campus facilities and innovative e-Learning Portal, Blackboard, which will allow you to access electronic versions of your course’s supporting documentation.

We provide a supportive and informal learning environment, offering feedback at all key stages of your course.

Research-Rich Learning

The MA History course is centred around research-rich learning and delivery.

Delivered by our team of renowned academics, you will be learning from research-active experts who boast specialisms in all aspects of history including the British co-operative movement, eighteenth and nineteenth century British political and imperial history, the British empire and modern Irish political history.

Many staff are qualified to professorial level and engaged in collaborative research projects, which are often part of national or international research networks.

More than three quarters of Northumbria University’s History department’s research outputs are rated as being world-leading or internationally excellent, placing us in the upper quartile for history research in the UK. We have also been ranked among the top 20 universities in the UK for research power in History, according to the 2014 Research Excellence Framework.

Give Your Career An Edge

On completion of this course you will possess expert research skills thanks to your ability to collect, sift through and organise historical data. You will also be able to confidently use state-of-the-art digital researching tools.

Employability skills are embedded throughout all aspects of this course and, on completion, you will possess a range of attributes that are highly valued in today’s competitive job market. These skills include effective workload management, IT, problem solving, communication, teamwork and self-motivation.

Your Future

Your previous qualifications and the specialist nature of this course will provide a strong foundation for your future work or study.

The MA History course has been designed to form the basis for those wishing to progress to PhD level and we offer advice in writing PhD and funding applications should you decide to take this route.

The broad range of skills and knowledge acquired on this course can help to enhance promotion prospects in many professions, most notably teaching, professional research, museums or archives, public policy and project management. It should also enhance your prospects of employment should you wish to move into such vocations.

You will also leave prepared for a career as a researcher or employment within a broader business environment.

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Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study American Studies at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).

The MA by Research in American Studies helps to develop an understanding of the forces that have moulded and continue to shape America, and helps us to make sense of our contemporary world. The comparative study of the history and culture of the United States addresses themes such as immigration, democracy, slavery, imperialism, multiculturalism, religion, the economy and, more recently, terrorism. These issues do not just concern the past; they are directly relevant to the world we live in.

MA by Research in American Studies

The MA by Research in American Studies is ideal for those who want:

- an MA qualification in areas where taught programmes are not offered;

- the experience of a research degree without committing to a PhD at the outset.

Research proposals are invited on any topic in American Studies for which staff in the Department of Political and Cultural Studies can provide supervision. It is a good idea to enter into discussions about your research project in American Studies with the Department's Director of Postgraduate Research, Professor Roland Axtmann ([email protected]), before drawing up an initial proposal and starting the application process.

Department of Political and Cultural Studies

The Department of Political and Cultural Studies (PCS) boasts a dynamic research environment with a committed staff all of whom are research-active. Academic members of staff have a very considerable range of research interests on which we offer supervision for research degrees in American Studies.

An MA by Research in American Studies gives you the chance to pursue a major research project based around your own passions and interests in American Studies, leading to a qualification which can open the door to an academic career or boost employment prospects outside academia. It will give you the freedom to explore a topic of your choosing and develop a methodology under the close supervision of two experienced academics but without attending regular classes as required in taught programmes.

Typically as a student of the MA by Research in American Studies programme you will work closely with your supervisors, meeting them regularly, in many instances fortnightly, in the first term and at regular intervals thereafter. Meetings are logged and goals agreed each time.

Students enrolled in the MA by Research American Studies are required to attend skills and training courses at College and University level. You may also be expected to give presentations to other research students and staff at departmental seminars and attend the postgraduate conference of the College of Arts and Humanities which is held in October.

Departmental Research Expertise

At any one time, the department has over forty research students who work together with their supervisors on their projects.

In the area of American Studies, staff have expertise in the American Civil War; US foreign policy; the US ‘War on Drugs’; US politics and government; surveillance and urban America; American conservatism; the Spanish Civil War; American military history; the American West; New South; 20th century American literature, film and popular culture.

Discover more about the Department of Political and Cultural Studies:

http://www.swansea.ac.uk/politics

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For the MPhil in American History, in the first term, students on the course will be offered an intensive training programme consisting of classes, seminars, workshops, individual and group assignments. Each student will take a compulsory core readings course in American history. This course will include weekly classes in Michaelmas Term on major themes, historiography, and methods, based on key readings, so that students come to a foundational understanding of central themes in American history. Students will also choose two Options, one in Michaelmas Term and one in Lent Term, from a range of Options in American and other history. Each of these modules will require a 3,000-4,000 word essay (or equivalent) and will count for 10% of the final mark (so all three modules will count for 30% of the final degree mark). Those who satisfactorily complete this programme of study will continue on to a research project, closely supervised by one of Cambridge’s outstanding group of American historians. They will be expected to submit a dissertation of between 15,000 and 20,000 words by the middle of June. This dissertation is worth 70% of the final degree mark.

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

Course detail

The MPhil in American History aims to:

- explore key themes underpinning American history as well as the debates that shaped this dynamic field
- train students in the use of the printed, manuscript, visual, material culture, and oral sources for the study of American history, and introduce the use of sources, within and beyond U.S. archives;
- offer an intensive introduction to research methodologies and skills useful for the study of American history
- provide an opportunity for students to undertake, at postgraduate level, a piece of original historical research in American history under close supervision: to write a substantial piece of history in the form of a dissertation with full scholarly apparatus.

By the end of the programme, students will have:

- knowledge of key debates and trends in American history and historiography
- greater understanding of issues, events, and people in American history
- skills in presenting work in both oral and written form
- advanced research and writing skills (at postgraduate level)

Format

Compulsory Core Course, Michaelmas Term, “Readings in American History and Historiography”: Weekly classes in Michaelmas Term on major themes, historiography and methods, based on key readings, so that students come to a foundational understanding of key themes in American history. The final essay in this option, of 3,000-4,000 words and incorporating a presentation, is assessed and is worth 10% of the final mark.

Options in Michaelmas and Lent Term: Weekly classes in Michaelmas and Lent Terms on broad but more specialized topics (for example, on the Atlantic World, or on Politics and Society in the 20th century). There will also be options from other MPhils which students can take. Students will be required to take one option in each term. They would be required to make a presentation, and to complete a 3,000-4,000 word essay. Each Option is worth 10% of the final mark.

- Language Training: This is encouraged, especially for those working in early American or America in the world topics.

- Research Seminar and Training: Students are required to attend the weekly US Research Seminar, to log attendance, and to ask at least one question per Term.

- Graduate Workshop and Training: Students are required to attend the weekly US History Graduate Workshop, to present their work once in the academic year, and to offer feedback on the work presented by others.

Assessment

- The thesis is Part II of the course. The thesis will be 15,000-20,000 words. It will be due in early-June and will count for 70% of the final degree mark.

- An oral examination will only be required in cases where one of the marks is a marginal fail.

- Each of three modules in Michaelmas and Lent (one Compulsory Core, and two Options) will require a 3,000-4,000 words essay (or equivalent). Each will count toward 10% of the final degree mark, for a total of 30%. Taken together, these are Part I, and students must receive passing marks in order to move to Part II.

- Students will also prepare a 2,000 word dissertation proposal essay due in the Lent Term. This essay will be unassessed but students will meet with their supervisor to discuss the essay and get feedback.

Continuing

In order to be considered for continuation to the PhD, and always subject to satisfactory supervision arrangements being in place, students are expected to obtain an overall mark of 70 for the MPhil and a mark of at least 70 for their dissertation.

Find out how to apply here http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/hihimpamh/apply

Funding Opportunities

Please see the History Faculty’s Funding Guide via the History Faculty’s weblink below:

http://www.hist.cam.ac.uk/prospective-graduates/faculty-funding/funding-options

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This online programme provides a broader History award, both thematically and geographically, than our MLitt History of the Highlands and Islands.

The MLitt History has been developed in response to demand from potential students for a broad taught postgraduate programme in History and features modules in, for example, maritime, sport and British history, palaeography and languages of the North Atlantic, as well as historiography. Taught from the Centre for History in the Highlands, the MLitt History is available from anywhere in the world.

Special Features

• Loans for tuition fees are available from the Students Award Agency for Scotland (SAAS) for eligible Scotland domiciled and EU students, and loans for living costs for eligible Scottish students.
• The course is taught by a research-active and dynamic team of historians, reflecting staff research expertise
• Successful students will be able to proceed from undergraduate study of History, through the MLitt, towards supervised postgraduate historical PhD level research
• You will have support from expert staff at the Centre for History throughout your studies
• You can study from a distance online through the UHI virtual learning environment, which means you can fit your studies around your personal and professional commitments
• You can study individual modules for personal or professional development, or work towards the PgCert, PgDip, or full Masters degree.

Modules

PgCert

The core module is: Varieties of History
You will also choose two option modules which may include but are not limited to:The British Empire; Introduction to Palaeography and Languages for the North Atlantic; Britishness and Sport; Rivers, ports and Coasts in History; Oral History; Any option module from the MLitt History of the Highlands and Islands

PgDip

The core modules is: Primary Sources for History
You will choose two further option modules from those listed in the PgCert.

MLitt

To achieve the award of MLitt History you must complete a research dissertation

Locations

This course is available online with support from The Centre for History UHI, Burghfield House, Dornoch, IV25 3HN

Funding

From 2017, eligible Scotland domiciled students studying full time can access loans up to 10,000 from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS).This comprises a tuition fee loan up to £5,500 and a non-income assessed living cost loan of £4,500. EU students studying full time can apply for a tuition fee loan up to £5500.

Part-time students undertaking any taught postgraduate course over two years up to Masters level who meet the residency eligibility can apply for a for a tuition fee loan up to £2,750 per year.

See Scholarships tab below for full details

Top reasons to study at UHI

Do something different: our reputation is built on our innovative approach to learning and our distinctive research and curriculum which often reflects the unique environment and culture of our region and closely links to vocational skills required by a range of sectors.
Choice of campuses – we have campuses across the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Each campus is different from rich cultural life of the islands; the spectacular coasts and mountains; to the bright lights of our city locations.
Small class sizes mean that you have a more personal experience of university and receive all the support you need from our expert staff
The affordable option - if you already live in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland you don't have to leave home and incur huge debts to go to university; we're right here on your doorstep

How to apply

If you want to apply for this postgraduate programme click on the ‘visit website’ button below which will take you to the relevant course page on our website, from there select the Apply tab to complete our online application.
If you still have any questions please get in touch with our information line by email using the links beow or call on 0845 272 3600.

International Students

If you would like to study in a country of outstanding natural beauty, friendly communities, and cities buzzing with social life and activities, the Highlands and Islands of Scotland should be your first choice. We have campuses across the region each one with its own special characteristics from the rich cultural life of the islands to the bright city lights of Perth and Inverness. Some courses are available in one location only, for others you will have a choice; we also have courses that can be studied online from your own home country. .http://www.uhi.ac.uk/en/studying-at-uhi/international

English Language Requirements

Our programmes are taught and examined in English. To make the most of your studies, you must be able to communicate fluently and accurately in spoken and written English and provide certified proof of your competence before starting your course. Please note that English language tests need to have been taken no more than two years prior to the start date of the course. The standard English Language criteria to study at the University of the Highlands and Islands are detailed on our English language requirements page http://www.uhi.ac.uk/en/studying-at-uhi/international/how-to-apply-to-uhi/english-language-requirements

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This programme of study is broad-ranging in terms of its coverage of a variety of areas of Europe since 1500, including Russia, the Soviet Union, Italy, and the Mediterranean world; China and the Far East, modern Britain and Ireland; the British Empire and British foreign relations; and US history since 1800. We have thematic and conceptual specialisms in social, political and cultural history; comparative and transnational histories; and the history of migrations and diasporas. Overall we provide an excellent foundation for further study; a bridge to new employment opportunities; and a fundamentally valuable cultural and educational experience.

Visit the website: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/course/dipma-history-ft-c

Course detail

- Description -

Semester One:

Debates and Controversies (30 credit points). This module examines some of the major debates in Historical studies today. The debates and controversies chosen are not exhaustive but are instead exemplars of why historians over disagree over sources, methods, politics, and other factors, and why historical works can be so different. At the same time the module will respond to a diversity of student interests by offering students an opportunity to develop their own reading and historical insights.

Themes in History (30 credit points). This module offers students the opportunity to explore themes in History that draw upon areas of particular staff specialism and that will develop and deepen their knowledge and understand. Divided into three themes of four weeks each, each block will examine key questions, sources and approaches within a theme. We will offer 4-5 themes each cycle to enable a degree of choice within the module’s teaching and learning programme.

Semester Two:

Research Methods for Historical Research (30 credit points). This module will provide students with the appropriate research skills necessary for study at postgraduate level, ranging from advanced usage of the library’s rich range of digitised primary sources to the exploitation of free sites and the development of a comprehensive and relevant bibliography for the dissertation. Sessions are designed to help students fit their emerging research question explicitly within the framework of available secondary and primary sources and to develop strategies for obtaining the most benefit possible from such resources. The module also allows students to practise and develop their oral presentation skills.

Special Topic in History (30 credit points). This module encourages focused study of one field of staff expertise. It is taught by individual consultation and a series of group sessions that encourage group support and shared reflection on the research process. Examined by an extended essay, the module will foster deep engagement with specifically related clusters of historical texts.

Semester Three:

Dissertation (60 credit points). This module is an independent piece of research on an aspect of historical studies that interests you. Students set the agenda and are guided by some general sessions at the beginning and by individual supervision sessions throughout the semester. The final dissertation is approximately 15,000 words in length.

- Teaching and learning assessment -

Students are taught by lectures, seminars and individual tutorials.

The course is assessed by written essays, presentations and a long piece of extended writing (the dissertation).

Career options

Students graduating with the MA in History are well-prepared to undertake a variety of occupations. Some students will progress to doctoral research and academic careers. Others will become teachers or lecturers in further education. Not all MA graduates become teachers or university lecturers. Other options include work in libraries, archives, museums, or full-time work in research for charities, official organisations, government, etc. Others may go into marketing advertising, publishing, the civil service or politics. Our MA programmes have been known to help teachers advance their careers. Others pursue these degrees purely through interest and a love of the past. All graduate occupational outcomes are enhanced by a higher qualification such as this.

How to apply: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/apply/how-to-apply#pg

Why Choose Ulster University ?

1. Over 92% of our graduates are in work or further study six months after graduation.
2. We are a top UK university for providing courses with a period of work placement.
3. Our teaching and the learning experience we deliver are rated at the highest level by the Quality Assurance Agency.
4. We recruit international students from more than 100 different countries.
5. More than 4,000 students from over 50 countries have successfully completed eLearning courses at Ulster University.

Flexible payment

To help spread the cost of your studies, tuition fees can be paid back in monthly instalments while you learn. If you study for a one-year, full-time master’s, you can pay your fees up-front, in one lump sum, or in either five or ten equal monthly payments. If you study for a master’s on a part-time basis (e.g. over three years), you can pay each year’s fees up-front or in five or ten equal monthly payments each year. This flexibility allows you to spread the payment of your fees over each academic year. Find out more by visiting https://www.ulster.ac.uk/apply/fees-and-finance/postgraduate

Scholarships

A comprehensive range of financial scholarships, awards and prizes are available to undergraduate, postgraduate and research students. Scholarships recognise the many ways in which our students are outstanding in their subject. Individuals may be able to apply directly or may automatically be nominated for awards. Visit the website: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/apply/fees-and-finance/scholarships

English Language Tuition

CELT offers courses and consultations in English language and study skills to Ulster University students of all subjects, levels and nationalities. Students and researchers for whom English is an additional language can access free CELT support throughout the academic year: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/international/english-language-support

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Based in London, this groundbreaking Master’s programme offers students unique access to world-class scholars, thinkers and practitioners drawn from the world of sport and its academic study.

It is directed by Ed Smith, the commentator, historian of sport, and former cricketer for England, Middlesex and Kent.

The course enables the student to undertake research on a specific topic, agreed with the supervisor, in any aspect of the history of sport over the last two centuries. Assessment is by a dissertation, written under expert guidance over the course of the year.

A central feature of the programme is its series of ten evening seminars and post-seminar dinners in a London club, at which participants can engage in general discussion with guest speakers. These experts include:

• Mike Brearley OBE, former Captain of the England Cricket Team and former President of the MCC
• Dr Kasia Boddy, Lecturer at Cambridge University and author of Boxing: A Cultural History
• Mervyn King, Lord King of Lothbury KG, GBE, FBA, former Governor of the Bank of England and ex-Director, Aston Villa Football Club
• Professor Christopher Young, historian of sport, Cambridge University
• Simon Kuper, author and Financial Times columnist
• Matthew Syed, journalist, author and broadcaster

Sport’s place in modern life has never been more central, and the history of sport is a rapidly growing area of academic study. The course will touch on all major sports – in Britain, America and on the Continent. Some of the themes addressed by the lectures will be:

• Why was Britain so central to the development of modern sport?
• When and how did sport become politicised?
• How has sport influenced attitudes towards class, race, gender and sexuality?
• Sport’s role as an agent and beneficiary of globalisation.

The course will begin with two seminars about how to choose, research and write an academic dissertation, held at the University’s London offices, 51 Gower Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 6HJ. These will be followed by ten guest lectures and dinners, held at the splendid Caledonian Club (Halkin Street, London SW1X 7DR), a few moments from Hyde Park Corner in central London.

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The United States is the most politically and economically influential country in the world and its politics is more important than ever.

This course allows you to study United States politics at an advanced level in a department ranked top in the UK for research excellence (REF 2014) and with an extraordinary number of staff trained in the US. One of the few United States-focused courses in the UK, the course allows you gain in-depth knowledge of the workings of the US political system—what makes it unique, how it has evolved, and how it is changing. You receive a thorough training in the theories and methods needed to conduct your own research into United States politics – culminating in your dissertation on a topic that fascinates you and enhances your career. Your research skills will be in demand by a wide range of employers, including government, international organisations, policy analysis and market research. The course also prepares students for doctoral study.

In this course, you will study a wide range of topics.

The core module covers topics relating to the political institutions and policy-making in the United States including:

·        The US Constitutional Design

·        American Political Parties

·        The American Electorate

·        Congress and the Presidency

·        Economic and Political Inequality

·        Interest Groups

·        Representation, Race and Gender

·        Federalism and the Judiciary

In addition, the course includes modules covering theory and explanation in political science and advanced research methods. Optional modules include such topics as international relations, foreign policy and the politics of Western democracies.

Our expert staff

Our Department of Government is one of the most prestigious research and graduate training departments in Europe, with an outstanding record of teaching and publication. We are rated top in the UK for research (REF 2014), and have consistently been the highest-rated politics department in the country since national assessments began. Some of the biggest names in the field work at Essex, giving you unparalleled access to some of the best minds in politics and our academic staff work on topics ranging from political institutions, elections and international conflict and violence, to British and European elections. Our staff routinely advise governments, assist in training politicians and civil servants, and provide commentary on political events in national and international media.

Key academic staff for this course include:

• Dr Royce Carroll (PhD University of California San Diego), Reader in Comparative Politics and teacher of the core United States Politics module. He has published extensively on topics of democratic institutions, representation and policy-making processes in the US and elsewhere.
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• Professor Jonathan Slapin (PhD University of California Los Angeles), an expert on political institutions and legislative politics
• Dr Daina Chiba (PhD Rice University), an expert on research methodology and international relations
• Dr Alex Quiroz Flores (PhD New York University), quantitative methodologist and expert on foreign policy

Over half of our academic staff completed doctoral training in the United States and many of these staff have published, taught and/or provided expert commentary on topics relating to US politics, including Natasha Ezrow (PhD University of California Santa Barbara) and Gina YannitellReinhardt (PhD Washington University in St. Louis).

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