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Country House Studies at University of Buckingham - UCAS

Course options

2024 - 20252025 - 2026
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There are other course options available which may have a different vacancy status or entry requirements – view the full list of options

Open days

14May
Postgraduate Open Evening
Postgraduate

Course summary

The University of Buckingham is:

  • Home of the two-year degree, the University of Buckingham, based in the South East of England, is ranked 6th for Student Satisfaction in the UK (National Student Survey, 2020).
  • We are proudly independent and not-for-profit, and offer courses in Allied Health, Business, Computing, Education, Humanities, Law, Medicine, Psychology and Security and Intelligence. We are one of the few universities in the UK that offer September and January start dates for almost all of our courses.
  • Based in Buckingham on a riverside campus, we are only 20 minutes’ from Milton Keynes central station and a short drive from Bicester, Aylesbury, Banbury and Northampton. There is free parking on-site and we are within easy reach of London and Oxford.
  • Our award-winning small class tutorials ensure every student is known by name and supported throughout their studies, including by dedicated personal tutors.
  • As pioneers of the two-year degree, we offer a condensed version of the traditional three-year degree, meaning you can gain a full honours degree and complete your studies a whole year earlier. Alternatively, you can complete both your undergraduate and master’s degree with us in just three years: saving you time and money.
MA in Country House Studies by research: Hampton Court to ‘Downton Abbey’ The University of Buckingham’s Master’s programme in Country House Studies offers the opportunity to pursue research at Master’s level in any one of a wide range of country-house-related topics, from explorations of individual houses and their architects and decorators, to studies of their social and political use, and the role of the country house in literature and film. Individual research topics are closely focused; but the approach of the course is to encourage students to investigate the interconnections between the country house’s multiple facets and roles, rather than to examine it in exclusively architectural-historical terms. Recent dissertations have surveyed, for example, the Baroque mural in country house decoration; the use of music in the country houses during the 1650s; and the professionalisation of the sale of country estates in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The choice of subject area is ultimately the student’s own. The Master’s degree can be taken either full-time and completed in a single academic year, or taken part-time and extended over two years. Although original research it the prime focus of the programme, there is also a strongly collegial aspect to the course, as all research students meet regularly throughout the year for a series of early-evening seminars by some of the most distinguished scholars working in the history of early-modern England. The seminars are held in the Reform Club in Pall Mall, London, SW1, and provide an opportunity for students to meet and debate with the visiting speaker. Each seminar is followed by a working dinner at which discussion continues. (The full seminar programme is given below.) The MA is awarded solely on the basis of the dissertation (there are no ‘exams’), and the relationship between the student and supervisor is therefore at the heart of the course. The maximum length for the MA dissertation in the School of Humanities is 25,000 words (or approximately 75 pages at line-spacing of 1.5), excluding notes and references. Student and supervisor meet regularly on a one-to-one basis to discuss, plan, and review the dissertation as it develops through the year. The University of Buckingham MA programmes are intended to impart all the skills necessary for the student to work as an independent researcher and writer – skills that are valued by both academic and non-academic employers. But the MA can be undertaken just as fulfillingly as an exercise in the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake, and as a means of exploring areas of enquiry that are of particular interest to the student.

Assessment method

The academic year begins in October with classes on how to undertake archival research, how to plan and structure a dissertation successfully, and on the many online resources that are available to assist in historical research on the Tudor and Stuart periods. Specialist classes are also offered on paleography (the study of historic handwriting) to enable students to read contemporary manuscripts with speed and accuracy. Tutorials and classes will normally take place at the University of Buckingham’s London offices at 51 Gower Street, Bloomsbury, WC1E 6HJ, very close to the British Museum.

Entry requirements

The minimum entry level required for this course is as follows: - a first or upper second-class honours degree from a recognised university or, - a recognised professional qualification with relevant work experience. In cases where candidates are applying on the basis of work experience, they will be asked to attend an interview as part of the application process; in some cases, they may also be asked to produce a short sample of written work. MATURE STUDENTS Age is no barrier to learning and we welcome all applications from suitably qualified students. Due to their flexibility, our London-based MAs by research attract a wide variety of applicants from a range of backgrounds, including people in full-time employment and retirees. Our current students range in age from 21 to 75. INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS We are happy to consider all international applications and if you are an international student, you may find it useful to visit our international pages for details of entry requirements from your home country. The University is a UKVI Student Sponsor. English Levels If English is not your first language, please check our postgraduate English language requirements. If your English levels don’t meet our minimum requirements, you may be interested in applying for our Pre-sessional English Language Foundation Programmes.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

England £10300 Whole course
Northern Ireland £10300 Whole course
Scotland £10300 Whole course
Wales £10300 Whole course
Channel Islands £10300 Whole course
EU £16480 Whole course
International £16480 Whole course
Republic of Ireland £16480 Whole course

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .

Additional fee information

No additional fees or cost information has been supplied for this course, please contact the provider directly.
Country House Studies at University of Buckingham - UCAS