MA/MRes Early Modern Literature and Culture (1500–1700)

RAE 2008
100% of RU’s submitted work in English Language and Literature was recognised either internationally or nationally for its originality, significance and rigour, with more than 30% of that work regarded as being either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. More information.

General programme information

Roehampton has a distinguished tradition of research in Renaissance studies, with a number of internationally recognised scholars producing high-profile work in this field. Based in the Centre for Research in Renaissance Studies, the MA provides an opportunity for the interdisciplinary study of European and English Renaissance culture.

Core modules engage you in conversations about the most important texts and issues of the period, while training you in the theories, skills and practical knowledge needed for MA-level work. Optional modules enable you to develop your own interests.A set text will be Fernie, Wray, Burnett and McManus (eds), Reconceiving the Renaissance: A Critical Reader (OUP, 2005), which is co-edited by the module convenor and specially designed to introduce MA students to the key theoretical approaches to the period.

Modules

You will choose from a range of special topics to run alongside your core modules.

Core modules

Renaissances: Key Texts and Issues
Research Methods: Skills and Methods

Special topics

Authorship controversies
The big house and estate 1480-1700: A cultural and social history
Court, city and theatre in early modern London
Eating the Renaissance: cultures of early modern food
Media Shakespeare
Ovid in the middle ages and the Renaissance
Renaissance bodies
Restaging the Renaissance: early modern drama in performance

Please note that not all options will be available every year.

The summer will be spent writing an extensive dissertation.

MRes

MRes students will take the two core modules and will write an extended dissertation of 30,000 words.

Studying the MA on a part-time basis

Part-time students will take the MA over two years, taking core modules in the first year, followed by special topics and a dissertation in subsequent years.

Career opportunities

The research training provided by an MA or MRes is increasingly seen as vital for prospective PhD students; the Arts and Humanities Research Council, for example, now expects applicants for PhD research grants to have a Masters degree.

However, a Masters is not just for those planning an academic career. Many people take a Masters course because they have developed an interest in a particular area of literature or history at undergraduate level and want to deepen their knowledge and enhance their critical skills.

More employers now seek graduates with research skills. A Masters degree will give you a grounding in research methods using modern information and communications technology.

College and school teachers know too that a Masters can be a career investment: with Shakespeare and the Tudors a standard element of many A2 Drama, English and History syllabuses, specialist knowledge of the world of Shakespeare and his contemporaries can be a distinct advantage if you are looking for career advancement.

Entry requirements

MRes

Candidates require a good second-class honours degree (or above) in one of the following: English, History, Drama, Art History and/or a related subject, with significant work in the Renaissance/early modern period. Additional qualifications or proficiency may be expected, according to the nature of the proposed research project.

For non-native speakers the English requirement is IELTS 6.5 overall with no less than 6 in any of the bands.

MRes students will take the two core modules and will write an extended dissertation of 30,000 words. MRes students will take the two core modules and will write an extended dissertation of 30,000 words.

You can also view our postgraduate entry requirements.

Length of programme

Full-time: 1 year Part-time: 2 years

Number of places

Programme start date

September

Number of Credits

MA: 180 MRes: 180

Fees

Band 3

Further information

Susanne Greenhalgh (Autumn Semester 2009)
Email: s.greenhalgh@roehampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)20 8392 3334