| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2023-09-18 | - |
| 2024-09-16 | - |
Program Overview
The MA in Public History at Queen’s University Belfast offers an opportunity to study how historical knowledge is produced, mediated, represented and consumed in public spaces, in a region where the past continues to resonate powerfully. The close relationship Queen’s enjoys with a broad range of partners across the country, from national cultural institutions, heritage organisations and media through to community-led initiatives, provides an unparalleled opportunity for first-hand experience of how history works and is put to work in many different ways. The close involvement of partner organisations in the delivery of the course through practitioner workshops, guest lectures, field trips and events, as well as the 30-day placement, provides first-hand, practical experience of the wide range of issues, challenges and opportunities faced by the public historian.
This course approaches public history from many perspectives ranging from the local to the global. The city of Belfast offers an exciting opportunity to engage with key issues surrounding contested histories, national narratives, memory, commemoration and community history in a very real and meaningful way, and to gain first-hand understanding of the relationship between history, heritage and public audiences at a local and national level. A global understanding of public history is encouraged through taught modules on difficult public history in a range of national contexts.
Students will carry out 30-day placements in one of a wide range of museums, archives, heritage sites or visitor experiences across the country.
The course combines academic training in historical theory and research methods with specialised topics relating to history in the public sphere, such as negotiating contested pasts, oral history, heritage and tourism, or digital curation, thus linking the analytical and critical approaches of traditional academic history with innovative ways of creating and disseminating histories for a diverse variety of public audiences.
Public History highlights
The programme offers a unique 30-day internship placement with a public history site where in-depth sector and career development experience is gained.
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Student Experience
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Course content
Program Outline
Course Structure
The programme consists of a number of taught modules and a placement module related to Public History.
| The Public History strand consists of six taught modules and a dissertation. | Autumn Semester Students are required to take the following two core modules (MHY7020 and MHY7011), plus either MHY7011 Individually Negotiated Topic in History or IRS7011 Belfast: Place, Identity and Memory in a Contested City. MHY7020 - Historian's Craft Course Content The module will examine the purpose of historical research and writing, the main genres of historical writing, techniques of bibliographical research, footnoting, the handling of quantitative and non-quantitative evidence, and practical writing skills. An ancient history strand will include study of specialised methodologies relating to ancient writers and epigraphy. MHY7092 - History and its Audiences An in-depth examination of key concepts of public history and their methodological application across a range of case studies. The module will cover a range of issues regarding the ways in which the past is presented to, and consumed by, public audiences. Students will be asked to engage theoretically with core historiographical themes including collective memory, oral history, materiality and visual cultures and will also work with Special Collections to explore issues relating to the use of textual and visual material for public consumption (IPR, copyright etc). These sessions will be accompanied by case studies drawn from the locale and beyond that will enable students to develop their understanding in relation to practical examples. The module will thus provide students with a strong historiographical grounding in both theories and concepts of public history whilst at the same time allow for an understanding of these issues in relation to ‘real life’ scenarios that will prepare them for the remainder of their studies. Plus ONE of the following modules: MHY7011 Individually Negotiated Topic in History Students to undertake and in-depth study of a specific historical area or problem within the field of their Masters programme, as agreed with the History MA co-ordinator and the proposed supervisor. IRS7011 Belfast: Place, Identity and Memory in a Contested City. This module introduces students to themes in Irish Studies through an interdisciplinary case study of Belfast. Throughout the module students will be encouraged to consider the ways in which Irish and other identities (municipal, regional, ‘British’, religious, class, gendered etc) have been constructed and contested in the urban environment, in language, literature, political affiliations and social interactions, from the establishment of Belfast as a colonial settlement in the 17th century, to the present day. Students will also be introduced to the ‘Belfast’ approach to Irish Studies as a subject of study dating to the foundation of the Institute in the 1960s, and encouraged to debate its continuing relevance and redefinition. Spring Semester Students are required to take the following two core modules: MHY7091 - Public History Internship (double weighted - 40 credits) Students will hold an internship in an institution such a museum, heritage site, library or archive. They will organise the placement themselves and establish a programme of work to be carried out, in consultation with and subject to the approval of the School’s internship co-ordinator. The assessment will reflect on the practical aspects of the internship and the theoretical debates around Public History. MHY7089 - Case Studies in History Through a variety of primary sources, students will investigate at least three specialist topics in depth. The mini-modules with focus on research strands available on the MA History programme: American history, Ancient, Medieval and Early Modern History, British history, Public History and Religion, Conflict and Identity. When available, students will also take part in a one-day field trip. MHY7010 - Dissertation A dissertation (not exceeding 20,000 words) on a topic to be agreed in advance with the subject adviser. Students will be notified each academic year of the optional modules being offered in the following academic year. Students are advised that not all optional modules will necessarily be offered in each academic year. Also, the delivery of a module may be subject to a minimum number of enrolments as well as unforeseen circumstances (e.g. illness of a member of staff). The range and content of optional modules will change over time as degree programmes develop and students’ choice of optional modules may also be limited due to timetabling constraints. |
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People teaching you
Dr Leonie HannanInternships Coordinator
HAPP
Dr Leonie Hannan is a social and cultural historian working on intellectual life in the long eighteenth century, with a focus on themes of gender, material culture and domestic space. Over the last ten years, Leonie has also worked extensively in museums and heritage and built collaborative working relationships between researchers, teachers, curators, museum collections and heritage sites. Dr Niamh CullenSenior Lecturer
HAPP
Dr Niamh Cullen is a specialist in modern European history and a social and cultural historian of modern Italy. She is particularly engaged with the themes of social change, family, emotions, gender and sexuality. Email: n.cullen@qub.ac.uk Professor Olwen PurdueCourse Convenor
HAPP
Professor Purdue's research interests have focused on the social history of nineteenth and twentieth-century Ireland, especially issues of poverty, welfare and public health. She also has a strong interest in the practice and experience of Public History particularly in divided societies. She is a Director of the Irish Museums Association and a Project Board Member for the redevelopment of the Ulster Museum.Teaching Times
| Teaching take place at a variety of times from 12-8pm Monday – Friday. |
Career Prospects
Introduction
The Public History MA can be regarded either as an end in itself, culminating in the distinction of having obtained a postgraduate degree and enhanced your employability skills as a researcher, or as a stepping stone to the higher research degree of PhD. Many graduates have gone on to PhD programmes . Others go into a wide variety of employment including careers in museums, archives or libraries; journalism or media related work; teaching; private and public administration; economic development and the voluntary sector. The MA in Public History provides you with the essential skills and in-depth knowledge of history and its public audiences for career development at any stage – from students straight from an undergraduate degree with limited to no priori professional experience to those seeking continued professional development. The programme enables you to broaden your horizons, providing you with a competitive edge in a global graduate market in a wide variety of areas, such as museums, archives, heritage, culture and tourism, or media. http://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/careers/
Learning and Teaching
Learning and Teaching
Educational Aims of the MA Public History Programme
Intellectual aims
This will give students the opportunity to: • develop an advanced knowledge and understanding of the core theories, issues, concepts and scholarly debates in the field of Public History • explore critically the range of ways in which history is presented to and experienced by public audiences, and how history is engaged with and used for a variety of purposes in the public realm • understand a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives and intellectual contexts when considering the relationship between the past and public realm • explore and understand issues relating to the exploration, presentation, and consumption of difficult or contested historic narratives in the public sphere in a number of comparative contexts. Skills development aims This will give students the opportunity to: • develop skills in presenting history to a range of public audiences for a variety of purposes using a range of methods (including public presentation, media, photography, exhibition design, online curation, oral history collection) • develop a range of academic and professional skills including the ability to engage in independent research • work collaboratively with practitioners in the cultural and heritage sectors • work independently and as part of a team in presenting aspects of history to a range of public audiences. Impact development aims This will give students the opportunity to: • understand how their learning, knowledge and understanding equips them to contribute to debates around the practice, purpose and understanding of history in the public realm • contribute to academic impact by stimulating and shaping intellectual debates in Public History • work with practitioners and academics to build capacity in the heritage and cultural sectors across Northern Ireland and beyond • develop their own academic and professional impact across a wide range of developmental skills through training events, peer engagement, engagement with public audiences and heritage professionals, and a placement.Knowledge and Understanding
Critically evaluate the communication of historical knowledge and understanding by bodies outside the academy. Understand how the content and communication of knowledge can be adapted to meet the needs of a range of audiences. Understand the challenges presented in conveying contested historical narratives to public audiences.
Learning Outcomes
Recognise and use appropriate theories, concepts and principles from history and relevant cognate disciplines. Understand and communicate complex ideas and concepts to both academic and public audiences. Critically evaluate the theory and practice of history in academic and public spheres.
Learning and Teaching
Learning and teaching takes place through seminars, practitioner workshops, field trips and placements.
Subject Specific Skills
Demonstrate an ability to use effectively relevant archives, finding aids and online resources in completing a major personal research project. Undertake a public history project in the workplace both individually and as part of a team and to reflect critically on their practice. Handle, catalogue, describe and organise historical sources and artefacts. Develop skills relating to the assessment and analysis of sources.
Transferable Skills
Communicate complex ideas effectively to a range of audiences.
Manage time and resources and work effectively as part a team. Demonstrate an ability to conceptualise, plan and see through to completion a major personal research project to a high standard of historical professionalism. Demonstrate competency and a professional approach to undertaking research and the presentation of project work
Assessment
Assessments associated with the course are outlined below:
Assessment is by coursework:
• essays • projects • critical commentaries on primary sources; • portfolio and reflective essay • blogs and placement related assessment • power point presentations • practical work on documents or placement related assessment • and a dissertationFeedback is given appropriately across the range of assessments given.
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Modules
Modules
The information below is intended as an example only, featuring module details for the current year of study (2022/23). Modules are reviewed on an annual basis and may be subject to future changes – revised details will be published through Programme Specifications ahead of each academic year.
Core Modules
Public History Internship(MA Public History pathway)
(40 credits)History and its Audiences
(20 credits)Case Studies in History
(20 credits)Individually Negotiated Topic in History
(20 credits)The Historian's Craft
(20 credits)Dissertation
(60 credits)PREV
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Entry Requirements
Career Prospects
Introduction
The Public History MA can be regarded either as an end in itself, culminating in the distinction of having obtained a postgraduate degree and enhanced your employability skills as a researcher, or as a stepping stone to the higher research degree of PhD. Many graduates have gone on to PhD programmes . Others go into a wide variety of employment including careers in museums, archives or libraries; journalism or media related work; teaching; private and public administration; economic development and the voluntary sector. The MA in Public History provides you with the essential skills and in-depth knowledge of history and its public audiences for career development at any stage – from students straight from an undergraduate degree with limited to no priori professional experience to those seeking continued professional development. The programme enables you to broaden your horizons, providing you with a competitive edge in a global graduate market in a wide variety of areas, such as museums, archives, heritage, culture and tourism, or media. http://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/careers/Additional Awards Gained(QSIS ELEMENT IS EMPTY)
Prizes and Awards(QSIS ELEMENT IS EMPTY)
Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills
In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills. For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more. So not only do you graduate with a degree recognised from a world leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall. We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.
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Fees and Funding