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Country House Studies at University of Buckingham - UCAS

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2023 - 20242024 - 2025
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Open days

13Jul
Copy of University of Buckingham - Open Day
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.
  • 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 MA is awarded solely on the basis of the dissertation (there are no ‘exams’), and the relationship between you and your supervisor is therefore at the heart of the course. The maximum length for the MA dissertation recommended by 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.

Assessment method

The MA does not offer systematic instruction in the facts; instead, the emphasis is on independent thought and research. At the heart of the Buckingham MA is the close working relationship between student and supervisor. While the final thesis must be an independent work, it is the supervisor who offers advice on refining the topic (if necessary), on primary sources, on secondary reading, on research techniques and on writing the final text (which should be not less than 25,000 words). Supervisors and students will meet frequently throughout the year, and not less than twice a term; and the supervisor shall always be the student’s primary contact for academic advice and support.

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 may be asked to complete a short written assignment and/or attend an interview as part of the applications process.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

England £9000 Whole course
Northern Ireland £9000 Whole course
Scotland £9000 Whole course
Wales £9000 Whole course
Channel Islands £9000 Whole course
EU £15696 Whole course
International £15696 Whole course
Republic of Ireland £15696 Whole course

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