MA History (Medieval and Early Modern History)

Program Overview

---

This MA History (Medieval and Early Modern History) program explores medieval and early modern history, covering western Europe, the Mediterranean, and beyond. It offers core modules in historical approaches, research preparation, and medieval or early modern studies, and allows students to choose from a wide range of optional modules and special subjects. The program prepares students for careers in academia and beyond, with a focus on developing historical methods and transferable skills.

Program Outline

It offers wide-ranging expertise across the medieval period (c. 300 to c. 1500) and early modern period (c.1500 - c.1800). The program covers the countries of western Europe, Scandinavia, the eastern Mediterranean, America, South Asia and beyond from a range of thematic perspectives including religious cultures, socio-economic history, material culture, and comparative history.

---

Outline:

The program consists of three core modules:

• Historical Approaches: This module provides students with an advanced introduction to some of the ways in which historians have approached a range of prominent themes within the modern historical discipline, such as religion, gender, race, class, community, and conflict.
The module introduces these themes through a mixture of case studies and background reading and information, with an emphasis on historiographical development and a range of different theoretical, methodological and interdisciplinary influences, such as sociology, anthropology, the material turn, etc. Each week students are guided in reading influential texts that relate to one of these key themes, and students then meet in small seminar groups to discuss a mixture of historiographical case studies and additional theoretical background.

---

Assessment:

3,000 word assignment (100%)

• Research Preparation: This module is designed to deliver three complementary strands, with the ultimate aim of supporting students on the MA History to design, plan and research an ambitious dissertation topic.
The first strand is a series of lectures on key research skills in the historical discipline, ensuring that students are confident when it comes to aspects of research design such as defining a topic, reviewing secondary literature, identifying and accessing appropriate primary sources, etc. The second strand is a series of seminars designed to support specialist sub-disciplinary skills relating to (for example) chronological period or a particular geographical area or methodological approach. The third strand is a series of one-to-one supervisions with an academic advisor, to offer the student guidance and feedback as they devise their own unique research project, and lay the groundwork for their masters dissertation. The module also helps students to develop important skills in presenting and articulating their research to a larger non-specialist audience.

---

Assessment:

2,000-word literature review (75%), 10 minute oral presentation (25%)

• Plus one of the following core modules:
• Approaches to Medieval Studies:
Medieval Studies is a field to which many different disciplines contribute; the aim of this module is to expose students to approaches to the medieval past from a range of disciplines (such as archaeology, history, language & literature, art history, etc), in order to enable them to discuss and compare various approaches, and critically assess their utility for the students' own research. In the first half of the semester, students will directly compare different disciplines' approaches and methods, using key texts and case studies on important themes in the study of the Middle Ages (such as gender, space, the life-cycle, social groups, the nature of power). It will introduce students to a wide variety of topics important to the understanding of Early Modern History such as Church, Household, Revolution and the Self. Through such thematic topics, it will provide a broad knowledge base to draw upon both for students specialising in Early Modern History and for students on the general MA history as they begin to think about areas of interest on which to focus for the dissertation.

---

Assessment:

3,000-word essay (100%) In addition to the core modules, students must choose at least 20 credits from the History Optional Modules or Special Subject lists below. This may include up to 40 credits of appropriate level language modules. These lists are indicative; not all modules will run each year depending on staff availability.

---

History optional modules:

• Before Globalization?
: Afro-Eurasian World History 500-1800
• The Global Middle Ages, Conquest, Commerce, and Communication, 750-1350
• Messiahs and Monarchs: Islam and Early Modern Iran
• The Making of England, 850 - 1100
• Faith and Fire
• Capital Lives: Experiencing the City in Eighteenth- and Nineteenth- Century Britain
• Experts, Scholars, and Spies
• Gender and the Making of Modern Britain
• Women Behaving Badly in Tudor and Stuart England

---

English, Drama and Creative Studies optional modules:

• Meeting Medieval Manuscripts
• Digital Heritage and the Medieval Past

---

Language modules:

• Latin 1
• Latin 2
• Latin 3
• Latin Texts

---

Special Subjects:

If you choose a Special Subject as an option, you must take two co-requisite modules, 20 credits in each Semester. This list is indicative; not all modules will run each year depending on staff availability. Topics available in recent years have included:

• 1066, 1099: Chronicling Conquest on the Frontiers of Medieval Europe (Masters): A
• 1066, 1099: Chronicling Conquest on the Frontiers of Medieval Europe (Masters): B
• Games without Thrones?
North Atlantic Societies in the wake of the Vikings, c.800-c.1200 (Masters): A
• Games without Thrones?
North Atlantic Societies in the wake of the Vikings, c.800-c.1200 (Masters): B
• Beauty, Blood, Sweat and Tears: The Body in Britain, c1680-1820 (Masters): A
• Beauty, Blood, Sweat and Tears: The Body in Britain, c1680-1820 (Masters): B
• A History of the Tudors in 100 Objects (Masters): A
• A History of the Tudors in 100 Objects (Masters): B
• Gunpowder, Treason and Plot: England under Elizabeth I and James I (Masters): A
• Gunpowder, Treason and Plot: England under Elizabeth I and James I (Masters): B
Any remaining credits can be taken from the wide range of History options. It is also possible to select options offered by other departments such as African Studies, Classics and Ancient History, Cultural Heritage, Modern Languages, Art History or English - with the approval of the Programme Director. See an indicative list of options.

---

Dissertation:

In addition to your taught modules, you will conduct a piece of independent research with the support of a supervisor, culminating in a 12,000-word dissertation. Your dissertation must be on a topic within the pathway area of specialism.

---

Assessment:

The program uses a variety of assessment methods, including:

• 3,000 word assignments
• 2,000-word literature reviews
• 10 minute oral presentations
• 3,000-word essays
In all teaching you are encouraged to apply class material to your own specific research interests and your dissertation.

---

Careers:

The program provides excellent preparation for a range of careers within or outside of academia. You will obtain a firm grounding in historical methods, and a broad knowledge of relevant topics through coursework and engaging with the academic community at Birmingham and beyond.

---

Other:

• The Department of History is ranked eighth in the country in the Research Excellence Framework exercise 2021 based on Grade Point Average, according to Times Higher Education.
• You will be able to attend research seminars delivered by academics from across the institution and beyond, organised by the Centre for the Study of the Middle Ages (CeSMA) and the Centre for Reformation and Early Modern Studies (CREMS).
• Our postgraduate students also run their own research network, the EMREM Forum (Early Medieval - Medieval - Renaissance - Reformation - Early Modern).
EMREM organises regular seminars, training sessions, writing workshops and an annual postgraduate conference.
• As a postgraduate student you will have access to services such as the Academic Writing Advisory Service and the Bank of Assessed Work which will aid your transition from undergraduate to postgraduate level, or back into academia after a time away.
• The University of Birmingham is the top choice for the UK's major employers searching for graduate recruits, according to The Graduate Market 2024 report.
The College of Arts and Law also has a dedicated careers and employability team who offer tailored advice and a programme of College-specific careers events.
• Our History postgraduates develop a broad range of transferable skills that are highly valued by a range of employers.
Others use their transferable skills in a range of occupations including finance, marketing, teaching and publishing. Employers that graduates have gone on to work for include Royal Air Force, Ministry of Defence, University of Birmingham, Royal Air Force Museum and University of Oxford.

---

We charge an annual tuition fee. Fees for 2024 entry are as follows: UK: £10,530 full-time; £5,265 part-time International: £23,310 full-time

---

Paying your fees

Tuition fees can either be paid in full or by instalments. Learn more about postgraduate tuition fees and funding. Are you an international applicant? All international applicants to this course will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit of £2,000 on receipt of an offer, to secure their place. Find out more about the deposit >>. Postgraduate loans Government-backed Masters loans are available to help UK and EU students to finance their studies. For those starting courses after 1 August 2020, loans are available of up to £11,836 for Masters students in all subject areas. Scholarships and studentships Scholarships to cover fees and/or maintenance costs may be available. International students can often gain funding through overseas research scholarships, Commonwealth scholarships or their home government.