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MA Culture and Thought after 1945

Make exciting connections across the contemporary period

Year of entry: 2024 (September)

Length

1 year full-time,
2 years part-time

Start date

September 2024 (semester dates)

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Investigate the art, literature, history, culture and thought of the post-1945 era. Explore topics from social media to the making of the contemporary world, cultural heritage management to globalisation, from art and the environment to justice. 

On this flexible course you'll study with leading experts in their field from the Departments of Archaeology, English, History, History of Art, Music, Philosophy, Politics, Sociology, The School of Arts and Creative Technologies, and the Centre for Women’s Studies. We'll introduce you to the various means by which different disciplines conceptualise and analyse the period. You can construct a programme that suits your interests and develops your transferable skills in interdisciplinary research. 

You’ll engage with the wider research culture of the Centre for Modern Studies, and there will be a diverse schedule of seminars, conferences and reading groups for you to attend. You’ll also be part of the Humanities Research Centre, a vibrant interdisciplinary hub which will enable you to form close social and intellectual bonds over the course of your study. 

High global rankings

We are ranked 20th for Archaeology and 35th for English in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, 2023

Follow your interests

Choose from a wide range of option modules with historical depth and geographical breadth.

World-leading academics

Engage your own contemporary cultural interests in collaboration with leading academics across the humanities and social sciences.

Course content

You'll study core modules and choose options from our partner departments. You'll also complete a research dissertation.

The core module Framing the Contemporary draws on the expertise of a team of staff from our partner departments. It provides a foundation in various disciplinary and transdisciplinary ways of conceptualising and analysing the contemporary. Each tutor will contribute sessions that highlight a central way in which their discipline categorises the period (for example, the shift from modern to postmodern in English, or the end of Empire in History) while providing the methodological tools used to construct this way of reading the period.

Postgraduate Life in Practice (I and II) will develop your academic skills to support your learning and help you prepare for your final dissertation.

Your option modules enable you to explore the methodologies and subject matter of multiple disciplines. 



Modules

Core modules

Option modules

You will also study 3 option modules from a varied list drawn from across the partner departments. These might include: 

The options available to you will be confirmed after you begin your course. For further information please get in touch.

Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff.

Dissertation

Your dissertation offers you the chance to examine a topic in depth and to develop your research skills.

You'll work on your 14,000-16,000-word dissertation with regular supervision from a member of staff. 

Recent dissertation topics include:

  • Authenticity and emotion in contemporary TV drama
  • Post-colonialism, class and post-punk music
  • LGBTQ heritage and memorialisation in northern Britain
  • Rhodes Must Fall and justice in South Africa
  • Cyborgs in Arab Science Fiction
  • Slum clearance and urban change in postwar Britain.

 

The York approach

Every course at York is built on a distinctive set of learning outcomes. These will give you a clear understanding of what you will be able to accomplish at the end of the course and help you explain what you can offer employers. Our academics identify the knowledge, skills, and experiences you'll need upon graduation and then design the course to get you there.

Students who complete this course will be able to:

  • Analyse and theorise the nature of the 'contemporary' by examining the place of culture within postwar aesthetic, political, historical and philosophical debates.
  • Understand, evaluate, and deploy key areas of postwar critical thinking, within particular disciplinary modules and via interdisciplinary/trans-disciplinary models.
  • Critically evaluate methodological tools and approaches across disciplinary boundaries and then draw together approaches based on their own educational needs, academic interests and high-level digital skills within, across and beyond disciplinary lines.
  • Initiate, conduct, and take responsibility for independent research, drawing on skills honed by graduate-level research training, research-led teaching, and the completion of a substantial dissertation project and several module specific essays across participating departments and centres.
  • Communicate sophisticated written arguments in a clear, accurate and persuasive fashion, synthesising evidence from multiple sources so as to convey information creatively and convincingly.
  • Engage in verbal discussion of complex textual material, demonstrating versatility, rigour, and confidence in the reception, appreciation, and articulation of high-level ideas and perspectives.
  • Direct their own development, bringing new knowledge and transferable skills, such as critical analysis and information management, to bear upon a range of contexts including, but not limited to, further academic study and careers in creative industries.
The course has granted me the freedom to pursue a wide range of research interests where the taught aspect has expanded my horizons rather than limited the areas I can explore.
Emelia, MA Culture and Thought after 1945

Read more about what our students say

Fees and funding

Annual tuition fees for 2024/25

Study modeUK (home)International and EU
Full-time (1 year) £10,590£23,900
Part-time (2 years)
This is the year 1 fee. Fees for future years are subject to confirmation.
£5,295£11,950

Students on a Student Visa are not currently permitted to study part-time at York.

For courses which are longer than one year, the tuition fees quoted are for the first year of study.

  • UK (home) fees may increase in subsequent years (up to a maximum of 2%).
  • International fees may increase in subsequent years in line with the prevailing Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rate (up to a maximum of 10%).

Fees information

UK (home) or international fees? The level of fee that you will be asked to pay depends on whether you're classed as a UK (home) or international student. Check your fee status.

Find out more information about tuition fees and how to pay them.

Additional costs

You'll need copies of the texts set for each module. Where possible, we will provide digital access. We'll let you know which texts and editions you'll need to buy (whether new or second-hand) before the start of each term.

Funding information

Discover your funding options to help with tuition fees and living costs.

We'll confirm more funding opportunities for students joining us in 2024/25 throughout the year.

If you've successfully completed an undergraduate degree at York you could be eligible for a 10% Masters fee discount.

Funding opportunities

Departmental funding opportunities

Living costs

You can use our living costs guide to help plan your budget. It covers additional costs that are not included in your tuition fee such as expenses for accommodation and study materials.

Teaching and assessment

You’ll work with world‐leading academics who’ll challenge you to think independently and excel in all that you do. Our approach to teaching will provide you with the knowledge, opportunities, and support you need to grow and succeed in a global workplace.

Teaching format

Your seminar groups will usually consist of fewer that 15 students in most modules, though some core modules may involve a larger number of students. You'll complete essential reading for each seminar, and we encourage you to read more widely around the topic. If you are a part-time student your seminars will be across Year 1 and Year 2.

You'll attend a series of training lectures and workshops, designed to address presenting your work, writing at MA level, transferable skills, and career development.

Over the course of the year, you'll give regular seminar presentations and attend research seminars and day conferences hosted by the Centre. Many of these events will be organised through the Humanities Research Centre, a state-of-the-art facility unique to York.

Teaching location

You will be based in the Centre for Modern Studies on Campus West. Most of your contact hours will be in locations nearby on Campus West.

About our campus

Our beautiful green campus offers a student-friendly setting in which to live and study, within easy reach of the action in the city centre. It's easy to get around campus - everything is within walking or pedalling distance, or you can always use the fast and frequent bus service.

Assessment and feedback

For each module, you'll submit an essay of approximately 4,500 words. The Postgraduate Life in Practice module will be assessed on the completion of a series of tasks connected to your core work for the MA. Your final assessment is a dissertation of 14,000-16,000 words.

Central Hall at night
Interior of Humanities Research Centre
The mix of interests, subject disciplines and perspectives has resulted in great debates and conversation.
George, MA Culture and Thought after 1945

Read more about what our students say

Careers and skills

Our postgraduates go into academia and teaching, arts administration, journalism, broadcasting, public relations, social work, politics, the civil service and management consultancy. 

Career opportunities

  • Advertising, marketing, and public relations
  • Arts administration
  • Civil and diplomatic services
  • Film, radio, social media, television and theatre
  • Journalism and broadcasting
  • Law
  • Government
  • Academia
  • Publishing
  • Teaching

Transferable skills

  • Developing your creativity
  • Improving your ability to filter and analyse complex information
  • Intellectual independence and independent working
  • Time management and people skills
  • Communicating your research
  • Methodological skills

Entry requirements

Typical offer
Undergraduate degree 2:1 or equivalent qualification. We will consider applications from students with lower qualifications, particularly if you have high marks in relevant modules or appropriate professional experience.
Other international qualifications Equivalent qualifications from your country

English language

If English isn't your first language you may need to provide evidence of your English language ability. We accept the following qualifications:

Minimum requirement
IELTS (Academic and Indicator) 7.0, minimum 6.5 in each component
Cambridge CEFR C1 Advanced: 185, with 176 in each component
Oxford ELLT 8, minimum 7 in each component
Duolingo 130, minimum 120 in all other components
LanguageCert SELT C1 with 33/50 in each component
LanguageCert Academic 75 with a minimum of 70 in each component
KITE 495-526, with 459-494 in all other components
Skills for English C1: Pass overall, with Pass in each component
PTE Academic 67, minimum 61 in each component
TOEFL 96, minimum 23 in each component
Trinity ISE III Distinction in all components

For more information see our postgraduate English language requirements.

If you haven't met our English language requirements

You may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English language courses. These courses will provide you with the level of English needed to meet the conditions of your offer.

The length of course you need to take depends on your current English language test scores and how much you need to improve to reach our English language requirements.

After you've accepted your offer to study at York, we'll confirm which pre-sessional course you should apply to via You@York.

Applying

You can apply and send all your documentation online. You don’t need to complete your application all at once: you can start it, save it and finish it later.

Along with your application you should include two examples of your recent written work which demonstrate some links to the MA content. They should each be at least 3,000 words in length but not significantly more. You may write something specifically for this application if you wish.

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