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Dissertation

Module description

The dissertation project is the culmination of the MA in Film and Screen Studies programme. Across the module you will conceive, plan, research and write an independent study of 15,000 words.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The dissertation will enable you to develop subject knowledge and methodological skills in Film & Screen studies by exploring in detail a topic of your own devising.

You will be supported from the early stages of planning your dissertation in the first term of your studies. This will enable you to develop and submit a proposal by the end of term 2 (for part time students the proposal will be submitted by the second term of the second year of study).

You will then be assigned a supervisor who has knowledge and research interests appropriate to the proposed topic. Your supervisor will support you as your research, planning and writing progress through one-to-one supervision sessions. Alongside your supervision, you will attend dissertation workshop lectures in terms 2 and 3 and participate in dissertation conference with the other members of your cohort. These combined activities will offer you consistent guidance and support to help refine your initial plans and bring your research project to completion.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Critically evaluate at an advanced level current research in the discipline and in your chosen area of enquiry.
• 2. Deploy at an advanced level a range of research techniques and methodologies appropriate to the discipline and to your chosen area of enquiry.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Ability to understand and analyse relevant theoretical ideas and concepts, and, where appropriate, interdisciplinary intersections, tracing the development of debates across disciplinary boundaries.
• 4. Ability to work from the detail of film and screen texts, with a full appreciation of their formal and aesthetic aspects.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Through research for the dissertation proposal, presentation and the dissertation, demonstrate an advanced proficiency in information retrieval and analysis.
• 6. Through the dissertation proposal, presentation and the dissertation, demonstrate an advanced and intellectually mature capacity to question assumptions, to distinguish between fact and opinion, and to critically reflect on your own learning process.

Syllabus plan

Indicative activities:

Term 2:

• Workshop 1: Finding and developing your research idea
• Workshop 2: Writing and refining a dissertation proposal

Term 3:

• Dissertation conference
• Optional Writing Cafés

Supervision:

You are entitled to three one-hour supervision meetings with your dissertation supervisor.  Supervision can take place in a range of formats (for example, face to face, online, or by phone). It is the responsibility of the student to arrange these meetings with their supervisor.

• The first meeting will take place early on in the process. This will allow you to discuss and refine your initial ideas and plan your research for the project.
• The second meeting will allow you to receive feedback on an extended dissertation proposal, which you will submit to your supervisor after participating in the dissertation conference.
• The third supervision meeting will take place at a later stage in your writing process, and will enable you to discuss feedback on an extract of your project (supervisors can offer formative feedback on up to 5,000 words).

It is expected that the formal supervision process will be concluded by the end of July.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 50%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of referral will be capped at 50%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Delia Da Sousa Correa, et al, eds. The Handbook to Literary Research, 2^nd ed., Routledge, 2010.
• Aceme Nyika. Postgraduate Handbook : A Comprehensive Guide for PhD and Master's Students and Their Supervisors, Caister Academic Press, 2018.
• Stephen Potter, Doing Postgraduate Research, The Open University in association with SAGE Publications, 2006.

Key words search

Dissertation, screen studies, film studies, research