For further details about teaching from September 2020 please visit your course or department page in the Offer Holder hub.

World History & Cultures MA

Apply now

Overview

Our World History & Cultures MA offers you the chance to study the global, political, economic, and cultural interactions, the history of empires and the transnational histories of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Americas.

King’s College London, with Oxford and Cambridge, was central to the subject of British Imperial History since the 1920s. In more recent decades, it became a key international centre for the Global and Transnational History. As well as providing training in historical research methods, and global and transnational history, our course offers you the opportunity to personalise your degree by choosing optional modules offered by any department at King’s or from available MA courses at our London partner institutions (which include UCL, Queen Mary and Royal Holloway).

Leads to careers in education, journalism, finance, politics and cultural sectors.

Key benefits

One of the best history departments in the world, ranked 5th in the UK for Research Quality (REF 2014) and in the top five in Europe (QS World University Rankings 2019).

King’s graduates enjoy one of the best employment rates and starting salaries in the UK. Ranked 4th in the UK for graduate employability (Times Higher Education Wold University Rankings 2018).

The most comprehensive coverage of the history of the European seaborne empires of any university in the UK and has key figures in the study of South Asia, Australia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Our central London location offers students unrivalled access to world-class museums, collections, archives and libraries as well as easy access to resources in Europe.

Key information

Application status Closed

Duration One year FT, two years PT, September to September.

Study mode Full-time, Part-time

Credit value UK 180/ECTS 90

Course intake Variable.

Course leaders Dr Max Edling

Further details

Course contact for further information Postgraduate Admissions Team, Admissions Office tel: +44 (0) 20 7848 7000 fax: +44 (0) 20 7848 7200

Course contact form Postgraduate admissions

Awarding institution King's College London

Faculty Faculty of Arts & Humanities

Department Department of History

Locations

Select location

Explore campuses

World History & Cultures MA

Discover More

Watch our short video to find out more about our World History & Cultures master's course at King's

Watch more videos

Course detail

Description

This MA course provides you with training in global and transnational history, while offering the opportunity to pursue a personally-tailored interdisciplinary education, through optional modules offered by any department at King’s College London, or from available MA courses at our London partner institutions. You will also be free to carry out your own research, and to draw on an exceptional range of expertise within the World History research cluster at King’s, which includes experts on Africa, South Asia, China, Latin America and the Caribbean, Australia, and the Middle East, as well as leading historians of the British Empire, Portuguese Empire, and French Empire.

We aim to provide training in the historiographical and technical skills necessary for further study, and also to allow you to develop special expertise in the areas of history and the humanities that attract you. Our course is particularly suitable if you have a clear research interest and are looking to continue in academic study.

Further literature

Course format and assessment

Teaching

If you are a full-time student, we will give you six hours of teaching each week through lectures and seminars, and we will expect you to undertake 34 hours of self-study.

If you are a part-time student, we will give you two to four hours of teaching each week through lectures and seminars in your first year and in your second and we will expect you to undertake 16 hours of self-study in your first year and your second.

For the dissertation, we will give you six hours of supervision and we will expect you to undertake 594 hours of self-study both for full-time and part-time students.

We will use a delivery method that will ensure students have a rich, exciting experience from the start. Face to face teaching will be complemented and supported with innovative technology so that students also experience elements of digital learning and assessment.

Typically, one credit equates to 10 hours of work.

Assessment

Your performance will be assessed through a combination of essays and a dissertation which will make up 100% of your assessment.

Location

The course is primarily taught at the King’s College Strand Campus in the heart of London. London offers a vast range of resources and collections at its world-famous museums. It also has the advantage of a strong graduate community, where students can follow up a range of interests towards further research. We strongly encourage you to participate in the seminars at the Institute of Historical Research (IHR), many of which are convened by members of the Department.

Regulating body

King’s College London is regulated by the Office for Students.

Structure

Year 1

Courses are divided into modules. You will normally take modules totalling 180 credits.

Required Modules

You are required to take:

• Advanced Skills for Historians (20 credits)

• Transnational history (20 credits)

• Dissertation (60 credits)

You will write a 15,000-word dissertation, on a topic devised and developed through discussion with your dissertation supervisor.

If you are a part-time student, you will take the required modules in your first year and you will write your dissertation in your second year.

Optional Modules

In addition, you are required to take 80 credits from a range of optional modules. If you are a part-time student, you will take 40 credits in your first year and 40 credits in your second.

The list of optional modules may typically include:

• The British Empire (20 credits)

• Harlem: A Social & Intellectual history since 1900 (20 credits)

• On Contradictions: Themes in the Study of the Early People’s Republic of China (20 credits)

• Making of Contemporary India: Political Power & Social Order in Historical Perspective (20 credits)

• Inequality in World History (20 credits)

• Obsessed with the West: Movements & Ideologies in Modern Iran (20 credits)

• Up to 40 credits from a range of master’s modules offered outside of the department, including those offered via the intercollegiate scheme by Departments of History from across the University of London, subject to approval.

• You may also opt to take an additional 20 credits in a Level 7 language module at the Modern Languages Centre.

King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to- date, innovative and relevant courses of study. Therefore, modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.

Entry requirements & how to apply

World History Entry Requirements
Minimum requirements	2:1	Bachelor's degree with 2:1 honours in history or a related subject such as politics. Students without a history degree may be required to show relevant research skills in order to be accepted. In order to meet the academic entry requirements for this programme you should have a minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree with a final mark of at least 60% or above in the UK marking scheme. If you are still studying you should be achieving an average of at least 60% or above in the UK marking scheme.
International requirements		Visit our admissions webpages to view our International entry requirements.
English Language requirements	Band C	Visit our admissions webpages to view our English language entry requirements.

Application procedure

Applications must be made online using King’s online application portal apply.kcl.ac.uk and a non-refundable application fee of £70 applies. Once references and transcripts are received, we aim to process all complete applications within four to six weeks.

Personal statement and supporting information

You will be asked to submit the following documents in order for your application to be considered:

World History checklist
Personal Statement	Yes	A personal statement is required. This can be entered directly into the online application form (maximum 4,000 characters) or uploaded as an attachment to the online application form (maximum 2 pages). Please note the optional modules you would be interested in as part of your personal statement.
Previous Academic Study	Yes	A copy (or copies) of your official academic transcript(s), showing the subjects studied and marks obtained. If you have already completed your degree, copies of your official degree certificate will also be required. Applicants with academic documents issued in a language other than English, will need to submit both the original and official translation of their documents.
References	Yes	One academic reference is required. A professional reference will be accepted if you have completed your qualifications over five years ago. In some cases, we may request an additional reference from you.
Other	Optional	Applicants may wish to include a CV (Resume) or evidence of professional registration as part of their application.

Application closing date

We recommend that you submit your application as soon as possible. Our first application deadline is the 26^th March 2021. After this date, the programme will remain open only if places are still available and will be closed as soon as it is full.

For programmes that remain open beyond this date, the final application deadlines for the following fee statuses are listed below:

EU or overseas (international) fee status: 30^th July 2021
Home fee status: 27^th August 2021

Please note, you will not be eligible for an application fee refund if you apply after the first application deadline in March, and we are unable to process more offers as places are filled before the final application deadlines above.

Help and support

If you don't have a suitable qualification for direct entry to a UK university, or if English isn't your first language, our academic preparation courses can help you get ready for study in the UK.

Preparation courses

Fees and funding

Full time Home fees: £10,500 per year (2021/22)
Full time overseas fees: £23,460 per year (2021/22)
Part time Home fees: £5,250 per year (2021/22)
Part time overseas fees: £11,730 per year (2021/22)

These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King’s terms and conditions.

Deposit

When you receive an offer for this course you will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit to secure your place. The deposit will be credited towards your total fee payment.

The UK deposit is £500.

The INTERNATIONAL deposit is £2,000.

If you receive an offer on or before 31st March, payment is due by 30^th April 2021.
If you receive an offer between 1st April and 30th June, payment is due within one month of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer between 1st July and 31st July, payment is due within two weeks of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer on or after 1st August, payment is due within one week of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer from late August onwards, payment is due within 2 days of receiving the offer.

If you are a current King’s student in receipt of the King's Living Bursary you are not required to pay a deposit to secure your place on the programme. Please note, this will not change the total fees payable for your chosen programme

Additional costs/expenses

In addition to your tuition fees, you can also expect to pay for:

· books if you choose to buy your own copies

· clothing for optional course related events and competitions

· library fees and fines

· personal photocopies

· printing course handouts

· society membership fees

· stationery

· travel costs for travel around London and between campuses

· graduation costs

Please visit our web pages on fees and funding for more information.

Financial help and support

Visit the fees and funding webpages to find out more about bursaries, scholarships, grants, tuition fees, living expenses, student loans and other financial help available at King's.

Career prospects

Our course will give you skills that will allow you to excel in academia and in your professional life. Many students coming out of this MA have gone on to fully-funded PhD studentships at King’s, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Princeton and other universities, and others have found careers in a diverse range of fields, such as the civil and foreign services, education, journalism, finance, politics and cultural sectors.

Testimonials

Rodolphe

I chose King's College London because I wanted to study at a top university. It offers a world-class education as you are taught by renowned teachers in fantastic facilities and this explains its international reputation.