Programme details
This online programme allows students to study at a time and place which suits them and their busy lives.
The programme will develop the historical curiosity which for many arises from landscape.
It will:
- explore the long-term material and environmental changes of the landscape
- provide knowledge about key sources and methodologies for the exploration of the material and cultural analysis of the history of landscape
- enable students to relate specific local and regional interests to a world wide literature on the nature of landscape and the practice of landscape studies.
The programme will stimulate student interest through its the innovative mode of delivery — online learning.
Students will acquire research skills appropriate to a wide range of local and regional conditions together with the ability to exploit high quality web-based resources in a critical and scholarly manner. They will acquire to skills necessary to devise, plan and produce scholarly work.
Course materials - delivered within a consistent template so students quickly become familiar with the format
Structure
The programme is undertaken part-time over 24 months of study and is based on 180 credit points. Six first-year courses, each of 10 credits, are split between subject-based topics and those which focus on research training and skills. Three second-year courses, each of 20 credits, are more specialised and can be chosen from a set of options. The remaining 60 credits are based on a dissertation on a topic selected in conjunction with advice from your supervisor.
Individual components can also be taken in conjunction with conventional face-to-face classes. This on-line format is particularly advantageous for those students who are part-time and/or have work and domestic commitments. You might wish to take a combination of on-line courses and classroom based courses.
Assessment and workload
Each course is made up of online study sessions which have been designed to help break up your study according to the time you have available. Sessions are delivered within a consistent template which should become quickly familiar.
Courses contain both assignments and exercises. Exercises are a way of allowing you to decide for yourself whether you understand the elements of each of course. Exercises are accumulated in a research diary blog, and although they are shared and commented upon by the course tutor, they are not assessed.
Assignments are assessed, and there are generally two per course: a shorter one midway through and a longer piece of work one at the end of the course. Shorter assignments generally vary in nature — reports or commentaries which require a descriptive approach with observations attached. The more traditional essay writing assignments show how to build an argument and provide a critical evaluation of the material. Illustrations, historical materials, and audio or video files can also be included in some assignments and the dissertation.
Courses that may be available
| Course | Core / Optional | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction - Why Study Landscapes and Environments? | Core | 10 |
| Historical Sources in the Digital Age | Core | 10 |
| Academic Practice and Methods | Core | 10 |
| Landscape and Environment - Diverse Approaches | Core | 10 |
| Urban Environments | Core | 10 |
| Time, Space, Settlement | Core | 10 |
| Course | Core / Optional | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Sources and Methods of Historical Analysis | Core | 10 |
| Research Design: Dissertation | Core | 10 |
And TWO of the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Environmental Economics | 20 |
| Re-inventing the Urban: Townscapes and Environments in the Twentieth Century | 20 |
| The Built Heritage and the Landscape of Conservation | 20 |
Dissertation
This programme requires the student to complete a dissertation (60 credits).
Possible dissertation topics
As this is an online programme, and students can be studying in any part of the world, dissertation topics, like many of the course assignments, are closely related to each student’s locality. Each student customises a topic in consultation with their supervisor so that they can exploit historical and environmental issues that which can be resourced easily from their own area.
Transferable skills
In addition to specialist skills students on the programme will also gain numerous transferable skills including:
- ability to digest and evaluate information
- ability to produce reports and evidence based arguments to a deadline
- awareness of contemporary issues
- a very good grasp of information gathering skills based on web-based resources and electronic reference materials
- an ability to integrate texts, maps, and images to a high standard suited to employers’ needs.
This article was published on Nov 22, 2011