Skip to Content

Public History (MA)

BACK
Back
MA|Postgraduate Taught

Public History

Entry year
2023
Entry requirements
2.1 Honours
Duration
1 year (Full Time)
3 years (Part Time)
Places available
25 (Full Time)
25 (Part Time)
Apply now
Register Interest

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.

Industry Links

  • Close involvement of practitioners from a wide range of organisations in many aspects of the course including practitioner-led workshops.

Career Development

  • Many of our graduates have gone on to PhD programmes and 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.

World Class Facilities

  • All students have full use of the award- winning McClay Library, which blends the best features of a traditional library with the latest technology. The library provides access to a vast book and journal collections along with computing and media services, IT training rooms, quiet study and group work areas, a cafe, and a Language Centre.

Internationally Renowned Experts

  • Research-led teaching by world leading experts who have secured grants by UK and EU funding bodies for research on a range of subjects relating to public history.

Student Experience

  • Guaranteed work placement with a cultural institution or heritage organisations. Internships have taken place with the following organisations: Ulster Museum, Armagh Public Library, Special Collections at Queen’s, Titanic Belfast, HMS Caroline, Ul-ster-American Folk Park, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, BBC, Doubleband Media, Belfast City Council, Hillsborough Castle (Historic Royal Palaces), Mount Stewart and Castle Ward (National Trust), Newry and Mourne Museum, Ulster Rugby Museum, Museum of Free Derry. The course develops a range of skills such as research methods, archival work, oral history, digital curation, and museum collections.
  • You will benefit from being part of a vibrant research culture and postgraduate community. The Centre for Public History, of which you will be part, runs monthly seminars, regular workshops and an annual conference. Students on this course also have access to Queen’s Graduate School, an exclusive postgraduate hub which connects students and researchers across fields and disciplines and provides high-quality, transdisciplinary training and development programmes. Based in the beautifully restored and remodelled Victorian Lynn library, this space offers modern, hi-tech meeting and group study rooms, a silent study area and social spaces creating a vibrant hub for intellectual exchange and collaboration.

NEXT
Course content

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.

People teaching you

Internships 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.

Senior 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

Course 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 dissertation

Feedback is given appropriately across the range of assessments given.

PREV
Overview

NEXT
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.

  • Year 1

    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
Course content

NEXT
Entry Requirements

Entrance requirements


Normally a minimum of a 2.1 Honours degree or above, or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University in a Humanities or Arts subject or an acceptable cognate discipline.

Applicants who hold a 2.2 Honours degree in one of the disciplines specified above or an equivalent qualification acceptable to the University, who can demonstrate relevant professional experience will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Further criteria may be applied as placements are limited. This will include ranking applications on the basis of academic performance and/or an interview.

Applicants are advised to apply as early as possible and ideally no later than 11th August 2023 for courses which commence in late September. In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal. Notifications to this effect will appear on the Direct Application Portal against the programme application page.

International Students

Our country/region pages include information on entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships, student profiles, upcoming events and contacts for your country/region. Use the dropdown list below for specific information for your country/region.

English Language Requirements

Evidence of an IELTS* score of 6.5, with not less than 5.5 in any component, or an equivalent qualification acceptable to the University is required (*taken within the last 2 years).

International students wishing to apply to Queen's University Belfast (and for whom English is not their first language), must be able to demonstrate their proficiency in English in order to benefit fully from their course of study or research. Non-EEA nationals must also satisfy UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) immigration requirements for English language for visa purposes.

For more information on English Language requirements for EEA and non-EEA nationals see: www.qub.ac.uk/EnglishLanguageReqs.

If you need to improve your English language skills before you enter this degree programme, INTO Queen's University Belfast offers a range of English language courses. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for admission to this degree.

  • Academic English: an intensive English language and study skills course for successful university study at degree level
  • Pre-sessional English: a short intensive academic English course for students starting a degree programme at Queen's University Belfast and who need to improve their English.

INTO - English Language Course(QSIS ELEMENT IS EMPTY)

PREV
Modules

NEXT
Fees and Funding

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 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. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.

PREV
Entry requirements

NEXT
Fees and Funding

Tuition Fees

Northern Ireland (NI) 1 £6,980
Republic of Ireland (ROI) 2 £6,980
England, Scotland or Wales (GB) 1 £8,360
EU Other 3 £19,100
International £19,100

1 EU citizens in the EU Settlement Scheme, with settled status, will be charged the NI or GB tuition fee based on where they are ordinarily resident. Students who are ROI nationals resident in GB will be charged the GB fee.

2 EU students who are ROI nationals resident in ROI are eligible for NI tuition fees.

3 EU Other students (excludes Republic of Ireland nationals living in GB, NI or ROI) are charged tuition fees in line with international fees.

All tuition fees quoted are for the academic year 2023-24, and relate to a single year of study unless stated otherwise. Tuition fees will be subject to an annual inflationary increase, unless explicitly stated otherwise.

More information on postgraduate tuition fees.

Additional course costs

All Students

Depending on the programme of study, there may be extra costs which are not covered by tuition fees, which students will need to consider when planning their studies.

Students can borrow books and access online learning resources from any Queen's library. If students wish to purchase recommended texts, rather than borrow them from the University Library, prices per text can range from £30 to £100. Students should also budget between £30 to £75 per year for photocopying, memory sticks and printing charges.

Students undertaking a period of work placement or study abroad, as either a compulsory or optional part of their programme, should be aware that they will have to fund additional travel and living costs.

If a programme includes a major project or dissertation, there may be costs associated with transport, accommodation and/or materials. The amount will depend on the project chosen. There may also be additional costs for printing and binding.

Students may wish to consider purchasing an electronic device; costs will vary depending on the specification of the model chosen.

There are also additional charges for graduation ceremonies, examination resits and library fines.

Public History costs

There are no specific additional course costs associated with this programme.

How do I fund my study?

The Department for the Economy will provide a tuition fee loan of up to £6,500 per NI / EU student for postgraduate study. Tuition fee loan information.

A postgraduate loans system in the UK offers government-backed student loans of up to £11,836 for taught and research Masters courses in all subject areas. Criteria, eligibility, repayment and application information are available on the UK government website.

More information on funding options and financial assistance.

International Scholarships

Information on scholarships for international students, is available at www.qub.ac.uk/Study/international-students/international-scholarships/.

PREV
Entry requirements

NEXT
Apply

How to Apply

Apply using our online Postgraduate Applications Portal and follow the step-by-step instructions on how to apply.

Apply now

When to Apply

The deadline for applications is normally 30th June 2021. In the event that any programme receives a high volume of applications, the university reserves the right to close the application portal earlier than 30th June deadline. Notifications to this effect will appear on the Direct Entry Portal (DAP) against the programme application page.

Terms and Conditions

The terms and conditions that apply when you accept an offer of a place at the University on a taught programme of study.
Queen's University Belfast Terms and Conditions.

Download Postgraduate Prospectus

PREV
Fees and Funding

Register your interest
Take your next step with Postgraduate Study

Find out more about Postgraduate Study at Queen's
The Graduate School

Supporting your development as a postgraduate at Queen's.
Accommodation

Some of the most affordable, purpose-built student accommodation in the city.
Course location

History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics

Facebook

Can't find something?

We're here to help with any questions or queries you may have about this course

Ask a question