| UCAS code | 1234 |
|---|---|
| Duration | 1 year full time 2 years part time |
| Entry year | September 2026 |
| Campus | Streatham Campus |
| Discipline | Arab and Islamic Studies |
| Contact | Programme Director Abla Oudeh Mahmoud |
| Typical offer | We will consider applicants with a 2:2 Honours degree or above (or equivalent). |
|---|---|
Overview
- Build interdisciplinary expertise whilst exploring your specific interests within the long and diverse history of esotericism, witchcraft, ritual magic, occult science, and related topics.
- Join our dynamic postgraduate community benefiting from research-inspired teaching led by a range of top scholars from different fields.
- Our prestigious Centre for Magic and Esotericism welcomes MA students to monthly meetings and local field trips.
- Graduate with the skills to and knowledge needed to influence and drive business strategies that make a positive contribution to the environment and society.
Top 3 in the Russell Group for student satisfaction in all seven themes
National Student Survey 2024
Home to Europe's most important research collection on the Arab world
Develop transferable skills, specialist knowledge and research skills through interdisciplinary teaching
Varied graduate careers
Top 3 in the Russell Group for student satisfaction in all seven themes
National Student Survey 2024
Home to Europe's most important research collection on the Arab world
Develop transferable skills, specialist knowledge and research skills through interdisciplinary teaching
Varied graduate careers
Entry requirements
We will consider applicants with a 2:2 Honours degree or above (or equivalent). We welcome students from any academic background.
Please also see our guidance on essential documentation required for an initial decision on taught programme applications.
Entry requirements for international students
English language requirements
International students need to show they have the required level of English language to study this course. The required test scores for this course fall under Profile B1.
Please visit our English language requirements page to view the required test scores and equivalencies from your country.
Course content
The MA Magic and Occult Science is a unique programme that allows you to tailor a programme to your own interests by choosing a range of modules within humanities and social sciences, or by specialising in a certain area.
The core module, ARAM251 Esotericism and the Magical Tradition is a team-taught module where students explore key topics including magic in Greece and Rome, occult texts in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the history of witchcraft, magic in literature and folklore, deception and illusion, and the history of science and medicine, among other key themes.
By housing this program within the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, we place the Arabo-Islamic cultural heritage back where it belongs in the centre of these studies and in the history of the “West.” Decolonisation, the exploration of alternative epistemologies, feminism, and anti-racism are at the core of this programme.
Stage 1: 90 credits of compulsory modules, 90 credits of option modules
Compulsory modules
| Code | Module | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ARAM251 | Esotericism and the Magical Tradition | 30 |
| ARAM027 | MA Dissertation | 60 |
Optional modules
| Code | Module | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Magic and Occult Science Option Modules 2025-6 | ||
| ARCM120 | Themes in Archaeological Theory and Practice | 15 |
| ARAM232 | Theorising the Middle East | 15 |
| ARAM249 | Theorising Islam | 15 |
| ARAM257 | Philosophising Magic: From Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages | 15 |
| CLAM101 | The Western Dragon in Lore, Literature and Art | 15 |
| CLAM263 | Magic and Folklore in the Greek and Roman Worlds | 15 |
| EASM174 | Writing Women in the English Middle Ages | 30 |
| HASM005 | The Legend of King Arthur | 30 |
| HASM006 | The Legend of King Arthur | 15 |
| HASM014 | Past Magic: Histories and Archaeologies of the Supernatural | 15 |
| HASM015 | Past Magic: Histories and Archaeologies of the Supernatural | 30 |
| HISM039 | History in Public: A Workplace Project | 30 |
| PHLM007 | Current Issues in Mind and Cognition | 30 |
| PHLM008 | Mind, Body and World | 30 |
| PHLM013 | Philosophy and Psychedelics | 15 |
| PHLM014 | Philosophy and Psychedelics | 30 |
| SOCM050 | Secrecy Studies: On Concealment, Disclosure and Revelation | 15 |
| THEM151 | Monsters in the Bible and Beyond | 15 |
| HASM023 | Disenchanting enchantment: Occultism, Science and Religion in the Long Nineteenth Century | 30 |
| HASM018 | Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents | 30 |
| ARA3197 | The Arabian Nights: Perception and Reception | 15 |
| HASM013 | Mental Health in Social and Historical Context | 30 |
| HASM025 | Historical Masterclass | 15 |
| HASM024 | Critical Approaches to Medieval Studies | 30 |
| HASM027 | In Sickness and In Health: Medicine and Disease in the Past | 30 |
| HASM028 | Food and Agriculture in Historical Perspective | 30 |
| HASM029 | Reproduction and Reproductive Justice: Past, Present and Future | 15 |
| HASM030 | Reproduction and Reproductive Justice: Past, Present and Future | 30 |
| HISM001 | Critical Approaches to Early Modern History | 30 |
| PHLM017 | Philosophy of Science | 30 |
| EASM207 | Writing Women in the English Middle Ages | 15 |
| EFPM839 | Transdisciplinary Collaborations for Creative Futures | 30 |
You may also choose up to 30 credits of modules offered outside of the official choices (also at the UG level) in line with the University’s modularity policy.
Find a list of example modules hereFees
2026/27 entry
UK fees per year:
£12,650 full-time; £6,325 part-time
International fees per year:
£25,550 full-time; £12,775 part-time
Scholarships
The University of Exeter offers a wide range of scholarships to support your education, with £7 million available for international students applying to study with us in the 2026/27 academic year, including our prestigious Exeter Excellence Scholarships *. We also provide awards for sport, music and other achievements, as well as regional and partner scholarships with organisations such as Chevening, The Beacon Trust and the British Council. For more information on scholarships and other financial support, please visit our scholarships and bursaries page.
University of Exeter Alumni Scholarship
We are pleased to offer University of Exeter alumni beginning a standalone postgraduate programme in 2026/27 with us a scholarship towards the cost of your tuition fees. Full details can be found here.
*Terms and conditions, including deadlines, apply. See our website for details..
Teaching and research
This MA is centred around interdisciplinary learning. You will be taught by active researchers with leading global expertise and will be co-supervised by two supervisors from different disciplines.
Our research-led teaching is combined with practical experiences such as field trips and monthly meetings with our Centre for Magic and Esotericism.
You have the freedom to build your own programme to suit your own interests. For your personal dissertation you can opt for primarily text-based, historical, or social-science methodologies on the ARAM027 dissertation module (Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies) or employ primarily performative and practice-based methodologies on the DRAM080 dissertation module (Drama Department).
Research
You will conduct original research using our archival materials which include sources for rites and rituals, meanings of belief, Westcountry witchcraft and folklore, along with ancient and Arabic sources. The Bill Douglas Cinema Museum also has a large collection of books, ephemera and artefacts on the history of magic lanterns, phantasmagoria, optical illusions, photography, Victorian magic and music hall performance, with many items relating to séances and Victorian occult activities.
The Centre for Magic and Esotericism is an interdisciplinary centre exploring topics relating to the history of magic, occult and esoteric literatures using a ground-breaking approach by studying many different cultures and languages all in dialogue with each other.
Emily Selove (PhD 2012, UCLA) is an Associate Professor in Medieval Arabic Language and Literature at the University of Exeter. She is also the convener of the University of Exeter's Centre for Magic and Esotericism.
Her early research focused on the figure of the uninvited guest (or "party-crasher") in medieval Arabic literature, and especially on the 11th-century work Ḥikāyat Abī l-Qāsim, the subject of her monograph, Ḥikāyat Abī l-Qāsim: A Literary Banquet (Edinburgh University Press, 2016). She also co-edited and translated this text with Professor Geert Jan van Gelder: The Portrait of Abū l-Qāsim al-Baghdādī al-Tamīmī (Gibb Memorial Trust, 2021).
Read more from Dr Emily Selove
Dr Emily Selove
Programme Director
Transdisciplinary Collaborations for Creative Futures
You are invited to consider taking Transdisciplinary Collaborations for Creative Futures as an optional module in your course. It's available in two formats: 15 credits (EFPM838) or 30 credits (EFPM839).
Our Transdisciplinary Collaborations for Creative Futures module will give you the competitive career advantage of understanding how to bring your disciplinary knowledge into active dialogue with students and staff from other disciplines in order to tackle global sustainability challenges.
This module is taught by staff from across the University of Exeter and is grounded in the University's School of Education research, which shows that the best way to tackle complex real-world challenges is to creatively collaborate across disciplines and with stakeholders.
The challenges will come from external University strategic partners, ensuring issues are current, cutting edge and relevant, whilst supporting employability. The module aims to teach you how to collaboratively, and critically, produce original ideas, and think innovatively about the future through research-based activities, fieldwork and creative workshops that blend the arts, sciences, social sciences, humanities and business.
Using appropriately innovative assessment techniques, the module will equip you to respond to the global complexity and uncertainty that you will inevitably encounter when you graduate. You will be taught using pedagogical innovations, working in transdisciplinary teams with facilitation through cutting edge Creative Pedagogies and Design Thinking.
This module is particularly appropriate for international students seeking insight into UK business, creative industries and cultural contexts and employment possibilities.
Feedback from students who have taken this module highlights its value and the additional skills it helps them develop:
"This module has changed my perspective and transformed my vision. I now have a new understanding of how educational processes and practices should be designed so that learners can acquire skills such as problem-solving, collaborative working, critical and creative thinking in a transdisciplinary way." - Canan, MEd TESOL
"This module has made me more deeply understand the importance of interdisciplinary cooperation. This diversity is also a key reason why I chose this course. I hope to interact with people who have different viewpoints and come from different fields to help me look at problems from various perspectives." - Joey, MA Creative Arts in Education
"Taking this module is one of the best things I've done as part of my studies at Exeter. This is the most exciting and creative course I have ever attended." - Linh Le, MEd TESOL
"I would definitely recommend this module, not only can students learn by means of interdisciplinary cooperation through group cooperation, but also can expand the scope of communication, promote international students to know more about local culture, and promote the communication between international students and other students, which is really very good." - Sherry, MA Creative Arts in Education
Careers
Our MA programme is designed to develop skills to prepare you for a wide range of professions, or further study into PhD level. You will develop invaluable transferable skills, including creative thinking, analytical thinking, curiosity and lifelong learning, resilience, flexibility and agility, motivation and self-awareness.
This MA can lead you to a diverse range of careers, examples include: teaching, counselling, mentoring, heritage and museum work, work in libraries, tourism, arts organisations, the publishing industry, social justice and environmental think tanks, spiritual and wellbeing guidance, writing and media, the arts, and further research.
The recent surge in interest around topics pertaining to magic and occultism means that many of these professions have experienced a similar surge in demand for this expertise.
Employment and professional development
Our excellent Career Zone provides invaluable support, advice and access to graduate employers. Visit the employment and professional development pages for more information, including podcasts and profiles, about the range of support available.
