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MA in English

by | Oct 5, 2020 | Postgraduate

MA in English

 

 

Our MA in English offers you a rich and exciting experience of higher level literary study. You’ll broaden your knowledge and appreciation of different genres, periods, techniques and writers, and of the ways in which they have been transmitted and read. You’ll also develop your independent skills in literary research that will culminate in a dissertation on a topic and texts of your choice. This course can help you pursue or develop a career in the media, culture and knowledge industries, and other professions that require understanding of literature and culture, and skills in the creative use of textual analysis.

Key features of the course

  • Explores a wide range of literary texts from ancient times to the present
  • Equips you with key research methods in literary study
  • Provides ideal preparation for doctoral level research and a wide range of careers.
Accreditations

Course Level:

Master Degree

Overview

Duration:

2.5 years

Credits:

180

Study method:

Distance learning

        Course details

        Course details

          

        Modules

        To gain the 180 credits you require for this qualification, you must study the modules in the order shown below and pass part 1 before progressing to part 2:

         

        Compulsory modules Credits
        MA English part 1 (A815)
        		 120
        MA English part 2 (A816)
        		 60

        Please note that MA English part 1 (A516) is worth 120 credits. Module fees for postgraduate modules are based on the number of credits you study. Therefore the fee for this 120-credit postgraduate module will be double that for a 60 credit module MA English part 2 (A517).

        You should note that the University’s unique study rule applies to this qualification. This means that you must include at least 60 credits from NU modules that have not been counted in any other NU qualification that has previously been awarded to you.

        We regularly review our curriculum; therefore, the qualification described on this page – including its availability, its structure, and available modules – may change over time. If we make changes to this qualification, we’ll update this page as soon as possible. Once you’ve registered or are studying this qualification, where practicable, we’ll inform you in good time of any upcoming changes. If you’d like to know more about the circumstances in which the University might make changes to the curriculum, see our Academic Regulations or contact us. 

        Learning outcomes, teaching and assessment

        The learning outcomes of this qualification are described in four areas:

        • Knowledge and understanding
        • Cognitive skills
        • Practical and professional skills
        • Key skills

         

        Credit transfer

        Credit transfer is not available for this qualification.

         

        On completion

        On successful completion of the required modules you can be awarded the Master of Arts in English entitling you to use the letters MA (Engl) (Open) after your name. You will have the opportunity of being presented at a degree ceremony.

        If you leave the programme before you qualify for the MA you can gain a Postgraduate Diploma in Humanities (D53) after successfully completing the 120-credit module MA English part 1 (A516).

         

        Recognition in your country

        If you intend to use your Northampton University qualifications to seek work or undertake further study outside the USA, we recommend checking whether your intended qualification will meet local requirements for your chosen career. Read recognition in my country.

        Entry requirements

        Entry requirements

        You must hold a USA honours degree (or equivalent), preferably in English or a closely related subject, and preferably with at least a 2:1 or higher degree classification. As the MA in English assumes you will have completed an undergraduate degree in the subject, you will need some knowledge of undergraduate English literary studies to successfully complete this qualification.

        If your degree is not in English or a closely related subject, we strongly recommend that you read material from the set books list for MA English part 1 (A516). The Handbook to Literary Research (ed. Da Sousa Correa and Owens) outlines the skills you will need to study for this qualification.

        Before you enter the degree you must be able to:

        • write clear, concise, accurate prose
        • read large quantities of text quickly and accurately
        • classify evidence precisely and assess its value and reliability
        • argue logically and coherently
        • provide evidence in support of your ideas and arguments.

        If you’re in any doubt about the suitability of your qualifications or previous experience, please contact us for advice before you enrol.

         

        How long it takes

        You will be able to complete this masters qualification within two and a half years by studying the first module in a year and a half and the second module in a year.

        Career

        Career relevance

        This degree is relevant to careers that directly call on knowledge of English literature and culture. It may also be relevant for careers that demand skills in the creative use and analysis of texts of various sorts, critical thinking and organisation, and understanding of culture in a broad sense. It is also useful (particularly alongside relevant skills and experience) if you aim to work in the media, culture or knowledge industries – or are employed already in these areas and need further qualifications to progress.  A masters degree can be useful for professional development in teaching, and if you want to pursue an academic career it provides good preparation for the higher level research that is prerequisite (such as a PhD).

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        PhD & MPhil in English Literature

        by | Oct 2, 2020 | phd

        PhD & MPhil in English Literaturee

         

         

        Programme overview

        MPhil: a standalone, one-year (full-time) research degree.  Students will undertake their own research project, concluding in the submission of a 25,000 word dissertation. Students may have the option to audit units from our taught Masters courses if they are relevant to their research.

        PhD: a research project undertaken across three years (full-time, plus a writing up period), culminating in an 80,000 word thesis. As well as having the option to audit taught units, there may be the potential for PhD students to teach units themselves from their second year of study onwards.

        Research in the Department of English brings the core values of our discipline – textual scholarship, critical and theoretical analysis, and contextual knowledge – to the dynamic and changing field of English literary studies. We cover the full chronological range, from the medieval to the contemporary period, with many colleagues engaged in interdisciplinary research.

        We are proud of our expertise in medieval and early-modern literature, in Romantic and Victorian literature, in modernism, and in contemporary writing in English. The department is notable for its breadth of research in English poetry across the periods, and our range of specialist interests includes literary theory, the history of book, literature and science, literature and medicine, literature and the environment, digital humanities, women’s writing and gender studies, queer writing, postcolonial literature, Black British writing, 20th-century American literature, the Gothic tradition, and Welsh and Anglo-Welsh writing.

        In these and other areas we foster doctoral research both within the department and in collaboration with other departments at Northampton and beyond, including in art history, medical sciences, philosophy, history, politics, drama, classics, theology and modern languages.

        Accreditations

        Course Level:
        PhD

        Overview

        Degree awarded: Master of Science

        Duration:

        MPhil: one year full-time;
        two years part-time
        PhD: three years full-time;
        six years part-time

        Entry requirements

        • 2.1 or above (or international equivalent) undergraduate degree. Your degree can be in any discipline but you must have studied a subject with quantitative content.
          We do not require GMAT
            Research groups

            We see postgraduate study as a vital component of our research culture, with students bringing their own ideas and initiatives to fruition and engaging in research conversations with their fellow students and academic staff.

            Postgraduates take part in organising conferences and study days, play leading roles in the faculty-based online journal Harts and Minds, and are active in research clusters and reading groups.

            The successful completion of an innovative research project, with the guidance of demanding and stimulating supervisors, remains at the heart of postgraduate study. We aim to deliver that outcome, but we also want your experience to be enriched by wider academic contacts and by focused, helpful professional development.

            All of the department’s researchers have interests that coincide with (but are not limited to) the following areas:

            • Medieval
            • Early Modern to 1780
            • Romantic and Victorian Literature
            • Modernism
            • Contemporary Literature
            • American Literature
            • Global Literatures
            • Literature, Science and Medicine
            • Poetry and Poetics
            • Creative Writing

            The department leads the Northampton Poetry Institute, which draws on the department’s established strength in this field, and members of the department are active in the faculty’s interdisciplinary research centres, including Health, Humanities and Science, Environmental Humanities, Material Texts, Black Humanities and Medieval Studies. The centres bring together scholars from different disciplines to share their research, devise innovative research projects and give interdisciplinarity a real basis in academic practice.

            The departmental research seminar, which meets throughout the academic session, is the principal forum for academic staff and graduate students to present and discuss their recent research. At each session there is a mix of speakers from outside Northampton, graduate students and members of staff. Two annual lectures – the Churchill Lecture and the Tucker-Cruse Lecture – also bring distinguished scholars from outside the University; many other events are organised within the Faculty of Arts and across the University by the Institute for Advanced Studies, a major forum for interdisciplinary research.

            Entry requirements

            MPhil: An upper second-class degree or international equivalent. Please note, acceptance will also depend on evidence of your readiness to pursue a research degree.

            PhD: A master’s qualification, or be working towards a master’s qualification, or international equivalent. Applicants without a master’s qualification may be considered on an exceptional basis, provided they hold a first-class undergraduate degree (or international equivalent). Applicants with a non-traditional background may be considered provided they can demonstrate substantial equivalent and relevant experience that has prepared them to undertake their proposed course of study.

            Careers

            A large number of graduates from this programme develop careers in higher education or work on high-level research projects in the field of English literature; some graduates take up careers in freelance writing and editing.

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            MBA Finance

            by | Oct 2, 2020 | Postgraduate

            MBA Finance

             

             

            This course is for

            Graduates who have little or no business experience and want a career in finance.

             

            Overview

            Receive a solid theoretical foundation in finance. Use your quantitative skills and enhance your employability. You’ll graduate prepared for a finance-related career.

            Develop an in-depth knowledge of the financial system. You’ll learn to analyse financial decisions and the motivations of people making them. You’ll apply this knowledge in a range of real-world scenarios.

            Our course brings in expertise from the University’s departments of Mathematical Sciences and Economics. This gives you access to a wide range of teaching and research experience.

             

            Semester one: taught units

            Compulsory units

            You will take these units:

            Econometrics for finance
            Theory of financial decision making
            Investment management

              Optional units

              You will select two of these units:

              Financial derivatives
              Banking
              Corporate governance
              Introduction to quantitative finance

                Semester two: taught units

                Compulsory units

                You will take these units:

                Corporate finance
                International finance
                Financial econometrics

                  Optional units

                  You will select two of these units:

                  Risk management
                  Financial engineering
                  Financial statement analysis and company valuation
                  Contemporary finance issues
                  New venture financing
                  Behavioural finance

                    Summer: Dissertation or Practice Track

                    You will finish the course by choosing one of these two options:

                    Dissertation Track

                    You will produce a unique piece of research using techniques learned throughout the year.

                    Practice Track

                    You will work with one of our partner organisations to solve a real business challenge. In teams, you will apply what you have learned and present your work to the company.

                    Accreditations

                    Course Level:
                    MBA

                    Overview

                    Degree awarded: Master of Science

                    Duration: 1 year

                    Entry requirements

                    • 2.1 or above (or international equivalent) undergraduate degree. Your degree can be in any discipline but you must have studied a subject with quantitative content.
                      We do not require GMAT
                        Entry requirements

                        2:1 or above

                        (or its international equivalent) undergraduate degree. Your degree can be in any discipline but you must have studied a subject with quantitative content.

                        If you are a USA student and completed your undergraduate degree abroad, your qualification must be equivalent to a 2:1 or above.

                        We may make an offer based on a lower grade if you can provide evidence of your suitability for the degree.

                        Work experience

                        In exceptional cases, relevant work experience may be a substitute for the degree requirement. You should have no more than three years’ relevant work experience.

                          Careers

                          We give you the edge

                          The practical focus of our courses will help you stand out from the crowd. You will develop key skills and work with employers from the start of your course.

                          Our graduates have a great employment record. Most go on to careers in a range of areas, start their own business or begin a PhD.

                          Apply Now

                          PhD in Linguistics

                          by | Oct 2, 2020 | phd

                          PhD in Linguistics

                           

                           

                          Programme description

                          Our PhD Linguistics programme enables you to carry out research in a field of linguistics that matches the interests of one of our members of staff.

                          The Department of Linguistics and English Language is an international centre for Linguistics, with 22 full-time members of staff and approximately 35 postgraduate research students.

                          We are virtually unique in the USA and beyond in the breadth of subject areas and theoretical approaches represented by our members, many of whom are internationally renowned scholars in their specialisms.

                          Our academics’ areas of expertise include:

                          • phonetics and phonology
                          • morphology
                          • syntax (lexical-functional grammar, role and reference grammar, construction grammar, and minimalism)
                          • (formal) semantics
                          • pragmatics
                          • historical linguistics
                          • dialectology
                          • the linguistics of English
                          • language contact
                          • variationist sociolinguistics
                          • child language acquisition
                          • field linguistics and language documentation
                          • typology
                          • quantitative corpus-based approaches
                          • forensic linguistics.

                          In our research, we combine the advancement of theoretical approaches with a strong concern for their empirical and methodological foundations.

                          Each member of staff also has a special interest in particular languages and language families, including major European languages, as well as lesser known languages of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Australia.

                          Special features

                          Graduate School

                          All of our postgraduate students become members of the Graduate School when you start at Northampton. It has dedicated facilities for students and offers opportunities to collaborate with other postgraduates.

                           

                          Coursework and assessment

                          The PhD involves three years of full-time study or six years of part-time study, and the preparation of a thesis of not more than 80,000 words that makes a significant contribution to knowledge.

                          A satisfactory PhD topic is one that a suitably qualified and properly supervised student can bring to completion within the permitted timeframe.

                          Please note that the first year of the full-time programme and the first two years of the part-time programme are probationary. This means you will be required to show evidence of satisfactory progress to proceed with the programme.

                           

                          Teaching and learning

                          Supervision will involve regular meetings with two supervisors, of which records will be kept.

                          Research Panels (consisting of at least three academic staff, including the supervisors) are held once per semester to monitor progress.

                          Supervisory arrangements at Northampton are governed by a Code of Practice .

                          In addition, you will be supported by a strong research culture in the department and excellent opportunities for research training, including general research methods in the arts, humanities and social sciences, as well as subject-specific masterclasses, reading groups and a PhD seminar series for the discussion of ongoing work, and an annual postgraduate conference in Linguistics.

                          Accreditations

                          Course Level:
                          PhD

                          Overview

                          Degree awarded: Doctor of Philosophy

                          Duration: 3 years [full-time], 6 years [part-time]

                          Entry requirements

                          • A Bachelors (Honours) degree at 2:1 level or above (or its international equivalent) in a related subject; and
                          • A USA Master’s degree with an overall average of 65% or higher, with a minimum of 65% in the dissertation and with no mark below 55% (or its international equivalent) in a related subject.
                            Facilities
                            Alan Gilbert Learning Commons Fly Through

                            We have a Phonetics Laboratory with facilities for signal analysis, speech synthesis, laryngography and electropalatography, a large collection of specialist software and linguistic corpora, and, in The University of Northampton Library, one of the largest holdings in linguistics in the USA.

                            Northampton is home to one of the USA five National Research Libraries – one of the best-resourced academic libraries in the USA and widely recognised as one of the world’s greatest research libraries.

                            We also have one of the largest academic IT services in Europe – supporting world-class teaching and research. There are extensive computing facilities across campus, with access to standard office software as well as specialist programmes, all connected to the campus network and internet.

                            Every student is registered for email, file storage and internet access. If more demanding computer access is required, our specialist computing division can provide high-end and specialist computing services.

                            The Graduate School offers dedicated state of the art facilities to research students, including common rooms and workstations.

                            Interview requirements

                            The University requires an interview for all applicants to whom we consider making an offer.

                            Interviews will be conducted by two academics, usually the proposed main supervisor and the subject PGR Director (or an assigned representative).

                            The interview can be either face-to-face or via Skype, conference call or email.

                            The interview serves several purposes, allowing us to:

                            • get a better picture of your ability to carry out the proposed doctoral project than the research proposal on its own;
                            • tell you what the proposed supervisor(s) can bring to the project;
                            • discuss with you directly any potential problems with the practical aspects of your studies and explore solutions together.
                            Re-applications

                            If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful you may apply again. Your application will be considered against the standard course entry criteria for that year of entry. In your new application you should demonstrate how your application has improved. We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen course.

                            Entry requirements

                            Academic entry qualification overview

                            • A Bachelors (Honours) degree at 2:1 level or above (or its international equivalent) in a related subject; and
                            • A USA Master’s degree with an overall average of 65% or higher, with a minimum of 65% in the dissertation and with no mark below 55% (or its international equivalent) in a related subject.
                            Apply Now

                            PhD in Mathematics

                            by | Oct 2, 2020 | phd

                            PhD in Mathematics

                             

                             

                            Programme Description

                            The Department of Mathematics has an outstanding research reputation. The research facilities include one of the finest libraries in the country, the John Rylands University Library. This library has recently made a very large commitment of resources to providing comprehensive online facilities for the free use of the University’s research community. Postgraduate students in the Department benefit from direct access to all the Library electronic resources from their offices.

                            Many research seminars are held in the Department on a weekly basis and allow staff and research students to stay in touch with the latest developments in their fields. The Department is one of the lead partners in the MAGIC project and research students can attend any of the postgraduate courses offered by the MAGIC consortium.

                            Opportunities for PhD research are available in a wide range of topics in Pure Mathematics. For some of the available areas of possible PhD research see the current Pure Mathematics research areas . For more details about the specific projects, please contact the relevant individual members of staff or get in touch with the Pure Mathematics Postgraduate Admissions Tutor .

                            Students may enter our graduate programme in Pure Mathematics by initially taking our taught M.Sc. course over 1 year. This, subject to satisfactory progress, can lead to admission to the PhD programme.

                             

                            Northampton is one of the leading centres for pure mathematics in the USA. As well as the core areas of algebra, analysis and dynamical systems, geometry and topology, and mathematical logic, our research spills into mathematical physics and theoretical computer science.

                            For our research, see the area descriptions . Many of our recent achievements are outlined in the group’s RAE2008 submission . A vibrant programme of seminars , a large and lively group of postgraduate students and purpose-designed areas for mathematical interaction, all help create a stimulating environment for creating new mathematics. Other activities of the group include organising international conferences and writing textbooks and research monographs. We are part of the MAGIC consortium which, via the web, presents a range of lecture courses for our postgraduate students far greater than could be provided at any single institution.

                                

                            Facilities

                            The Department of Mathematics is the largest in the USA with an outstanding research reputation and facilities .

                             

                            Accreditations

                            Course Level:
                            PhD

                            Overview

                            Degree awarded: Doctor of Philosophy

                            Duration: 36 or 48 Months. [Full-Time]

                            Entry requirements

                            Applicants should have, or expect to obtain before the start of the course a:

                            • 1st or upper 2nd class 4 year undergraduate degree (e.g. MMath) degree (or an equivalent overseas qualification) in a mathematical subject
                            • MSc with Merit or Distinction (or an equivalent overseas qualification) in a mathematical subject.
                            Interview requirements

                            An interview is required for entry to this programme of study. Shortlisted applicants will be contacted by the admissions team.

                            Deferrals

                            Admissions staff will decide whether to offer places to applicants for deferred entry on their courses and you should not assume that they will grant all such requests. If you request deferral for more than one year, you would normally be required to re-apply, as your chosen course, and your suitability for it, would change over time. English Language test results can only be considered to be current for two years from the test date.

                            Re-applications

                            If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful you may apply again. Your application will be considered against the standard course entry criteria for that year of entry. In your new application you should demonstrate how your application has improved. We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen course.

                            Entry requirements

                            Academic entry qualification overview

                            Applicants should have, or expect to obtain before the start of the course a:

                            • 1st or upper 2nd class 4 year undergraduate degree (e.g. MMath) degree (or an equivalent overseas qualification) in a mathematical subject
                            • MSc with Merit or Distinction (or an equivalent overseas qualification) in a mathematical subject.

                            In some research areas, a background in physics, engineering or computer science is also acceptable.

                            Apply Now