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Archives and Records Management MA

London, Bloomsbury

Become career-ready for the world of records management through this degree that blends theory with hands-on practice. The Archives and Records Management MA provides a core education in managing records and archives for current use and future preservation. Taught at UCL, this is an exceptional opportunity to gain the knowledge you’ll need to work in this field.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£13,500
£6,750
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£33,000
£16,500
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
5 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
All applicants: 14 Oct 2024 – 04 Apr 2025

Applications not yet open

Find similar courses still open

Entry requirements

Normal requirements for admission are a minimum of an upper second-class UK Bachelor's degree or equivalent. A period of paid or voluntary experience (usually 4-12months) in archive, records or information governance work. Applicants that do not meet these requirements but demonstrate a strong understanding of the programme and the recordkeeping field will be given due consideration.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 2

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

The programme focuses on the management of records and archives in a variety of digital and hard copy formats. You will learn to manage, organise, interpret and provide access to a wide range of records and archives, focusing on both the management of records for ongoing purposes, and their selection, preservation and accessibility for future uses including historical research.

Who this course is for

The MA/Postgraduate Diploma provides a foundation education for graduates seeking to enter the profession. The Postgraduate Certificate has certain professional elements, but is not recognised as a professional qualification.

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

UCL boasts one of the longest-established archive education programmes in the UK. It is taught by leading experts in the field, drawing on their innovative research as well as extensive practical experience of archives and records work through a work placement.

You will benefit from UCL's location close to many records management services, and the broadest grouping of historical archives in any city in the English-speaking world.

The programme hosts an impressive range of visiting speakers, organises frequent field visits to a wide variety of working environments, and a two-week placement, all of which provide unique occasions to network and create professional links with key players in the sector.

Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

UCL Archive and Record Management graduates have gone on to work for a range of employers including the British Library, the UK Government and the NHS. They have held roles including archivists and curators, record clerks and assistants and library clerks and assistants.*

*Graduate Outcomes Survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the 2017 - 2022 cohorts.

Employability

This programme will prepare you to work in a wide variety of traditional and non-traditional archives and information management roles in both the private and public sectors, in the UK and internationally.

You will benefit from the department's excellent links with employers in the information professions, which will provide you with 'real life' experiences through guest lectures, visits and a placement. You will also receive specific careers advice, including how to construct CVs. Longer term, the programme will equip you with the skills and knowledge to have a long and successful career in your chosen field and to become a leader in your profession.

Networking

Alongside visits to and speakers from a diverse and extensive range of records management services and archives, and the two week placement, you will be provided with the opportunity to develop your network by being introduced to the main professional societies underpinning the sector, in particular the Archive & Records Association (ARA). Speakers from ARA’s new professionals section encourage students to join as student members and begin developing their competencies under the guidance of a mentor in order to work towards professional registration. The Centre for Critical Archives & Records Management (CCARMS) also provides students with opportunities to be involved in research, engagement and dissemination activities, which is also an excellent profile-raising opportunity.

Accreditation

The Archives & Records Management MA/PG Diploma was assessed under the Archives & Records Association's (ARA) new accreditation framework process, and has had its ARA accreditation as professional level qualifications extended to 2029.

Teaching and learning

The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, computer laboratory sessions and class-based practical exercises, with a strong emphasis on group and peer learning and the acquisition of practical skills underpinned by archival theory and knowledge.

Assessment is through a mixture of essays, reports, and practical assignments.

For full-time students, typical contact hours are around 12 hours per week. Outside of lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials, full-time students typically study the equivalent of a full-time job, using their remaining time for self-directed study and completing coursework assignments.
In the First and Second Terms, full-time students can typically expect between 10 and 12 contact hours per teaching week through a mixture of lectures, seminars, workshops, crits and tutorials. In the Third Term and the summer period students will be completing their own dissertation research, keeping regular contact with their dissertation supervisors.

A Postgraduate Diploma, five core modules (90 credits), two optional modules (30 credits), full-time nine months or flexible study up to five years, is offered. A Postgraduate Certificate, four optional modules (60 credits), full-time 15 weeks or flexible study over a period of up to two years, is offered.

Modules

You will undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. You will undertake seven taught modules and the research dissertation. Five of the modules are compulsory and cover the themes of:

  • concepts and contexts
  • curation and stewardship
  • the record-keeping professional
  • creation and capture
  • access and the use of archives

To complete the seven modules, you will choose two optional modules that individually cover a broad range of subjects, such as:

  • reading and interpretation of archives from 1500
  • information governance
  • database theory and practice
  • manuscript studies
  • oral history: creation to curation
  • knowledge organisation
  • information literacy
  • historical bibliography
  • digital curation
  • trauma-informed approaches to managing archives, records and cultural heritage
  • introduction to digitisation

Full-time structure:

Term 1:

You will take four compulsory modules, one of which is a double module: it provides the key concepts and contexts of the programme, and is taught across the First and Second Terms.

Term 2:

You will take two compulsory modules, one of which is the continuation of the double module started in the First Term, and two optional modules.

Term 3:

The dissertation research and writing commence in the Third Term and continue over the summer, although some initial planning, including choosing a dissertation topic, takes place at the end of the First Term and during the Second Term. You also undertake a supported two-week work placement at the beginning of the Third Term.

You will undertake modules to the value of 180 credits over two years. You will undertake seven taught modules and the research dissertation. Five of the modules are compulsory and cover the themes of:

  • concepts and contexts
  • curation and stewardship
  • the record-keeping professional
  • creation and capture
  • access and the use of archives.

To complete the seven modules, you will choose two optional modules that individually cover a broad range of subjects, such as:

  • reading and interpretation of archives from 1500
  • information governance
  • database theory and practice
  • manuscript studies
  • oral history: creation to curation
  • knowledge organisation
  • information literacy
  • historical bibliography
  • digital curation
  • trauma-informed approaches to managing archives, records and cultural heritage
  • introduction to digitisation

Part-time structure:

Year 1:

In the First Term you will take two compulsory modules, one of which is a double module: it provides the key concepts and contexts of the programme, and teaching for this module will continue in the second term of the First Year.

In the Second Term you will take two modules, one of which is the continuation of the double module started in the first term. For your second module, you may choose to take either a compulsory module or an optional module. If there is an optional module being offered in the First Year that you are particularly interested in taking, we suggest you do so in the First Year, as we cannot guarantee to run the full range of optional modules every year.

In the Third Term of the First Year, students will concentrate on self-study. You also undertake a two-week work placement if you have elected to take the module that explores the topic of curation and stewardship.

Year 2:

In the First and Second Terms you will take two modules. These will be a mix of compulsory and optional modules, depending on your choices the previous year.

In the Third Term, you will commence the dissertation research and writing and continue during the summer, although some initial planning, including choosing a dissertation topic, takes place at the end of the first term and during the second term in the Second Year of the course. You will also undertake a two-week work placement if you have elected to take the curation and stewardship module.

You will undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. You will undertake seven taught modules and the research dissertation. You will have a maximum of five years in which to complete the programme. Five of the modules are compulsory and cover the themes of:

  • concepts and contexts
  • curation and stewardship
  • the record-keeping professional
  • creation and capture
  • access and the use of archives.

To complete the seven modules, you will choose two optional modules that individually cover a broad range of subjects, such as:

  • reading and interpretation of archives from 1500
  • information governance
  • database theory and practice
  • manuscript studies
  • oral history: creation to curation
  • knowledge organisation 
  • information literacy
  • digital curation
  • trauma-informed approaches to managing archives, records and cultural heritage
  • introduction to digitisation

Modular structure:

You will have a maximum of five years in which to complete the programme. We strongly recommend that you start with the double module in the First Year (taught across the First and Second Terms) as it covers the key concepts and contexts of the programme. Other than that, you choose how many and which modules you take in any given year of study.

Compulsory modules








Optional modules














Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

MA students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MA in Archives and Records Management. Upon successful completion of 120 credits, you will be awarded a PG Dip in Archives and Records Management. Upon successful completion of 60 credits, you will be awarded a PG Cert in Archives and Records Management.

Placement

The work placement provides MA/PG Dip students experience of how the techniques they have learned may be applied in practice. They last for two weeks and are undertaken as part of the core module that covers the topic of curation and stewardship in the Third Term. We arrange placements individually for each student and do our best to match the placement with their interests and experience.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £13,500 £6,750
Tuition fees (2025/26) £33,000 £16,500

Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

For Full-time and Part-time offer holders a fee deposit will be charged at 10% of the first year fee.

For flexible/modular offer holders a £500 fee deposit will be charged.

There is no fee deposit required for PG Dip and PG Cert applicants.

Further information can be found in the Tuition fee deposits section on this page: Tuition fees.

The department strives to keep additional costs low. Books and journal articles are usually available via the UCL library as hard copies or via e-journal subscriptions.

While students are not expected or required to attend any professional or academic conferences for the programme, should students wish to undertake these enrichment activities during their course, the department is unfortunately unable to assist with the associated costs.

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers offers a tuition fees scholarship annually for a full-time or part-time Archive and Records Management MA student, normally under the age of 25 years. There is flexibility on the age limit. This is an external scholarship to UCL and is usually announced in the Spring.

Scottish applicants may be eligible for an award from the Student Awards Agency Scotland.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

There is an application processing fee for this programme of £90 for online applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study Archives and Records Management at graduate level
  • why you want to study Archives and Records Management at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to this programme
  • how your academic and professional background meets the demands of this programme
  • where you would like to go professionally and/or academically with your degree

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Got questions? Get in touch

Information Studies
Information Studies

infostudies-enquiries@ucl.ac.uk

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