MA History

University of Winchester

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, which runs across both semesters, provides guidance on the different approaches to the study of history, including geographical scales of study and interdisciplinary approaches. There are four core modules: Approaches to the Past, Research and Dissemination Methods, Advanced Directed Study, and a dissertation. You also choose two special study modules from a varied list of options. Examples include The Fall of the Ancient City; Sport and Leisure in Victorian Britain; Medieval Queenship-Gender and Power in the Global Middle Ages; The ‘fifteen-year war’ and public memory in postwar Japan; Tudor Rebellions; The Organisation and Representation of Colonial Violence; and Church, Society, and Conflict in the Medieval West, c. 1000 - c. 1150. During the final summer of studies you write a 20,000-word dissertation, with specialist supervision. Research training for the dissertation is provided in the abovementioned specialist module Research and Dissemination Methods, 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, in which you showcase your dissertation plans and their development, and debate themes in the study of history with external speakers.