History

Striving to learn from the lessons of history, and seeking to ensure the same mistakes are not repeated, is an important goal for society. And judging from the familiar economic landscape of the current recession, it appears that we continually fall short of attaining that goal. As such, history postgraduate courses are useful not only in the careers of their participants, but also in boosting the historical awareness of society as a whole.

The history postgraduate options available throughout Ireland encompass a varied mixture of taught and research-based programmes. Indeed, history departments throughout the country tend to offer graduates the chance to pursue additional qualifications using either of these approaches.

For instance, TCD (Trinity College Dublin) offers a wide range of taught and research-based options. There are one-year taught MPhil (Master of Philosophy) degrees in Medieval History, Reformation and Enlightenment Studies, Irish Art History, and Modern Irish History available at the college. In addition, MLitt (Master of Letters) and PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) qualifications can be pursued by research at Trinity’s Department of History. All students taking the research programmes enter on the MLitt register initially, and can apply to transfer to the PhD register after their first year – pending successful completion of agreed work. The MLitt thesis is shorter than that of the PhD, and takes less time to complete.

But what differences are there between the skills one gleans in a research-based programme, and those one might pick up in a taught course? When asked about what participants may learn from the research and taught programmes at Trinity, Dr Hazel Dodge – Director of Postgraduate Teaching and Learning at the college’s School of Histories and Humanities – says: ‘A common distinctive element of the both taught and research programmes is the integration of intensive primary research with a variety of interdisciplinary taught elements, and close dissertation supervision provided by research-active staff. Students have to deal with a broad range of evidence and learn how to interpret it.’
She also adds that students learn to develop an ‘ethical research approach’ and ‘good presentation skills, both oral and written’.
Interestingly, when asked about the specific skills students pick up in the department’s taught courses, Dr Dodge says they are ‘pretty much the same’ as those gleaned via the research programmes. However, she adds: ‘The one difference is that there are more
classroom-based sessions with taught programmes, so, therefore, more direct guidance is given.’

Vincent Comerford, Professor of Modern History at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, believes that the principle skill students can glean through the pursuit of a history postgraduate qualification is an ability to deal with primary sources thoroughly and effectively. He explains: ‘As a history postgraduate, you learn a great deal more about accessing primary sources, and how to handle primary sources. Undergraduates sometimes get their hands on primary sources, but only to a very limited extent. As a postgraduate you will be confronted with primary sources and you will be taught how to assess them.’
For example, Prof Comerford says that students may be taught ‘how to read (primary sources) if they’re in older handwriting that people now are no longer accustomed to’.

NUI Maynooth offers both taught and research-based postgraduate programmes in History. The research stream offers both MLitt and PhD options – again, with students being given the chance to transfer from the former to the latter after one year. The MLitt takes three years to complete, while the PhD takes four.
There are also currently three taught MA (Master of Arts) programmes on offer at the college – in Local History, in Military History and Strategic Studies, and in Historical Archives.

In addition, the college also offers a HDip (Higher Diploma) in Irish History. Interestingly, Prof Comerford believes this one-year programme can provide graduates who are qualified in an area that is not wholly history-based with a gateway into the field. The HDip is open to people who have a BA in History, or a degree with significant historical content.
Prof Comerford explains: ‘This programme is very often taken by people who are changing from other disciplines – another subject – into history. It enables them to acquire the necessary skills, and also to get a sense of whether they really want to do this or not.’

There are a number of other history postgraduate options available throughout Ireland. For instance, NUI Galway offers an MA in History that is pursued in a full-time basis for one year. Students can also opt to take a History MLitt at the college – which is a research-based MA, taken by major thesis.

UL (University of Limerick) also offers a one-year taught MA, which is pursued on a full-time basis. Candidates must have an honours primary degree, in which history is a constituent subject. There are also research-based options available at the college.

But what career options do postgraduate qualifications in history open up? Dr Hazel Dodge says that some postgraduates continue on in academia – ‘although not necessarily as college level lecturers’ – while others work in museums and archives.
She adds: ‘Some use their postgraduate degree simply as a qualification and go into other types of career – law, banking, etc – just as some undergraduates do.’

On the same subject, Prof Comerford ventures: ‘A lot of our PhDs now actually get work in centres, institutes or just fixed-term projects as research fellows and project fellows. A certain proportion – maybe up to 25 per cent – can aspire to getting regular academic positions in colleges, but certainly much larger numbers are getting research-related posts of one kind or another. People with qualifications in history, including MAs and PhDs, do well in all walks of life, really.’
So, a history postgraduate qualification can be a major plus in the hunt for employment – regardless of whether the targeted role is in an unrelated field.