Master's by Research in Modern Languages 2018-19
This new course, leading to the University of London degree of Master of Research in Modern Languages, runs from 2015-2016, and may be taken on a full-time basis over 1 year, or part-time over 2. The languages currently covered are French (including Francophone), German, Italian, and Spanish (including Latin American). The core course offers a distinctive element of translation theory in addition to research skills and training.
The flexible programme allows in-depth study under the supervision of experts in the field, with the dissertation giving the student scope to thoroughly explore an area of interest and to develop advanced critical and analytical research skills. Students receive face-to-face supervision and specialist research training in small groups within a well-established research training programme. Dissertation supervision is also available in the field of Francophone/North African studies via the Centre of Postcolonial Studies.
The course is underpinned by exceptional resources in the Senate House Library, a diverse range of seminars and conferences, and networks associated with the specialist centres within the Institute: the Research Centre for German and Austrian Exile Studies, the Centre for the Study of Contemporary Women's Writing, the Centre for the Study of Cultural Memory, and the Ingeborg Bachmann Centre for Austrian Literature.
The course comprises two compulsory 0.5 core modules:
- Translation Theory (0.5 = 20 credits) in the first term
- Research Skills and Methodologies (0.5 = 20 credits) in the 1st and 2nd terms
and a dissertation (25,000 words = 140 credits)
The research component of the programme is a dissertation written on a research topic agreed and supported by fortnightly meetings between student and supervisor. The dissertation may be written in the language of study: French, German, Italian, or Spanish.