Studying at York
English and Politics Bridge Dissertation - ENG00124H
- Department: English and Related Literature
- Credit value: 40 credits
- Credit level: H
- Academic year of delivery: 2023-24
- See module specification for other years: 2024-25
Module summary
The dissertation is one of the most exciting and most ambitious modules of your degree. Building on your Personal Research Plan (‘Research Now’, Level Two), you will produce a sustained piece of work on a topic of your choosing that bridges English and Politics. You will be allocated a dissertation supervisor who will offer tailored support throughout the process, and you will attend lectures that guide you through the challenges of refining your topic, structuring your research, and writing an extended piece of critical prose. You will learn how to engage critically with existing scholarship, identify your own original contribution to your chosen field, and develop and sustain an argument across 7-8,000 words.
The module will help you to undertake extensive independent research, communicate your critical insights and close textual readings to a range of readers and audiences, and present your research clearly and persuasively. You may extend and develop ideas that have fascinated you in previous modules or undertake literary or political research in an area that you have not previously studied.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2023-24 to Semester 2 2023-24 |
Module aims
The aims of this module are to enable students to develop key skills in independent research and writing, with appropriate academic guidance and writing support. The module will offer students the opportunity to explore one element of their literary and/or political interests in considerable depth. It will further enhance students’ core skills in research and writing, library and IT use, and transferable skills in communication, time management, and organisation.
Module learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module, you should be able to:
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Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with an appropriate range of primary texts and political case studies, as identified by you, and the ability to undertake independent research on a focused topic.
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Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with relevant contextual, critical, and theoretical materials and approaches in English and Politics.
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Evaluate key debates within the relevant critical fields or theoretical frameworks dealing with your chosen research topic.
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Produce independent arguments and ideas which demonstrate an advanced proficiency in critical thinking, research, and writing skills.
Module content
In Semester One, all single subject and combined course students will have two 30-minute supervision meetings with their (bridge) dissertation supervisor. Your first supervision meeting will include a discussion of your Personal Research Plan from the Research Now module. Your second supervision meeting will focus on either a short piece of writing of up to 2,000 words or a plan or outline of the whole (bridge) dissertation of up to 1,000 words. We all work differently, and it is up to you to decide whether you would like to submit a draft or a plan first. Please remember that you must complete both of these exercises: if you choose to submit a plan now, you will still have to submit a draft in the next meeting.
In Semester Two, you will have two further 30-minute supervision meetings with your (bridge) dissertation supervisor. Depending on what you submitted for the previous meeting, your third supervision meeting will focus on either a short piece of writing of up to 2,000 words or a plan or outline of the whole (bridge) dissertation of up to 1,000 words. Your fourth supervision meeting will discuss the final shape and structure of the (bridge) dissertation.
You are welcome at all stages to use staff open office hours—also known in our partner departments as student hours or staff feedback and guidance hours—to seek advice and ask questions.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
You will receive feedback on your dissertation before the end of term.
Indicative reading
Key texts will depend on the subject of the dissertation research.