Twentieth Century British History

Contents

The degree consists of four parts:

Historical Methods
The purpose of this module, which is taken during the autumn semester, is to study some major historians of different 'schools' or 'approaches' along with the ideas which inform such historical work. It is taught by a range of specialists in the fields of political, economic, social, cultural and intellectual history. The module is compulsory for all MRes students in the Departments of Modern and Medieval History and so provides both an intellectual and social forum. Assessment is by a 4000 word essay.

Approaches to 20th Century British History
This is the core module of the degree, to be taken in the spring semester. It introduces you to a variety of methodological approaches to the study of twentieth century British history. Team taught, by members of Centre for Contemporary Governance and Citizenship (CenConUK), you will be exposed to the key histographical debates concerning twentieth century British history, problems and issues concerning sources and how each of the individual lecturers has contributed to the debate about 20th century British history.

Assessment is by a 4000 word essay.

Research Skills Training
This module will vary according to your interest and requirements. All students will receive the bibliographical training offered through Information Services and some training in IT. In addition linguistic, palaeographical, quantitative methods and other training will be offered. This is quite a flexible module and, where appropriate, you may wish to substitute certain skills courses for a theoretical or historiographical essay related to your field of research instead.

Thesis
The main component of the programme is a 20,000 word thesis on an agreed topic which relates to the history of twentieth century Britain and which can be appropriately supervised by a member of academic staff. . If you are interested in studying for this degree, you should contact the Department of History with a proposed topic of research so that a suitable supervisor can be found. We strongly encourage you to do this in advance of making your formal application, if at all possible: the sooner you have a clear idea of your basic research field, the better! The research interests and areas of supervision offered by staff in twentieth century British history are broad and embrace all aspects of modern Britain.

The modules are assessed in various ways - by examination, coursework, attendance etc.