Medieval and Renaissance Literary Studies

Entry requirements

You will normally require an English or English-related Honours degree (at least a 2:1 or equivalent) from a recognised university.

Please use the 'additional comments' section of the application form to provide a personal statement.

In addition to your three module choices, you will also need to include a piece of written work of approximately 2,000 words in length on a literary subject. This can be any piece of literary-critical work you have completed recently and should be emailed to the applicant portal.

Months of entry

October

Course content

Our taught MA course in Medieval and Renaissance Literary Studies offers choice, flexibility and the opportunity to specialise within this field. You can learn from the rich variety of research expertise in the Department and you also have the chance to concentrate on a particular area of literary study within the fields of Medieval and Renaissance studies. Our commitment to research-led teaching means that students are able to explore the cutting edge of the discipline - from Old Norse to Renaissance Tragedy, from medieval manuscripts to critical theory. The Medieval and Renaissance Literary Studies course includes the possibility of taking interdisciplinary modules involving other departments including History and Archaeology. We provide an intimate, dynamic and supportive environment for students of all backgrounds and nationalities.

Our course offers up-to-date training in research methods and skills. You will choose three modules, at least two of which are from within the pathway, and you will write a dissertation on a subject related to Medieval and/or Renaissance studies.

An MA in Medieval and Renaissance Literary Studies is often the platform for further research at PhD level, as well as providing an excellent grounding for jobs in education, the arts and the media.

Course Structure

If you choose to take this course, you will be expected to select at least two modules from those available and to write your dissertation in an area related to it. Your third optional module may, if you wish, be chosen from the full list of MA modules on offer in the Department. Students may, with permission, take one module from other modules on offer elsewhere in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. All students must take a triple weighted dissertation alongside their three optional modules.

Core Module

• Dissertation

Optional Modules

Typical modules might include:

• Warrior Poets in Heroic Societies
• Old Norse
• Old English Language, Texts and Contexts
• The Anglo-Saxon World
• Narrative Transformations: Medieval Romance to Renaissance Epic
• Middle English Manuscripts and Texts
• Issues in Medieval and Renaissance Studies
• Renaissance Tragedy
• Renaissance Humanism
• John Milton: Life, Works and Influence
• Lyric Poetry of the English Renaissance and Reformation.

Modules are subject to staff availability and normally no more than six of the above will run in any one year.

Please use the 'additional comments' section of the application form to indicate your choice of modules as well as to provide a personal statement.

Information for international students

If you are an international student who does not meet the requirements for direct entry to this degree, you may be eligible to take a pre-Masters pathway programme at the Durham University International Study Centre.

Fees and funding

For further information see the course listing.