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Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies MA

London, Bloomsbury

Modern society demands deeper expertise in issues of race, inequality and injustice. The Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies MA is an opportunity to gain an education in this field, while acquiring critical, theoretical and methodological skills. Taught by renowned scholars, including those from the UCL Sarah Parker Remond Centre for the Study of Racism and Racialisation, you’ll gain important knowledge applicable to a variety of careers. 

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2024/25)
£15,100
£7,550
Overseas tuition fees (2024/25)
£31,100
£15,550
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2024
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 16 Oct 2023 – 28 Jun 2024
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 16 Oct 2023 – 30 Aug 2024
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

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 Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies MA programme will equip you with a range of critical, theoretical and methodological tools. You will be encouraged and enabled to unpack and interpret these fields of conflict, as well as to deepen your understanding of contemporary debates about racial hierarchy and inequality and their associations with other dimensions of power and conflict.

It provides you with a cutting-edge perspective on contemporary approaches to the politics of race and racism. It will introduce you to the knowledge, skills and methods that will enable you to develop your own specialised interests in this field both academically and professionally.

Who this course is for

This programme is suitable for students with a first degree in the humanities, social, political and historical sciences or relevant discipline, who wish to explore the politics, history and ethics of race, racism, social justice and post-coloniality.
Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

The programme benefits from teaching staff with backgrounds in social theory, literary and cultural studies, Geography and Anthropology, and draws upon resources from multiple disciplines to build a critical account of the origins and development of race-thinking, as well as its enduring power.

Though you may have been thinking about these issues already, the programme does not assume that you are already a specialist in these areas of scholarship. The curriculum emphasises the need for students to encounter a constellation of key concepts and to become familiar with the texts that have been foundational in the academic analysis of racism and racialisation.

You will be brought into contact with a range of examples drawn from different locations, periods and political struggles throughout history. They include Abolitionism, anti-colonial, civil and human rights movements all the way to Black Lives Matter and related contemporary conflicts over racial inequality, racial hierarchy and social justice. You will examine the history of race and raciology and be introduced to a range of attempts to map and critically respond to varieties of racist argumentation: religious, scientific, culturalist, biopolitical and nationalistic. You will be invited to grasp how race-thinking has developed and varied in different locations, periods and disciplinary contexts.

An extensive survey builds towards consideration of contemporary instances of racialised injustice and inequality. You will analyse the structural and institutional aspects of those social and political problems and see how they have been manifested in culture, politics and everyday life.

The programme affords opportunities to look at the movements that have resisted racism, injustice and inequality, seeking rights and recognition.

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

The foundation of your career

This programme aims to provide a good general foundation for students who wish to pursue further research and study in many humanities and social science disciplines. That foundation includes training in research methods and transferable skills, which can be further enhanced through optional module choices.

Our graduates go on to work in varied roles across the public, private and charitable sectors, as well as working as consultants, researchers, policy advisors and teachers in the fields of education, academic research, media, heritage and government.

Employability

This programme approaches race and racism through a wide range of topics. It includes a mix of history, theory and politics in relation to racism, ethnicity and post-coloniality. Equipping graduates with interdisciplinary skills and cultural knowledge valued by employers.

The aim is to foster your ability to think critically and express your ideas rigorously in written and verbal forms; to be clear about the political and ethical problems associated with this history and to be empowered to act in pursuit of racial justice and equality in a variety of institutional contexts.

Networking

Our location offers students access to special collections in modern languages and culture at UCL and other world-class libraries nearby such as Senate House and the British Library. 

These resources, besides their collections of books, articles, videos, sound recordings and non-public online resources, offer a wide range of seminars, lecture series and other opportunities to exchange ideas. Other libraries and research centres within walking distance of campus include the British Museum, Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies, Institute of Historical Research and The Warburg Institute.

UCL Careers also offers a range of services, providing access to skills development, recruitment and networking events.

Teaching and learning

The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, directed reading, tutorials and private study. The third term is devoted to revision sessions and the dissertation project. Teaching methods are likely to vary depending on faculty, department and individual module leaders.

A 15-credit module is equivalent to 150 hours of study and a 30-credit module is equivalent to 300 hours. This includes contact time, private study and the undertaking of coursework assignments.

Students will be assessed by a variety of methods, which may include coursework, presentations, written essays, unseen examinations and the research dissertation. Teaching sessions are interactive, with a limited amount of lecturer presentation and an emphasis on student participation and critical discussion.

Taught postgraduate modules are designed on the basis that a 15 credit module involves 150 learning hours and a 30 credit module, 300 hours, approximately one-third of the hours allocated for the assessment exercise. The remainder is divided between class time (generally two hours per week) and self-directed study. Although the structure of modules, in terms of the balance between contact hours and private study, varies between modules, courses and disciplines, in all cases the hours expected to be dedicated to private reading far exceed the hours of class attendance.

Modules

During the academic year, you will take compulsory modules which are designed to work as a postgraduate-level foundation and provide you with the specific skills to research and write essays and the dissertation. You will also choose optional modules from the suggested list (see Optional modules). These modules will form the foundation of your MA and broaden your understanding of contemporary debates around racial theory, inequality and associations with power and conflict, from historical and contemporary perspectives.

During Term 2, in addition to your taught modules, you will start formulating your dissertation proposal. This work will continue into Term 3 and across the remainder of the academic year. You will develop your dissertation outline and structure with support from your supervisor. You will give a presentation to your peers and tutors on your dissertation to help cement your argument and subject area to cover. This is a non-assessed compulsory element of the MA. You will then spend the summer researching and writing your 12,000 word dissertation on a topic to be determined in discussion with your academic supervisor.

In Year 1, you will take two compulsory modules, designed to work as a postgraduate-level foundation module and to provide you with the specific skills to research and write essays and the dissertation. These modules set the foundation for the whole MA, preparing you for further learning and for your dissertation.

In Year 2, you will take optional modules to develop your understanding of contemporary debates around racial theory, inequality and associations with power and conflict, from historical and contemporary perspectives, as well as developing key concepts learnt in Year 1. You will also formulate and develop your dissertation outline and structure with support from your supervisor. You will give a presentation to your peers and tutors on your dissertation proposal to help cement your argument and subject areas to cover. This is a non-assessed compulsory element of your MA. You will then spend the summer of Year 2 researching and writing your 12,000 word dissertation on a topic to be determined in discussion with your supervisor.

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.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MA in Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies.

Accessibility

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

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2024/25) £15,100 £7,550
Tuition fees (2024/25) £31,100 £15,550

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

Additional costs may include expenses such as books, stationery, printing or photocopying, or conference registration fees and associated travel costs.

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.

For more information on additional costs for prospective students please go to our estimated cost of essential expenditure at Accommodation and living costs.

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

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 and £115 for paper applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies at graduate level
  • why you want to study Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial Studies at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to this programme
  • how your personal, academic and professional background meets the demands of this programme
  • where you would like to go professionally with your degree

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme match what the programme will deliver.

Applicants should be able to show that they have an interest in developing critical analysis of racialised hierarchies and inequalities.

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: 2024-2025

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

Centre for Multidisciplinary and Intercultural Inquiry
Centre for Multidisciplinary and Intercultural Inquiry

selcs-cmii.enquiries@ucl.ac.uk

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