Admission Requirements
Admission to the Master Archaeology programme.
Description
A compulsory feature of the MA and MSc programmes is the Fieldwork / Internship course, which provides a much-needed practical component to complement the more theoretical aspects of the MA and MSc.
This internship involves a small practical project of 15 working days, exclusively linked to the 1st specialisation of your choice, and can take various forms: fieldwork (excavation or survey), a museum internship, or laboratory/analytical work.
Firstly, you are expected to write a feasible work proposal, which has to be approved and evaluated by the course coordinator before the internship can take place. An important component is the ‘learning by doing and reflecting on what you are doing’ aspect, to gain more practical experience within the chosen field, and allowing a hands-on approach with archaeological materials and data.
However, it is also essential that you learn to make your own decisions, and will critically reflect upon the practical activities, and place these in a wider comparative framework (be it theoretically, methodologically or regionally), as well as contextualise the importance of the activities within your own specialisation, and evaluate how this experience affects your own development in the chosen field. This will be part of the requirements for the written Internship Report.
The available types of internship may vary from year to year; some may be existing projects within the specialisation, some may be external, or involve exchanges with international universities. You can also propose an internship yourself, provided that you can demonstrate this experience will enhance the progress of your own development within your specialisation.
The internship will be set up under supervision of the internship coordinator of your 1st specialisation. He/she will evaluate the Internship Report, consulting the delegate of the institution/project where the internship is carried out, and grade the report.
The practical skills demonstrated will be evaluated in a written assessment form by the work supervisor of the institute where the internship is carried out, but the final mark will be assigned by the internship coordinator.
The necessary internship documents (evaluation forms and guidelines for the report) can be found on BlackBoard (module MA internships/fieldwork 1044ALG01Y-1718ARCH).
The internship comprises:
Work planning (proposal), including:
relevant internship information (project background and aims, internship duration, on-site supervisor/project leader);
your motivation;
aim and research questions of the internship;
relevance, how this internship contributes to your academic or professional development;
reflection: how you will contribute to the internship project.
Internship of min. 3 weeks
Reflective report, referring to the work planning, including:
an evaluation of research context including a literature review and the theoretical framework;
a description of work done during the internship and the results;
a critical discussion of methodology and practice;
a critical personal reflection: evaluation of your own functioning and acquired skills.
Internships per specialisation
For specific details about the internship per specialisation, contact the internship coordinator of your first specialisation:
MA internship Archaeology of the Americas: dr. A.T. Antczak
MA internship Classical and Mediterranean Archaeology: prof. dr. M.J. Versluys
MA internship Archaeology of the Near East: dr. B.S. Düring
MA internship Palaeolithic Archaeology: dr. M.A. Soressi
MA internship Prehistory of Europe: drs. R. Jansen & prof. dr. H. Fokkens
MA internship Roman Provinces, Middle Ages and Modern Period: prof. dr. F.C.W.J. Theuws (until 1,000 AD) & dr. R.M.R. van Oosten (after 1000 AD)
MA internship Museum Studies: dr. S. Mire
MA internship Archaeological Heritage Management: dr. M.H. van den Dries
MA internship Heritage of Indigenous Peoples: dr. G. Llanes Ortiz
MSc internship Material Culture Studies: prof. dr. A.L. van Gijn & dr. P.A.I.H. Degryse
MSc internship Human Osteology: dr. S.A. Schrader
MSc internship Archaeobotany and Archaeozoology: prof. dr. M. van Kolfschoten (zoology) & dr. M.H. Field (botany)
MSc internship Digital Archaeology: dr. C. Piccoli
Course objectives
Experience in practical skills of the chosen specialisation;
Evaluate modern (digital) techniques and instruments;
Ability to write a feasible work plan;
Ability to successfully and independently carry out a practical project related to the 1st specialisation within a limited period of time;
Ability to write a report on the results, describing the activities and reason for them, and critically reflecting on them, both in terms of the specialisation, and in a broader, multidisciplinary context;
Ability to convey information to (non)specialists;
Ability to select relevant literature and use graphical footage to clarify and support argumentation, methods and results;
Ability to reflect how these experiences contributed to one’s academic development.
Mode of instruction
Autonomous work under supervision.
Course load
The course load will be distributed as follows:
Proposal and reflective report (1 ec);
Internship of 3 weeks or 15 working days (4 ec).
Assessment method
Work proposal (10%);
Evaluation of the practical skills (50%);
Written Internship Report (40%).
The Internship Report needs to be handed in within 6 weeks after the end of the internship.