Historical Research MA

This MA Historical Research is our most flexible postgraduate history course, offering you the opportunity to develop a pathway through the course that best suits your needs and interests.

Why choose this course?

* It gives you the chance to formulate a bespoke course choosing from a wide variety of different option modules which explore topics ranging across different regions and periods.

* You can also decide on a research route through this course that offers you the intellectual foundation, practical techniques and confidence to pursue a PhD or independent historical research in a particular area.

* You will have the opportunity to develop your own independent research project, under the guidance and supervision of one of our experts.

What will I learn?

On our flagship Mastering Historical Research module, which includes lectures from leading specialists, you will examine the major themes and approaches used in historical research today. You will then tailor the course to suit your interests and ambitions choosing from option modules that cover different historical periods, geographic regions and historical specialisms.

How will I learn?

Core modules on this course are taught via a combination of lectures and in-depth seminar discussion. Option modules are taught via seminars with module-specific coursework designed to develop your reading, research and writing skills. You will also receive one-to-one supervision for your independent research project.

This course is available to study full- or part-time, with classes held in the evening.

This course is part of our Birkbeck Flexible Master’s UK, which gives you the choice of how you want to study - on campus, online or via flexible learning, which combines both.

If you require a Student visa to study in the UK, you will only be able to apply for the on-campus study option for this course. Online and flexible options will not be available to you because they may affect the conditions of your visa.

Please note, courses starting in January are not part of the Flexible Master's UK and will take place on campus.

Highlights

* This MA degree offers you practical training in advanced research skills that can support progression to PhD study.

* Birkbeck was ranked in the top eight universities in the UK for its History research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.

* Our research is unique in its range across geographical and chronological boundaries. We are the only university in London to include historians, classicists and archaeologists in the same team of academics investigating every period from prehistory to the early twenty-first century. We see the study of the past as crucial for our understanding of present-day society, culture and politics.

* All Master’s students are eligible to apply for our prestigious Eric Hobsbawm Scholarships, subject to availability.

* We are home to a number of affiliated research centres that actively run seminars, conferences and other events where some of the world's best scholars present their latest research. These include the Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism, the Raphael Samuel History Centre and the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities.

Careers and employability

On successfully graduating from this course you will have gained an array of transferable skills, including:

* a solid grounding in historiography and history

* training in critical reading and writing

* training in the organisation of research and design of a research project.

Studying this course will prepare you for further research or study, or for any role that requires critical reading and evaluation of texts and sources such as in:

* secondary or sixth form school teaching

* the heritage sector

* journalism

* law.

Graduates from this course have gone on to be employed by the Historical Association, British Museum, BBC and Channel 4 News, and a number of different secondary schools.