Entry requirements

Academic requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university. The main field of study must be within the humanities or social sciences.

Also required is 60 credits in historical studies.

Language requirements

Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries. Detailed instructions on how to provide evidence of your English proficiency are available at universityadmissions.se.

Aims

The aim of the Master’s programme in Early Modern History is to give the students a systematic understanding of early modern history in a global perspective and to give them the ability to independently formulate and solve scholarly relevant problems within the field of early modern history, and to be able to assess critically the work of others.

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the programme a student will be able to

• independently and critically identify and analyse problems that are of central importance to the field of Early Modern history
• demonstrate in-depth knowledge of the Early Modern period
• use theories and methods currently accepted within the discipline that are relevant to the research question at hand
• independently plan, manage and carry out advanced and complex research within a given scope and timeframe
• systematically examine and interrogate historical source material in terms of plausibility and evidentiary value and also analyse this material in light of relevant historical context
• independently describe and discuss, in keeping with current academic standards, research findings including clear justification of topical and methodological choices and concluding argumentation
• make judgments on relevant scholarly, societal, and ethical aspects and show an awareness of ethical aspects in historical research
• use a critical approach in working with historical sources and historical accounts.

Layout of the programme

During the first semester, the students take two compulsory courses in Early Modern history, one course in historical theory and one course in historical methods. During the second semester, the students take three compulsory courses in Early Modern history and start working on their thesis. Students that will end the programme after one year spend the entire second semester working on their thesis. During the third semester, the students take three elective courses and continue working on their thesis. The fourth semester consists entirely of thesis writing. During the course of the programme, students can also choose to do an internship or participate in a student exchange programme.

Instruction

The specific forms of teaching and assessment vary across courses within the programme. Generally, teaching takes the form of lectures, seminars, and thesis supervision. Assessment is usually based on individual oral and written work. Requirements for class participation vary across courses. Students are expected to take greater responsibility for their learning as the programme progresses and the thesis should reflect the students’ ability to critically, independently, and creatively formulate and solve problems based on knowledge and skills acquired from the programme’s courses. The language of instruction is English.

Degree

The programme leads to a degree of Master of Arts (120 credits) with History as the main field of study. The two-year Master's degree requires 120 credits with at least 60 credits being in History, including the Master’s thesis of 45 credits. After one year of study it is also possible to get a degree of Masters of Arts (60 credits) with History as the main field of study, with at least 30 credits being in History, including a Master’s thesis of 30 credits.