Admission requirements
BA History degree
Description
This yearly seminar consists of 12 bi-weekly meetings in which students reflect on practical matters and will get feedback on their MA thesis. During the first half of the course we will discuss fundamental issues such as professional conduct, ethical dilemmas, the relevance of history for society and the job market. The students will also participate in brainstorm sessions on possible topics for their MA thesis and discuss their thesis proposals. During the second half of the course the students are given the opportunity to present their work-in-progress and to comment on texts produced by others. The first session will be dedicated to the analysis of primary source material, and there will be further sessions to discuss draft versions of introductions, chapters and conclusions. Attendance and active participation in the thesis seminar is compulsory for all students in the MA History.
Course objectives
General learning objectives
The student has acquired:
1) The ability to analyse and evaluate a corpus of sources with a view to addressing a particular historical problem;
2) The ability to analyse and evaluate literature with a view to addressing a particular historical problem;
3) The ability to independently formulate a clear and well-argued research question, taking into account the theory and method of the field and to reduce this question to accessible and manageable sub-questions;
4) The ability to independently set up and carry out an original research project that can make a contribution to existing scholarly debates;
5) The ability to give a clear and well-founded oral and written report on research results in correct English, when required, or Dutch, meeting the criteria of the discipline;
6) The ability to participate in current debates in the specialisation;
7) The ability to integrate knowledge and handle complexity, and formulate judgments with incomplete or limited information, including the ability to reflect on social and ethical responsibilities linked to the application of knowledge and judgments;
8) The ability to reflect on one’s own professional integrity and moral conduct;
9) The ability to provide constructive feedback to and formulate criticism of the work of others and the ability to evaluate the value of such criticism and feedback on one’s own work and incorporate it;
10) Understanding of the relevance for society of the historical discipline in general and the specialisation in particular.
Timetable
The timetable is available on the MA History website
Mode of instruction
Thesis seminar. Students discuss practical matters and are given the opportunity to present their work and to comment on the work of others.
Course Load
ca. 36 hours (part of course load Thesis)
Assessment method
Not applicable
Blackboard
Not applicable
Reading list
Not applicable
Registration
Enrolment through uSis is mandatory.
General information about uSis is available in English and Dutch
Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs
Not applicable
Contact
Remarks
None