Naval History (Distance Learning)

Course Overview

What will I experience? On this course you will: Access the rich archives and expertise of the National Museum of the Royal Navy and HMS Warrior to support your study. Undertake study through flexible distance learning techniques, with the option to blend this with study days in Portsmouth. Take advantage of unique connections with both Portsmouth and international maritime museums, with opportunities to go on field trips and experience behind the scenes tours. Train in historical research and the interpretation of multi-archive sources. What opportunities might it lead to? This course is an excellent opportunity for students with an interest in British and Naval History to learn from experts in the field and develop a real grounding in this subject area. Offering specific real-life learning experience working with archives and museums, this course offers you the opportunity to develop key transferable skills, such as independent learning, written communication, textual analysis and time management. This course also assists you with refining key research skills appropriate for progression to PhD level research. Possible career opportunities include: Journalism, Law, Teaching, Administration, Archive and museum work, Programme Assessment: The course can be studied entirely by distance learning through access to high quality interactive resources online, including unique primary sources, secondary literature, and video clips of world renowned experts. Dr Steven Gray, Lecturer in the History of the Royal Navy, will also be on hand to guide you through the course, as well as provide regular feedback and opportunities to discuss your work. Students will also be welcome to join optional campus based elements in Portsmouth, which will allow students to meet others on the course, participate in seminars, and access the resources, archives, historical artefacts and expertise of the naval museums in Portsmouth. There will also be optional field trips further afield, including abroad, that will further students- understanding of the Royal Navy, and its role in the world. The MA is taught by university specialists in naval history, alongside staff from the National Museum of the Royal Navy and HMS Warrior, expertise, archives and galleries will offered to students at an unprecedented level. This flexible programme of delivery enables participation from students all over the UK and beyond. The course offers opportunities for regular informal feedback on assignments based on each block-s topics, which will include using primary documents, objects, and artworks to explore key questions. Formal assessment will comprise essays, document analysis, and book reviews. Students will be able to utilise the university-s unique access to the collections of Britain-s premier Naval Museum and HMS Warrior in order to complete these assessments. The course also requires a 15,000 word dissertation based on original research, offering students opportunity to explore firsthand the history of the Royal Navy. Student DestinationsThe degree will embed a range of highly desirable transferable skills such a communication, research and writing skills. In addition, the MA affords the student the opportunity to gain invaluable employability skills through internships arranged with the NMRN. Students who hold an MA in Naval History will be equipped for a variety of occupations such as teaching, the civil services, the armed forces, research for strategic studies bodies, and more general post-graduate employment. The MA also provides an ideal foundation for those who would like to embark on a PhD in naval history.