The taught MA dissertation should, in a project of between 14,000 and 16,000 words, examine a limited topic - usually related to one or more of the modules the student has studied during the course of the MA - in some depth. It should reflect the interdisciplinary character of the MA, and show intellectual enterprise, critical judgement, historical understanding, precise knowledge of primary materials, and adequate familiarity with secondary material; it should also be documented according to the recognized conventions of scholarly presentation.
Module learning outcomes
Subject content
To explore one or more aspects of a subject arising from the MA course to which the student has subscribed, and to do so in greater depth than would be possible in the assessed modular essays.
Academic and graduate skills
The student will demonstrate the capacity to devise and execute a project of independent study, and show the ability to undertake research of some originality; the student will be expected to engage with, and on occasion challenge a wide range of secondary sources, to articulate an argument with clarity and precision, and to document their work with scholarly accuracy.
Indicative assessment
Task
% of module mark
Graduate/Postgraduate Dissertation
100
Special assessment rules
Non-compensatable
Additional assessment information
Students will benefit from being able to make regular draft submissions of work in progress, and will receive regular written and/or verbal feedback on these. Work will also be presented orally in supervision meetings and peer-to-peer discussions and draft swaps.
Indicative reassessment
None
Module feedback
Graduands will receive copies of the examiners' reports (unattributed) in the Autumn following submission.
Indicative reading
Reading for the dissertation will vary according to the scope of the project chosen by the student, but is likely to include texts which have been encountered on the other modules that make up the MA.
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