Humanities & Academic English is for international students who do not yet qualify for direct MA entry. Helps students achieve the academic and linguistic skills required for successful postgraduate study. Improves overall skills through a unique combination of language and academic subject input. Direct progression into all MA programmes in year two.
KEY BENEFITS
- Unrivalled location in the heart of London, with the programme design reflecting this unique study opportunity
- Unrivalled links with the cultural and creative heart of London and the limitless resources this brings
- A unique pathway into all master's programmes delivered by one of the world's leading Arts & Humanities faculties
- Guaranteed conditional offers for all MA programmes offered by the School of Arts & Humanities
- The English Language Centre is accredited by the British Council
KEY FACTS
Student destinations
Progression onto a wide range of Arts & Humanities Master's programmes.
Programme leader/s
Dr David Todd (Arts & Humanities lead); Dr Tracey Costley (ELC lead)
Awarding Institution
King's College London
Credit value (UK/ECTS equivalent)
UK 120/ECTS 60
Duration
One year FT, September to June, for Graduate Diploma, followed by one/two years FT/PT, September to September, for Master's degree.
Location
Strand Campus
Year of entry 2012
Offered by
English Language Centre
School of Arts and Humanities
Interdisciplinary department
Closing date
All applicants are strongly advised to submit their applications by the end of July to ensure you have time to apply for accommodation and/or visas.
Intake
Approximately 15 FT.
Fees
FT Home: £12800 (2012)
FT Overseas: £12800 (2012)
CONTACTS
Contact information
Postgraduate Officer, Centre for Arts & Sciences Admissions (CASA)
tel: +44 (0) 20 7848 2765 / 2232
fax: +44 (0) 20 7848 7200
Email
Website
PURPOSE
Inter-disciplinary programme aimed at international students from a wide range of academic backgrounds who wish to study at MA level but who do not yet qualify for direct entry. It ensures students achieve and master the skills required for the successful completion of their chosen MA. This unique pathway forms the first year of a two year master's programme with successful students progressing onto their chosen MA in the second year.
DESCRIPTION
The
Graduate Diploma in Humanities & Academic English forms the first year (pre-master's year) of a two year MA. The programme provides a unique approach to MA study as it supports international students in achieving the academic and linguistic skills required for the intensive pace of study at MA level. The programme combines study of key arts & humanities theories and methodologies with the development of academic English, study skills and critical thinking skills.
By the end of the programme, students will have improved their overall language and academic skills and have a more detailed and advanced understanding of their chosen academic discipline. All successful students progress directly onto their chosen Master's degree.
The programme aims to:
- Provide students with the opportunity to focus on their chosen academic area within the broad range of Arts & Humanities disciplines;
- Ensure that support mechanisms enhance students' engagement with their academic field and develop their capacity to engage in critical analysis;
- Provide students with a broad and critical understanding of a range of key theories and approaches that underpin the range of Arts & Humanities disciplines, one of which they will be able to research in depth;
- Improve students' ability to use academic English appropriately and effectively at graduate level;
- Ensure students have the appropriate range of skills required for successful MA study in the School of Arts & Humanities;
- Provide clear routes into all MA programmes in the School.
This programme allows you to progress onto
all the MA programmes currently available within the
School of Arts & Humanities. The School offers graduate degrees in a wide range of subjects using 'traditional' humanities disciplinary roots to pioneer interdisciplinary degrees and exploiting our thriving links with leading academic and cultural institutions in London and around the globe.
You will need to indicate which MA you are interested in studying in your graduate diploma application, and you are advised to contact the admissions tutors for your prospective MA to discuss your application.
STRUCTURE OVERVIEW
Core programme content
- Humanities & Integrated Study Skills
- Individual Research Project
- Academic English Skills
FORMAT AND ASSESSMENT
Lecture and seminar classes, supported by academic English seminars and tutorials; individual supervision for the research project; assessment by dissertation, coursework essays, oral presentations and unseen examinations.
Progression to the second year of the programme is dependent on students achieving a Merit grade in their first year assessments as a whole. Successful completion of this first year programme leads to the award of a Graduate Diploma in Humanities & Academic English, and successful completion of the entire two-year programme leads to the award of the appropriate MA degree.
MODULES
More information on typical programme modules.
NB it cannot be guaranteed that all modules are offered in any particular academic year.
Module code: 4LEC1234
Credit level: 4
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Full-year
Module description not yet available
Module code: 6AAYGD01
Credit level: 6
Credit value: 60
Semester:
Full-year
NOT YET AVAILABLE
Module code: 6AAYGD02
Credit level: 6
This module allows students to research a topic of their choice within the field of their specialist MA, and to present their findings within an extended essay. This allows students to tailor the programme to their individual specialism and provides invaluable experience that will assist with the research and writing of the MA dissertation in the second year.
Students receive generic classes in associated research skills, such as interview techniques, as well as individual supervision by an appropriate academic from the School of Arts & Humanities. The projects are used as the basis for formal oral presentations and students are given dedicated academic English and skills support to improve their ability and confidence in these areas.
The main aims are to:
- Allow students to undertake in-depth independent research on a chosen aspect of the arts and humanities, depending on which Masters’ programme they intend to follow;
- Improve students’ understanding of, and ability to use, academic English appropriately and effectively within a research context;
- Ensure students have the appropriate range of research skills required for successful MA study in a Humanities subject.
ACADEMIC ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
General entry advice
An honours degree, typically a first or upper second, although not necessarily in a humanities background. The GPA required is dependent on the requirements of the humanities MA to be studied. Students must also provide certification to show that they possess a minimum standard of English, defined as an IELTS score of 6.0 (with no skill below 5.5), or TOEFL equivalencies of a minimum of 18 in Reading, Listening and Writing, and 20 in Speaking with an overall minimum score of 80.
APPLYING TO KING'S
To apply for graduate study at King's you will need to complete our graduate online application form. Applying online makes applying easier and quicker for you, and means we can receive your application faster and more securely.
King's does not normally accept paper copies of the graduate application form as applications must be made online. However, if you are unable to access the online graduate application form, please contact the relevant admissions/School Office at King's for advice.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
All applications are assessed by the academic tutor for both the graduate diploma and the chosen MA programme. This process can take up to five weeks. On very rare occasions, applicants may be invited to interview. All potential applicants are welcome to call the School and arrange a visit.
PERSONAL STATEMENT & SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Applicants are required to submit an essay of not more than 4,000 words, preferably on a topic related to their chosen programme. This can be attached under the personal statement section of the online application form. Please also state in your Personal Statement which MA/MSc you would like to progress onto after the Graduate Diploma. If there are any anomalies in your academic record, please use the personal statement to explain related extenuating circumstances.
FUNDING
Students are generally either self-funded or are officials sponsored by their employing agencies.
Related programme student profile
Eighteenth-Century Studies MAWhen I applied for a place on the Eighteenth-Century Studies MA, there were two main reasons why the course appealed to me. Firstly, as an English Literature graduate, the interdisciplinary nature of the MA - the course covers early modern British and European literature, history, science, medicine, politics, philosophy, art, and more - would both enable me to develop my specific interest in the relationship between the arts and sciences during this era, and make me a better scholar of the period in general. Similarly, because the course was taught by both tutors from King's College and curators from the British Museum, it offered a unique opportunity to be around and improve my understanding of all the incredible artefacts - not just texts, but objects too - whose creation, or re-discovery in many cases, resulted from this ferment of ideas called the Enlightenment.
On starting the MA, I found that the course was everything I'd wanted it to be. British Museum curators taught the core modules, and in effect the Museum's showcase Enlightenment Gallery, which displays and interprets objects as eighteenth-century people might have made sense of them, became a vast classroom. King's College tutors taught the optional modules, and many of these were themed - the self, the body, liberty, melancholy, and so on - and ranged across a variety of media - conduct books, novels, philosophical treatises, diaries, portraits and more - to demonstrate how a number of disciplines informed the emergence of each particular idea or experience. The MA organizers were also really good at showcasing eighteenth-century London - there were trips to Kew gardens and Sir John Soane's house museum, amongst others, which was an unexpected bonus.
Aside from the course, the facilities at King's are very good. Its beautiful library is a two minute walk away from its main Strand campus, it has a big and cheap student bar with a view of the river, and it's next door to the Courtauld Institute and just over the river from the British Film Insitute on the south bank, two of my favourite places in London.