MA Welsh (Cymraeg)

About This Course

It is entirely possible to study with us through the medium of English or Welsh.

Our MA in Welsh is a long-established and successful course which combines a practical grounding in postgraduate and research training with the opportunity to concentrate on a specific and chosen field of study. Whilst maintaining its own distinct identity, the MA course is also a means of laying foundations for a subsequent PhD project in terms of training provision and thematic context.

This course is tailor made to suit the individual’s needs and interests and include a full academic year of full-time study. During that academic year the student, under the School’s supervision, will produce essay work on a regular basis. Before the end of the calendar year, the student is asked to produce a dissertation of up to 20,000 words. Recent successful MA dissertations have included work on writers such as Aled Islwyn, R. Gerallt Jones, Meic Povey and Martin Davies; others have been thematic studies, e.g. women in the works of Kate Roberts; still others have been more strictly philological, such as a recent edition of an Interlude by Twm o’r Nant.

Course Content

What will you study on this course?

You study for an MA in Welsh by the traditional route of essay and dissertation. The first part comprises three course essays (3 x 4,000-6,000 words) which should display a solid grasp of the broad outlines of your chosen field of study; the second part is the dissertation (20,000 words) comprising original research based in part on primary material. During Semester 1 you will also follow an induction course on research methodology in the field of Welsh.

The great strength of our MA course is its flexibility and the fact that it allows a free choice of topics within the broad parameters of the discipline. If you are primarily interested in medieval Welsh literature – the Gododdin, the Mabinogion, or Dafydd ap Gwilym, for example – your course will be structured and tailored accordingly and you will have a dedicated course supervisor, who will be an expert in your chosen field of study. If, on the other hand, you wish to undertake a study of modern Welsh literature and culture, or aspects relating to the language itself, we will be able to accommodate your academic interests. We also warmly welcome students who wish to embark on a structured Welsh MA course which may be comparative in nature, linking the study of Welsh with areas such as English literature, medieval studies, European languages, language revitalization, Arthurian studies, history, religion, philosophy, gender studies, political theory and nationalism.

Careers

Wales is a bilingual country in which English and Welsh are legally recognised as official languages. In fields as varied as education, language planning, media and journalism, the civil service, the heritage industry, public relations and marketing there is a great demand for graduates who have competence in Welsh and an ability to work in a bilingual environment.

You will acquire a wide range of transferrable skills, enabling you to proceed to a variety of career paths, including all those normally associated with graduates in the Humanities. Those who wish to pursue academic interests will gain a sound basis to enable progress to PhD level.