MRes Canadian Studies

We are the only department in the UK to combine American with Canadian Studies. We offer research expertise in race, gender, and sexuality and how these are explored in Canadian literature, film, and culture.

If you already have a clear idea of the area and topic you wish to research as a PhD, then you can effectively lay the groundwork for this by doing a masters by research.

Our particular areas of research specialism include:

Find out more about our research.

You will take 180 credits. This is made up of a selection of taught modules (worth 60 credits), and a 25,000-word research dissertation (worth 120 credits).

You will also attend research training sessions and weekly graduate 'work-in-progress' seminars, led by the research student community. They are an opportunity for everyone to present their ongoing research to their peers, supervisors and invited members of academic staff and research students. You will then receive feedback and support. You will contribute a paper in semester two.

This module involves the selection, research and writing up of a 25,000-word dissertation in the field of American and/or Canadian Studies.

The dissertation is submitted at the end of the year and is marked by both an internal and external examiner. You will agree the topic with your supervisors (usually two co-supervisors). There is the possibility of a viva to confirm the award.

This module is worth 120 credits.

You’ll discover how an arts and humanities masters degree can be used to:

You’ll explore the skills particular to your own discipline and how they can impact on wider issues. This will help your understanding of the function of arts and humanities, and how they can be applied, in wider society. In particular you’ll get greater understanding of what is meant by knowledge exchange and public engagement.

With an emphasis on ‘learning through doing' you’ll collaborate with other masters’ students on consultancy projects, working to solve real-life briefs from a range of cultural industries and schools.

By the end of the module you’ll have:

This module is worth 20 credits.

An introduction to some of the key research skills required to become a more effective researcher and successfully complete your MRes.

You'll also develop a range of transferable professional skills - from writing and presentation to public engagement and project management.

You will also engage with key methdological concepts and debates within the arts and humaniities.

This module runs for one semester and is worth 20 credits.

Develop the practical and intellectual skills required to bring your MRes dissertation to completion.

You'll typically cover:

It is not necessary to do MRes Research Skills 1 to enrol on this module.

This is a full-year module worth 40 credits.

This module examines North American short stories and novels and their film adaptations.

We'll look at the contexts in which both the literary and the cinematic texts are produced as well as to the analysis of the texts themselves.

In particular, the module takes an interest in literary texts whose film adaptations have been produced in different national contexts to the source material.

This is an optional module worth 20 credits.

This module explores representations of sexuality and gender expression in contemporary Canadian and American texts by LGBTQ writers (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual & transgender, two-spirit, queer & questioning).

The module is multi-generic, engaging with forms including:

Topics for discussion will include:

Literature studied will be contextualised in relation to relevant debates in feminist, queer, postcolonial and transnational theories.

Representative authors for study may include:

This is an optional module worth 20 credits.

Reassess the Anglo-American relationship, during an era of major upheaval in both nations.

Spanning from the American Revolution through to the end of the Reconstruction era, you will be challenged to examine how events and ideas forced Britons and Americans to reconceptualize their relationship.

You will engage with concepts that are crucial in the formation of the modern world, including:

This module is worth 20 credits.

This module examines the making of US foreign policy in the post-Cold War period, from the end of the Cold War to the present.

It examines the grand historical narratives of American international relations and considers in depth the drivers behind the foreign policies pursued by Presidents:

It considers whether the post-1989 period has constituted a break from previous traditions in US foreign policy or whether there has been an essential continuity through the war on terror and beyond. It does this through an examination of the impact of economics, geopolitics, ideology and security issues on post-1989 strategy in different regions of the world, as well as the impact of a new international environment marked by the demise of bipolarity and the rise of globalisation.

This is an optional module worth 20 credits.

The department offers:

We also offer a programme of visiting speakers and regular symposia organised by staff and students.

You will be encouraged to organise and attend conferences, act as editors for postgraduate journals, and publish book reviews and articles.

There are regular opportunities to take part in outreach activities, public talks and departmental events. In addition to serving as Departmental Outreach and Engagement Coordinators and Directors of our LGBT and Black History Month programmes, students are given logistical and financial support in order to run their own conferences and organise a week-long research retreat.

You will have two supervisors who are an active part of our established research staff. They will:

View staff profiles for the Department of American and Canadian Studies.