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Material and Visual Culture MA

London, Bloomsbury

The Material and Visual Culture MA critically examines human-made and modified objects and visual media, including art, design, architecture, landscape, heritage, photographs, film, fashion and performance, to understand how cultures and societies work, preparing you for global professional practice.

This one-year (or two-year if part-time) programme will give you a practical and theoretical grounding in applying anthropological, humanities and natural and social sciences approaches to the analysis of the objects, materials, and visual media that humans use to survive, to define relationships, to represent our identity and to benefit our wellbeing and social standing.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£20,500
£10,250
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£33,000
£16,500
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 04 Apr 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 29 Aug 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

This research based Master's degree is suitable for those students entering postgraduate study with a strong background in the discipline, gained either through an undergraduate degree, or through a well-regarded conversion Master's programme.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 4

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 Material and Visual Culture MA will give you the skills to research and analyse cultures of art, photography, film and media production, exchange and consumption across different societies and cultures, both contemporary and historical.

  • You will join a world-leading research community and benefit from research-embedded teaching in museum anthropology, technology, architecture, fashion and the cultures of materials, and graduate equipped with the latest knowledge and insights in studying material and visual forms.
  • You will specialise in the elements of material and visual culture that interest you most, choosing from a range of optional modules to enhance your learning experience.

Through your independent research project and dissertation, you will develop skills highly sought after by employers, including data analysis and interpretation and the communication of complex ideas. These will also prepare you for PhD level study should you wish to pursue it.

You will study at the top university in London, and 4th in the world, for Anthropology (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024) and The Times and Sunday Times University of the Year 2024.

You will study in a warm and welcoming department that is also one of the largest and most comprehensive anthropology departments in the UK, and which continually works to expand and reshape the discipline.

Who this course is for

The Material and Visual Culture MA is best suited to students looking to gain a qualification and training in anthropological approaches to understanding humanity through the material world as a foundation for professional practice or doctoral research, or for graduates from other fields or careers looking to supplement their existing knowledge and experience.

Material and Visual Culture MA students have a strong interest in exploring culture through forms, material things, substances, aesthetics or institutions which shape our material environment, or other aspects of it.

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

What this course will give you

You will receive advanced academic training in the fundamentals of social scientific inquiry, including independent research design and implementation; ethics; practical approaches to data synthesis, collection and analysis, including ethnographic studies, behavioural observation techniques and statistics; critical evaluation; academic writing; and fundraising, including grant writing and pitching to prospective funders.

You will also develop demonstrable practical competencies, including complex problem solving and creative initiative; communication skills, including the ability to interpret and present complex data to diverse audiences; independent and team working; leadership; and time and project management.

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

The foundation of your career

Graduates of the Material and Visual Culture MA will be equipped to pursue a range of careers, including:

• art curation, practice and administration
• consultancy
• design
• ethnographic and visual research in both academic and commercial settings
• media and journalism, including TV, radio and publishing
• policy and advocacy in governmental, non-governmental (NGOs) and intergovernmental (IGOs) organisations
• video production, both commercial and independent

Previous graduates have gone on to pursue careers in:

• Teaching
• Social and market research
• PR, advertising and marketing
• Accountancy and financial services
• Publishing, journalism and translation

Graduate job titles have included:

• Business and related research professionals
• Public relations professionals
• Arts officers, producers and directors
• Conference and exhibition managers and organisers
• Managers and directors in the creative industries

A number of our graduates choose to progress to PhD-level study.

(Graduate Outcomes survey, aggregated over the five most recent surveys (2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22))

Employability

There is growing demand in diverse professional fields for anthropologists with advanced research skills that can be translated into non-academic contexts.

You will graduate an expert in applying anthropological and wider social science approaches to real-world challenges, fully equipped to pursue a successful career in fields related to material and visual media or any profession requiring strong project management, problem-solving and communication skills.

Networking

As a student in the Department you have access to many opportunities to help further your career:

  • You will become part of the department's Material Culture section, learning from and networking with leading internal and external researchers through a weekly research seminar series.
  • You will be encouraged to attend complementary departmental seminars given by active researchers and expert creative practitioners in environmental, evolutionary, digital, medical, public and social anthropology throughout your studies.
  • You will be encouraged to take advantage of the broader anthropology and material and visual culture communities at UCL, our neighbouring institutions and across London more widely, including attending and participating in seminars, conferences, exhibitions and research partnership opportunities to help you establish industry connections and extend your professional networks.
  • You will be encouraged to engage with the department’s active careers support activities and initiatives, which include regular career development seminars and networking events.

All students are encouraged to host and/or participate in a Reading and Research Group (RRG), which are open spaces to exchange ideas on themes of mutual interest and welcome staff and student participation from across UCL and our neighbouring institutions.

The department's central London location presents a range of opportunities to work, volunteer and carry out fieldwork in major government, business and third sector organisations.

The department also houses London's global non-fiction film festival, Open City Documentary Festival, which all students are invited to volunteer to support to network with non-fiction film industry leading professionals.

Teaching and learning

You will learn through lectures, interactive seminars involving critical discussion, collaborative exercises including group presentations, practical laboratory work, film-based exercises and independent directed and self-directed reading.

You will have the opportunity to attend complementary seminars given by leading researchers and to visit museums, galleries and other relevant sites throughout your studies.

While researching and writing your dissertation, you will benefit from one-to-one academic supervision.

You will be assessed through a series of formative and summative exercises, giving you ample opportunity to practice and receive academic and peer feedback, including essays, practical tests, presentations, take-home exercises and your dissertation.

The compulsory module typically amounts to 81 contact hours (a mix of weekly 2 and 3 hour seminars and a 1 hour practice-based class). The three optional 15 credit modules typically amount to 54 contact hours but will vary according to module selection. Dissertation supervision typically amounts to 2 hours. Estimated time with your personal tutor in individual and small group tutorials typically amounts to 5 hours.

Modules

The programme runs over one full academic year for full-time students.

The programme consists of five elements:

  • Compulsory module in Material and Visual Culture (including Ethnographic Methods in term 1)
  • Three optional modules
  • Dissertation
  • Research seminars
  • Postgraduate presentation day

At least one optional module must be chosen from the Material and Visual Culture MA optional modules.

The programme runs over two full academic years for part-time students.

Compulsory module
You will take the compulsory module during your first year (including Ethnographic Methods).

Three optional modules
You will take at least one optional module during your first year. You will be encouraged to spread your optional modules across the two years, taking two during your second year to ensure structured learning throughout.

Dissertation
The dissertation is submitted at the end of the second year. You will be encouraged to submit your proposal during your first year to be able to carry out some research during the summer of your first year.

Research seminars
Part-time students will be encouraged to attend throughout.

Compulsory modules




Optional modules







Current Themes in Material, Visual, Digital and Design Anthropology: Smart Phones
















Migration and Health



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.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MA in Material and Visual Culture.

Fieldwork

You will spend the summer term researching and writing your dissertation, for which you can choose to conduct ethnographic, archival and/or library-based, original research, with many students choosing to undertake self-funded fieldwork-based projects in the UK or abroad.

The scope and nature of fieldwork is formulated in discussion with your appointed supervisor, and subject to departmental approval.

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) £20,500 £10,250
Tuition fees (2025/26) £33,000 £16,500

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.

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

Students can choose to conduct ethnographic, archival and/or library-based research for their final dissertation projects, with many students taking the opportunity to do fieldwork-based projects in the UK or abroad. This can entail additional costs, including travel, accommodation and living costs, which students must cover themselves.

As this degree is based at the Bloomsbury campus, students choosing to take an optional module only available at the UCL East campus in Stratford will need to fund their own travel between campuses. Tickets from zone 1 to zone 2 costs £8.50 for students or a travel card zone 1-4 for £15.90.
 

There are a number of small to moderate grants available from funding organisations both within UCL and further afield. In recent years, our students have received fieldwork funding from the department’s Turing Scheme and Anna Sturm Law Travel Prize.

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

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

Aziz Foundation Scholarships in Social and Historical Sciences

Value: Full tuition fees (equivalent to 1yr full-time) (1yr)
Criteria Based on financial need
Eligibility: UK

UCL East London Scholarship

Deadline: 26 June 2025
Value: Tuition fees plus £16,000 stipend ()
Criteria Based on financial need
Eligibility: UK

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 Material and Visual Culture at graduate level
• why you want to study Material and Visual Culture at UCL
• how your personal, academic and professional skills and experience inform your interest in, and will enable you to succeed on, this MA programme
• the topic you might want to focus on for your independent research project
• where you would like to go professionally 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.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

Anthropology
Anthropology

anthro-masters@ucl.ac.uk

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