Programme Specification for the 2021/2 academic year

MA Medieval Studies

1. Programme Details

Programme name	MA Medieval Studies	Programme code	PTA1SMLSML02
Study mode(s)	Part Time Full Time	Academic year	2021/2
Campus(es)	Streatham (Exeter)	NQF Level of the Final Award	7 (Masters)

2. Description of the Programme

The University of Exeter has a long and distinguished history in Medieval Studies and the MA Medieval Studies is taught in association with the Centre for Medieval Studies, one of the largest centres in the university and which hosts staff from a wide range of disciplines. Our expertise is especially strong in the areas of medieval history, archaeology, law, music, French literature, English literature, and Arab and Islamic studies. Our team-taught modules draw on this expertise to introduce you to source materials and approaches from across Medieval Studies, while our ‘Medieval Masterclass’ module allows you to work directly with a single member of staff on their specialist areas of research. We also offer training in the key skills needed to study the Middle Ages, including Latin, palaeography, codicology and diplomatic. . As well as the university library (which currently holds on loan the late medieval manuscript holdings of Syon Abbey), nearby the holdings of Exeter Cathedral Library and Archives include the unique collection of Old English verse, the Exeter Book, and a detailed record of late eleventh-century landholding in the South West, the Exon Domesday. Also located in Exeter are the archives of the Devon Heritage Centre, which contain detailed records of medieval landholdings and towns across Devon and the South West.

Advice and guidance on your programme can be sought from your personal tutor and programme director. All staff offer regular office hours that you can drop into without a prior appointment for this purpose.

3. Educational Aims of the Programme

The programme aims:

To provide you with a sophisticated understanding of Medieval Studies, together with the opportunity to study in depth those aspects which particularly appeal to you.
To produce graduates who will be useful, productive and questioning members of society; who have an advanced conception of the main themes of the discipline and who understand the methods which scholars use to study the past; and who can conduct advanced analysis of past societies.
To combine advanced training for postgraduate research in Medieval Studies with the development of the particular interests of the students.
To provide research-led teaching, primarily through seminar-based learning.
To assess your abilities and achievements through a wide variety of methods, from essays and a dissertation to literature reviews and presentations.
To produce graduates who are highly competent in core academic, personal and professional skills, capable of continuing to an advanced research degree in the subject or entering other professions.
To encourage specific skills through activities such as student presentations, public history or work placements that will enable you to stand out from those graduating from other institutions.

4. Programme Structure

5. Programme Modules

The following tables describe the programme and constituent modules. Constituent modules may be updated, deleted or replaced as a consequence of the annual programme review of this programme.

http://intranet.exeter.ac.uk/humanities/studying/postgraduatetaught/modules/

You may take optional modules as long as any necessary prerequisites have been satisfied, where the timetable allows, and if you have not already taken the module in question or an equivalent module.

Subject to approval by the Programme Director, you may take up to 30 credits of elective modules from outside of the programme (for example, from English, Modern Languages, or Theology and Religion) providing that the modules focus is wholly or partly on the medieval period (400-1500)), as long as any necessary prerequisites have been satisfied, where the timetable allows, and if you have not already taken the module in question or an equivalent module.

Stage 1

120 credits of compulsory modules and 60 credits of optional modules

Subject to selecting 60 credits of optional modules you must:

select 30-60 credits from the list of options in the table below.

^a select 0-30 credits from HISM185 or HISM186 (you cannot select both modules).

Compulsory Modules

Code	Module	Credits	Non-condonable?
HISM042	Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents	30	Yes
HISM180	Dissertation in Medieval Studies	60	Yes
HISM183	Interpreting the Middle Ages	30	Yes

Optional Modules

Code	Module	Credits	Non-condonable?
HISS MA Medieval Studies optional modules 2021-2
ARCM225	Landscape Archaeology: Understanding the Historic Environment	15	No
ARCM501	Researching the Historic Environment Online	15	No
CLAM251	Latin I	30	No
CLAM252	Classical Language and Texts: Latin II	30	No
CLAM255	Latin IV	30	No
EASM174	Writing Women in the English Middle Ages	30	No
HISM045	Medieval Masterclass	30	No
HISM185-HISM186 [See note a above]
HISM185	Supervised Independent Study in the Humanities	15	No
HISM186	Supervised Independent Study in the Humanities	30	No

6. Programme Outcomes Linked to Teaching, Learning and Assessment Methods

Intended Learning Outcomes
A: Specialised Subject Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:	Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...
...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):	...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:
1. Closely understand the record-keeping practices and patterns of record survival in the UK and elsewhere. 2. Have an awareness of the ethical, copyright, archival and ownership issues impacting upon access to documents, and of how to identify and locate likely source material. 3. Show a sophisticated understanding of the development of Medieval Studies as a discipline and of its relationship to other disciplines. 4. Show a critical appreciation of the evolving nature of historical understanding, of the limits to historical knowledge, and of the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches to historical research and writing. 5. Compare and contrast in detail different approaches and their source materials, eliciting the value and limitations of each. 6. Define a suitable topic for advanced research and pursue it to completion. 7. Make sophisticated use of different types of historical source, evaluate different and complex types of historical source, and use primary sources in a professional manner. 8. Present work in the format expected of academic work this area, including footnoting and bibliographical references. 9. Show an appreciation of how quantitative data can be used in historical research. 10. Analyse particular aspects of medieval studies through detailed study of the complex subjects covered in the optional modules.	The programme uses a variety of learning and teaching methods. The precise method of teaching varies according to module. At MA level seminar discussion is the primary method, supported by web and IT resources through the University’s virtual learning platform, ELE. In seminars your contribution is essential and you must prepare for class by reading the recommended texts. There is also opportunity for feedback on draft materials before work is assessed. You are expected to meet regular deadlines and to produce well-presented work for each seminar. Many modules include group or individual presentations as part of the assessment. You will undertake research training to support you in work for the dissertation. Specifically, 1-4 are developed through the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules, through seminar discussions and assignments, and through the optional modules. 5-9 are developed through essay and seminar work on all modules, and particularly in the compulsory dissertation. 10 is developed through the optional modules.	1-4 are assessed through assignments on the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules and the option modules. 5-9 form part of the criteria of assessment for all modules, but particularly that of the compulsory dissertation 10 is assessed in the essay work and seminar presentations on the optional modules.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...

...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):

...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:

1. Closely understand the record-keeping practices and patterns of record survival in the UK and elsewhere.
2. Have an awareness of the ethical, copyright, archival and ownership issues impacting upon access to documents, and of how to identify and locate likely source material.
3. Show a sophisticated understanding of the development of Medieval Studies as a discipline and of its relationship to other disciplines.
4. Show a critical appreciation of the evolving nature of historical understanding, of the limits to historical knowledge, and of the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches to historical research and writing.
5. Compare and contrast in detail different approaches and their source materials, eliciting the value and limitations of each.
6. Define a suitable topic for advanced research and pursue it to completion.
7. Make sophisticated use of different types of historical source, evaluate different and complex types of historical source, and use primary sources in a professional manner.
8. Present work in the format expected of academic work this area, including footnoting and bibliographical references.
9. Show an appreciation of how quantitative data can be used in historical research.
10. Analyse particular aspects of medieval studies through detailed study of the complex subjects covered in the optional modules.

The programme uses a variety of learning and teaching methods. The precise method of teaching varies according to module. At MA level seminar discussion is the primary method, supported by web and IT resources through the University’s virtual learning platform, ELE. In seminars your contribution is essential and you must prepare for class by reading the recommended texts. There is also opportunity for feedback on draft materials before work is assessed. You are expected to meet regular deadlines and to produce well-presented work for each seminar. Many modules include group or individual presentations as part of the assessment. You will undertake research training to support you in work for the dissertation.

Specifically,

1-4 are developed through the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules, through seminar discussions and assignments, and through the optional modules.

5-9 are developed through essay and seminar work on all modules, and particularly in the compulsory dissertation.
10 is developed through the optional modules.

1-4 are assessed through assignments on the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules and the option modules.

5-9 form part of the criteria of assessment for all modules, but particularly that of the compulsory dissertation

10 is assessed in the essay work and seminar presentations on the optional modules.

Intended Learning Outcomes
B: Academic Discipline Core Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:	Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...
...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):	...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:
11. Work independently with primary sources at an advanced level. 12. Approach documents critically through their context. 13. Identify, analyse, understand, and synthesise widely different and problematic types of historical material and evidence. 14. Have a critical understanding of key concepts, discourses and debates related to medieval studies. 15. Research for themselves and present independent accounts and interpretations of different and complex historical issues. 16. Gather and deploy evidence for an independent and advanced research project. 17. Make effective use of libraries and the world-wide web to find information. 18. Reference sources accurately in written work to a professional standard.	See above. Specifically, Whilst all skills are developed through all modules: 11 is developed through the language module in Latin. 11-15, 17-18 are specially developed through the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules and term 1 optional modules. 13-15, 17-18 are specially developed in term 2 optional modules. 11-16 are specially developed in the dissertation.	All these skills are assessed informally through seminar preparation for both core and optional modules, and formally through assessed assignments and the dissertation. Specifically, 11-15, 17-18 are specially developed through the assessment for the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules. 13-15, 17-18 are specially developed in the assessment for the optional modules. 11-18 are specially developed in the dissertation.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...

...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):

...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:

11. Work independently with primary sources at an advanced level.
12. Approach documents critically through their context.
13. Identify, analyse, understand, and synthesise widely different and problematic types of historical material and evidence.
14. Have a critical understanding of key concepts, discourses and debates related to medieval studies.
15. Research for themselves and present independent accounts and interpretations of different and complex historical issues.
16. Gather and deploy evidence for an independent and advanced research project.
17. Make effective use of libraries and the world-wide web to find information.
18. Reference sources accurately in written work to a professional standard.

See above.

Specifically,

Whilst all skills are developed through all modules:

11 is developed through the language module in Latin.

11-15, 17-18 are specially developed through the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules and term 1 optional modules.

13-15, 17-18 are specially developed in term 2 optional modules.

11-16 are specially developed in the dissertation.

All these skills are assessed informally through seminar preparation for both core and optional modules, and formally through assessed assignments and the dissertation.

Specifically,

11-15, 17-18 are specially developed through the assessment for the Interpreting the Middle Ages and Working with Medieval Manuscripts and Documents modules.

13-15, 17-18 are specially developed in the assessment for the optional modules.

11-18 are specially developed in the dissertation.

Intended Learning Outcomes
C: Personal/Transferable/Employment Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:	Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...
...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):	...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:
19. Think independently at an advanced level. 20. Construct and defend a sustained argument, both in written form and orally, using primary and secondary materials. 21. Work as an individual on challenging material. 22. Work as part of a team in a constructive and responsive way.	See above. Specifically, 19 is a requirement of all modules, and especially the dissertation. 20 and 21 are core requirements of all modules, especially the dissertation. 22 is developed through seminar and group work on the taught modules.	19-21 are assessed in all modules by all work, especially essays and the dissertation. 22 is reflected in seminar work and presentations.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
On successfully completing this programme you will be able to:

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be...

...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class):

...and evidenced by the following assessment methods:

19. Think independently at an advanced level.
20. Construct and defend a sustained argument, both in written form and orally, using primary and secondary materials.
21. Work as an individual on challenging material.
22. Work as part of a team in a constructive and responsive way.

See above.

Specifically,

19 is a requirement of all modules, and especially the dissertation. 20 and 21 are core requirements of all modules, especially the dissertation.

22 is developed through seminar and group work on the taught modules.

19-21 are assessed in all modules by all work, especially essays and the dissertation.

22 is reflected in seminar work and presentations.

7. Programme Regulations

Classification

Full details of assessment regulations for all taught programmes can be found in the TQA Manual, specifically in the Credit and Qualifications Framework, and the Assessment, Progression and Awarding: Taught Programmes Handbook. Additional information, including Generic Marking Criteria, can be found in the Learning and Teaching Support Handbook.

8. College Support for Students and Students' Learning

All students in History have a personal tutor for their entire programme of study and who are available at advertised ‘office hours’ (staff changes are likely due to Research Leave etc.). There are induction sessions to orientate students at the start of their programme. A personal tutoring system will operate with regular communication throughout the programme. Academic support will be also be provided by module leaders. You can also make an appointment to see individual teaching staff.

Programme handbooks and other useful information can be accessed via the student intranet: http://intranet.exeter.ac.uk/humanities/studying/taughthandbook/.

Other useful information and student resources can be accessed via the Exeter Learning Environment (ELE): http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/login/index.php , which has specific information on library skills, essay writing and research skills.

9. University Support for Students and Students' Learning

Please refer to the University Academic Policy and Standards guidelines regarding support for students and students' learning.

10. Admissions Criteria

Undergraduate applicants must satisfy the Undergraduate Admissions Policy of the University of Exeter.

Postgraduate applicants must satisfy the Postgraduate Admissions Policy of the University of Exeter.

Specific requirements required to enrol on this programme are available at the respective Undergraduate or Postgraduate Study Site webpages.

11. Regulation of Assessment and Academic Standards

Each academic programme in the University is subject to an agreed College assessment and marking strategy, underpinned by institution-wide assessment procedures.

The security of assessment and academic standards is further supported through the appointment of External Examiners for each programme. External Examiners have access to draft papers, course work and examination scripts. They are required to attend the Board of Examiners and to provide an annual report. Annual External Examiner reports are monitored at both College and University level. Their responsibilities are described in the University's code of practice. See the University's TQA Manual for details.

(http://as.exeter.ac.uk/support/admin/staff/qualityassuranceandmonitoring/tqamanual/fullcontents/)

12. Indicators of Quality and Standards

The programme is not subject to accreditation and/ or review by professional and statutory regulatory bodies (PSRBs).

13. Methods for Evaluating and Improving Quality and Standards

The University and its constituent Colleges review the quality and standard of teaching and learning in all taught programmes against a range of criteria through the procedures outlined in the Teaching Quality Assurance (TQA) Manual Quality Review Framework.

14. Awarding Institution

University of Exeter

15. Lead College / Teaching Institution

Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS)

16. Partner College / Institution

Partner College(s)

Not applicable to this programme

Partner Institution

Not applicable to this programme.

17. Programme Accredited / Validated by

18. Final Award

MA Medieval Studies

19. UCAS Code

Not applicable to this programme.

20. NQF Level of Final Award

7 (Masters)

21. Credit

CATS credits		ECTS credits

22. QAA Subject Benchmarking Group

23. Dates

Origin Date	11/07/2013	Date of last revision	26/07/2021

Programme Specification for the 2021/2 academic year

MA Medieval Studies

1. Programme Details

2. Description of the Programme

3. Educational Aims of the Programme

4. Programme Structure

5. Programme Modules

Stage 1

Compulsory Modules

Optional Modules

6. Programme Outcomes Linked to Teaching, Learning and Assessment Methods

Intended Learning Outcomes A: Specialised Subject Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes B: Academic Discipline Core Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes C: Personal/Transferable/Employment Skills and Knowledge

7. Programme Regulations

8. College Support for Students and Students' Learning

9. University Support for Students and Students' Learning

10. Admissions Criteria

11. Regulation of Assessment and Academic Standards

12. Indicators of Quality and Standards

13. Methods for Evaluating and Improving Quality and Standards

14. Awarding Institution

15. Lead College / Teaching Institution

16. Partner College / Institution

Partner College(s)

Partner Institution

17. Programme Accredited / Validated by

18. Final Award

19. UCAS Code

20. NQF Level of Final Award

21. Credit

22. QAA Subject Benchmarking Group

23. Dates

Intended Learning Outcomes
A: Specialised Subject Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes
B: Academic Discipline Core Skills and Knowledge

Intended Learning Outcomes
C: Personal/Transferable/Employment Skills and Knowledge