Course information

The MLitt in Environmental History is an interdisciplinary taught postgraduate programme run jointly by the Institute for Environmental History and the Department of Modern History.

Environmental History examines human interaction with the natural world through time, and students will have the opportunity to engage with this intellectually urgent field.

Highlights

• The programme benefits from the expertise of members of the Institute for Environmental History and the Department of Modern History.
• Students explore multiple dimensions of this intellectually significant field of study, while firmly rooting this knowledge in a progressively better understanding of core issues within historiography and methodology.
• Some modules are interdisciplinary and interdepartmental, involving the School of Geography and Geosciences.

Teaching format

Over two semesters, students complete three compulsory modules and one or two optional modules.  

Teaching methods include seminars and fortnightly tutorials. Class sizes range from individual supervision up to 12 students. The modules are assessed principally by coursework.

Students will spend the final three months of the course focusing on researching and writing the final assessment piece for the MLitt, a dissertation of not more than 15,000 words.

Further particulars regarding curriculum development.

Modules

The modules in this programme have varying methods of delivery and assessment. For more details of each module, including weekly contact hours, teaching methods and assessment, please see the latest module catalogue which is for the 2016–2017 academic year; some elements may be subject to change for 2017 entry.

Compulsory modules

Students choose one of:

• History in the Making: Theories, Approaches and Practices (1 and 2): examines the development of history-writing and historical research since the Enlightenment, and the emergence of fields, trends and new approaches in current historiography.
• Global Times – Plural Spaces 1 and Global Times – Plural Spaces 2: offers a strong foundation in the major approaches to comparative and transnational history as well as the emerging field of spatial history.

and one of:

• Disease and Environment (c.1500–2000): examines the manner in which sickness and death have shaped human history, both biologically and culturally, over the past 500 years, focusing primarily upon an Anglo-American context.
• Environmental History: Nature and the Western World (1800–2000): studies environmental history over the past two centuries in an international context.
• Environmental Disasters: Crisis, Catastrophe and Risk in the Modern World (1755 to Present): explores the nature of 'natural' disasters and the social and cultural factors that shaped and framed them.

Optional modules

Depending on credit weighting, students choose one or two optional modules. These can also be from one of the compulsory choices not taken. Optional modules are subject to change each year, and some may only allow limited numbers of students (see the University’s position on curriculum development).

• Directed Reading in Modern History: offers a directed reading project designed to encourage the development of skills of historical analysis through concentrated study of a topic chosen by the student.
• Key Issues in German Historiography: engages with some of the most hotly disputed issues in German history.
• Themes in American History: a selection of the most important issues in the history of North America, from its foundations as European colonies onwards.
• Perceptions of Central and Eastern Europe: an advanced historical study of the transformations in the perception of Central and Eastern Europe since the emergence of modern nationalism in the mid-nineteenth century.
• History of Modern Science: introduces core themes in the history of science from the Scientific Revolution onwards.
• Environmental Management in Scotland: provides geographical instruction on this timely subject (only available in alternate years).
• Skills in Transnational History: leads to the acquisition and development of skills in the digital humanities and skills required for using specific historical sources.

The modules listed ran in the academic year 2016–2017 and are indicative of this course. There is no guarantee that these modules will run for 2017 entry. Take a look at the most up-to-date modules in the module catalogue.

Dissertation

Student dissertations will be supervised by members of the teaching staff who will advise on the choice of subject and provide guidance throughout the research process. The completed dissertation of not more than 15,000 words must be submitted by a date specified in August.

If students choose not to complete the dissertation requirement for the MLitt, there is an exit award available that allows suitably qualified candidates to receive a Postgraduate Diploma. By choosing an exit award, you will finish your degree at the end of the second semester of study and receive a PGDip instead of an MLitt.

Conferences and events

The School of History hosts the Late Modern History Research Seminar Programme, which presents numerous talks and lectures each month. 

Visit the Institute for Environmental History page to learn more about the work and research being done by environmental historians at St Andrews. 

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Admission to the University of St Andrews is governed by our Admissions policy.

Curriculum development

As a research intensive institution, the University ensures that its teaching references the research interests of its staff, which may change from time to time. As a result, programmes are regularly reviewed with the aim of enhancing students' learning experience. Our approach to course revision is described online. (PDF, 72 KB).

Tuition fees

The University will clarify compulsory fees and charges it requires any student to pay at the time of offer. The offer will also clarify conditions for any variation of fees. The University’s approach to fee setting is described online. (PDF, 84 KB).