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Degree type

MA

Course length

1 year full-time, 2 years part-time

Location

Durham City

Programme code

Q8K307

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Course details

Our MA in Classics combines language studies with an exploration of the philosophy, history and culture of the Greek and Latin-speaking world to provide you with the academic foundations on which to build a career in research.

You will take the course over one year full-time or two years part-time, starting with a language module of your choice. This is studied alongside a range of optional Classics and other Arts & Humanities modules covering a broad range of subjects including philosophy, history, literature, and visual culture.

The course is taught through lectures, seminars and small group discussions and there is an emphasis on small-group teaching through the course, to encourage in-depth debate and enable you to fully engage with a range of perspectives. You will also complete a major dissertation on a subject of your choosing, supported by teaching experts with a wide range of specialisms in a department which has an established international reputation for the excellence of its academic standards.

This expertise has led us to develop academic centres that have become the focus for vital research activity including the Centre for Classical Reception; the Centre for the Study of the Ancient Mediterranean and the Near East; the Centre for Language and Writing Systems; the Durham Centre for Ancient and Medieval Philosophy; and the Centre for Classics Pedagogy Education and Didactics.

As well as being taught by subject-area experts in a diverse and exciting intellectual community, you will have unique access to our extensive collection featuring some 8,000 volumes of ancient texts in the original and in translation that will be ideal for research purposes.

All the MA programmes offered by the Faculty of Arts & Humanities consist of three components:

  • a Major Research Project to the value of at least 60 credits
  • Core Modules to the value of 0-90 credits, depending on the programme
  • Elective Modules, making up the total number of credits to 180; some of these modules will be defined as Recommended Electives for particular programmes.

For students studying the MA in Classics, the Dissertation (your Major Research Project (60 credits)) will be on a subject decided in consultation with your supervisor according to your research interests. It will feature an agreed framework of supervision that will build key skills for graduate research in classics and will bring together the research skills acquired through taught modules.

Students can opt for the standard Dissertation in Classics and Ancient History or can choose from one of two specialisms focusing on either Greece, Rome and the Near East or Ancient Philosophy.

Course structure

Year 1 modules

Core modules:

You will also choose one or two core original language modules from the list below:

  • Latin Text Seminar (30 credits)
  • Greek Text Seminar (30 credits)
  • Latin for Research (30 credits)
  • Ancient Greek for Research (30 credits)

Optional modules:

Finally, you will choose either 60 or 90 credits (depending on how many core modules you have selected) of elective modules from across the Faculty of Arts & Humanities, so that your total number of credits adds up to exactly 180.

Accreditation

We appear regularly among the top classics departments in the UK for graduate employability, with the skills and abilities you will develop as part of your learning experience such as problem-solving and decision-making all highly sought after by prestigious employers.

Personal behaviours such as confidence, leadership, analysis, networking and mindfulness of colleagues and the workplace environment will also be enhanced, leaving you well-placed to secure rewarding and fulfilling careers in a range of professions such as banking, law, PR, third sector, consultancy, insurance and administration.

This course will also provide you with the skills, knowledge and experience to make a significant career impact in the world of higher academic research, taking with you the international reputation that the university has for its research expertise. You will be able to establish yourself in careers connected to your studies such as heritage, arts, teaching, publishing and journalism.

You will have access to the resources of the university’s Careers, Employability and Enterprise Centre, including work experience opportunities, careers events, employer workshops and presentations, skills programmes and tailored individual careers guidance from a dedicated careers adviser.

You will also take with you our ethos – inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things in the world.

Learning

The principal aim of this course is to serve as research training that will build on your existing skills in independent learning.

The crucial learning mechanism is the dissertation in which core research training and support is provided through seminars comprising weekly classes of lectures, student-led discussions and student presentations.

All the optional modules offered, including mandatory courses in either Latin or ancient Greek at beginners’ or advanced level, are research-led and informed by the current research activity of the tutor taking the module.

For all these taught modules, your contact time with tutors is typically between five and eight hours per week and you will also have an average of two hours per term of dissertation supervision.

In addition to the formal part of the course, the department has a vibrant culture of research seminars, talks and reading groups, which you will be encouraged to attend. This offers an average of two hours a week of further learning contact time.


Assessment

Assessment is rigorous and includes a 15,000-word dissertation. Other forms of assessment include essays, and in some modules, examinations or oral presentations. You may also be asked to produce commentaries, which are based on independent research into a particular text and are around 5,000 words in length.

Entry requirements

A 2.1 (or overseas equivalent) degree in any discipline.

A 500-word personal statement which should include the following:

  • An outline of your interest in MA Classics
  • Specific modules or areas of study that you are interested in
  • What skills and knowledge you would bring to the course
  • What skills and knowledge you would hope to acquire on the programme
  • An indication of your planned area of research
  • Evidence that you have previously studied another language, or other relevant experience that shows suitability for language study at Masters level

Alternative qualifications

International students who do not meet direct entry requirements for this degree might have the option to complete an International Foundation Year.

English language requirements

Country specific information

Fees and funding

Full Time Fees

Tuition fees
Home students £12,500 per year
EU students £28,250 per year
Island students £12,500 per year
International students £28,250 per year

Part Time Fees

Tuition fees
Home students £6,900 per year
EU students £15,600 per year
Island students £6,900 per year
International students £15,600 per year

The tuition fees shown are for one complete academic year of study and are set according to the academic year of entry. Fees will be subject to an annual inflationary increase and are expected to rise throughout the programme of study. The fee listed above is for the first year of the course only.

Please also check costs for colleges and accommodation.

Scholarships and Bursaries

We are committed to supporting the best students irrespective of financial circumstances and are delighted to offer a range of funding opportunities. 

Find out more about Scholarships and Bursaries

Career opportunities

Classics and Ancient History

The Department's national and international reputation for academic quality provides an ideal grounding for postgraduates to either continue their research at a higher level or secure a stimulating and rewarding professional career.

Our postgraduate qualifications develop a set of transferable skills including logical thinking and the evaluation and communication of information that are not only applicable in an academic environment but also deliver the skills and abilities valued across a range of professions.

Some of these professions relate to the subjects studied such as the heritage sector, the arts, teaching, the civil service, publishing and journalism. Other options include banking, law, PR, third sector, consultancy, insurance and administration. Employers who have taken on postgraduates include the Home Office, Deloitte, Manchester United, CitiBank, the NHS and pollsters YouGov.

Department information

Classics and Ancient History

With a strong commitment to postgraduate provision, Durham’s Department of Classics offers a wide range of opportunities to study the artistic, historical, literary, linguistic, cultural and philosophical aspects of the Greek and Roman worlds at an internationally renowned postgraduate centre.

The Department of Classics and Ancient History contains a wealth of knowledge and expertise in the artistic, historical, literary, linguistic, cultural and philosophical features of the ancient world that is recognised internationally.

With one of the largest gatherings of permanent Classics staff in the UK, we consistently rank among the top departments for research and teaching.

We offer two learning routes for postgraduates. You can undertake taught study and extend your knowledge to specialise in an area of particular interest. You can also benefit from the expertise within the Department and join a research master’s course allowing greater academic autonomy.

The Department is proud to be host to a number of highly successful research centres including the Centre for Classical Reception, the Centre for the Study of the Ancient Mediterranean and the Near East, and the Durham Centre for Ancient and Medieval Philosophy.

Much of the research activity naturally falls within these areas, offering excellent opportunities to develop cross-disciplinary work.

Given our wealth of knowledge, we have a global reputation for our innovative work in the study of ancient philosophy and science, Augustan poetry, the social and intellectual history of the Greco-Roman world and the Near East, architecture and urbanisation, and reception.

Our Department is highly international, diverse in its makeup and progressive in its world view. We aim to ensure a stimulating learning experience of the ancient world in a vibrant and supportive postgraduate community.

For more information see our department pages.

Facilities

In keeping with its position as a major centre for learning in Classics and Ancient History, the Department has world class facilities and offers an extensive collection of about 8,000 volumes of ancient texts in the original and in translation, as well as modern scholarship and reference works.

The emphasis of the library’s precious contents is on ancient philosophy, but the collection of texts and works provides an unmatched reference resource for researchers as well as a valuable knowledge source for all our course subjects.

Postgraduates can use assigned computer rooms, a dedicated Departmental library and two fully equipped seminar rooms which are situated in the beautiful and historic centre of Durham next to the Cathedral and Castle and close to the historic city centre.

Apply

Find out more:

Apply for a postgraduate course (including PGCE International) via our online portal.  

Visit Us

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Join a Postgraduate Open Day
  • Date: 10/02/2025 - 11/02/2025
  • Time: 09:00 - 17:00
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Self-Guided Tours
  • Date: 01/09/2024 - 31/08/2025
  • Time: 09:00 - 16:00
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