Overview

The MA in History is the perfect next step for anyone who wants to deepen their knowledge of the past or move into a career involving history. We teach a variety of historical approaches through courses that focus on different periods and places.

You can opt to take specialist master's level units in History and other subjects, join undergraduate History units, or undertake independent solo research projects supervised by a specialist. Our teaching also offers opportunities to engage with external partners, such as BBC History Magazine, the National Trust, or the SS Great Britain.

The research and teaching expertise in the department ranges from the medieval to the modern, with particular strengths in:

  • race, colonialism and empire
  • environmental history
  • public history
  • histories of gender, sexuality, and the body
  • medieval and early modern history
  • contemporary Britain and America
  • global history (especially Africa and Asia)

On the MA, you may want to deepen your specialism in one of these areas or you may prefer to obtain a broad knowledge of different historical subjects, themes, debates and methodologies.

The MA offers unique opportunities to get hands on experience for students looking to move into work in heritage and research, including options involving creative writing and research methods.

As well as benefitting from the research expertise of our staff, you will be immersed in a vibrant postgraduate community at Bristol. This is underpinned by regular seminar series, guest speakers, and skills workshops, as well as social events organised by our History Society and student reps. You'll also have access to several prestigious research groups within the Faculty of Arts, Law and Social Sciences, where the Department of History plays a key role. These include the Centres for Medical Humanities, Black Humanities, Environmental Humanities, and Medieval Studies.

Programme structure

The MA comprises six taught units and a dissertation. Teaching includes independent study tasks, seminars, and one-on-one supervision. Across the course, the focus develops from broader units, through more specialised ones, to your choice of dissertation topic.

Students normally take two core units: Critical Issues in the Humanities, and Researching and Writing History. These develop essential skills that underlie later assessments. The remainder of the taught element of your programme is made up of four optional units, from our diverse offering:

  • In the first term, thematic units introduce key debates and methods from sub-fields. You can substitute one of these thematics with a Personal Option Unit (POU). This allows you to follow an undergraduate History unit and widens the topics available to study.
  • In the second term, you will work closely with primary source materials or practical historical work to enhance your knowledge of a particular subject. If you are keen to pursue your own research interests, there is also the option to work one-on-one with a subject expert on a Supervised Individual Study (SIS).

In the third term, you will either write a research dissertation of up to 12,000 words, or submit a practice-based dissertation, combining a practical project with a written report. Both dissertation routes are supervised by an academic in the department. Students identify the subject for their dissertation in the spring, but conduct most of the research over the summer.

Visit our programme catalogue for full details of the structure and unit content for our MA in History.

Entry requirements

You will typically need an upper second-class honours degree or an international equivalent with a minimum mark of 60% in your final-year dissertation. In cases where an undergraduate transcript does not contain a research element such as a dissertation, we may ask applicants to provide an example of their academic writing that demonstrates capacity for independent research.

If you are currently completing a degree, we understand that your final grade may be higher than the interim grades or module/unit grades you have achieved during your studies to date.

We will consider your application if your interim grades are currently slightly lower than the programme's entry requirements and may make you an aspirational offer. This offer would be at the standard level, so you would need to achieve the standard entry requirements by the end of your degree. Specific module requirements would still apply.

We will also consider your application if your final overall achieved grade is slightly lower than the programme's entry requirement. If you have at least one of the following, please include your CV (curriculum vitae / résumé) when you apply, showing details of your relevant qualifications:

  • evidence of significant, relevant work experience in Creative industries: Journalism, Teaching, Curating, Museum work, Professional careers (eg Law, Accounting, private business, Medicine);
  • a relevant postgraduate qualification.

See international equivalent qualifications on the International Office website.

Read the programme admissions statement for important information on entry requirements, the application process and supporting documents required.

Go to admissions statement

If English is not your first language, you will need to reach the requirements outlined in our profile level C.

Further information about English language requirements and profile levels.

Fees and funding

Home: full-time
£14,600 per year
Home: part-time
£7,300 per year
Overseas: full-time
£29,300 per year

Fees are subject to an annual review. For programmes that last longer than one year, please budget for up to an 8% increase in fees each year.

More about tuition fees, living costs and financial support.

Alumni discount

University of Bristol students and graduates can benefit from a 25% reduction in tuition fees for postgraduate study. Check your eligibility for an alumni discount.

Funding and scholarships

Funding and studentship opportunities are listed on the Faculty of Arts, Law and Social Sciences funding pages.

Further information on funding for prospective UK and international postgraduate students.

Career prospects

Students who complete the MA in History have taken up careers in fields such as journalism, image and data capturing, heritage, and teaching. Many MA History graduates have gone on to take an MPhil/PhD in History and forged careers as research academics.

Another popular choice is to develop careers in fields such as public relations, accountancy, fund management, and law, by building on the transferable skills acquired through master's study. As a graduate of the MA in History you can use the University's Careers Service for free for up to three years after you graduate.