The Arts MRes allows you to undertake a one year full-time or two year part-time research project in one or more of the School of the Arts’ key subject areas: Architecture, Communication and Media, English, Music and Philosophy. You will receive training in research skills and supervision from one or more academic specialists in their subject area(s). The programme provides excellent preparation for you if you’re intending to undertake a PhD in the Arts and Humanities, but is also a good choice if you wish to pursue a research project for purposes of professional development or personal interest. You will become part of a community of active researchers and will be encouraged to pursue your own research interests in collaboration with an academic supervisor.

Student career development is a major interest for the department and we actively encourage students to integrate career planning into their academic studies. This is promoted through individual modules which have strong policy and career relevant aspects, and a close relationship with the University’s excellent Careers Service who provide bespoke sessions for students. The MRes Arts may enhance the career prospects of those working or wishing to work in fields associated with the study of Arts subjects or other areas of academic work and study, including teachers, librarians, and professional writers. While managerial positions often require the ability to conduct research or project-work and to demonstrate sustained and complex organisational skills in ways encompassed by this programme, its emphasis on oral and written communication skills as well as on IT-based presentation skills will be useful for many types of employment. Some students may want to take this course for its own sake and for the sake of personal development and the revitalization of subject awareness. Equally, the MRes is designed to prepare students too for further research at MPhil or PhD level, and to enable them to enter postgraduate study, thus offering a first step towards a career in academic teaching and research. The advanced study of one or more Arts subject on this programme equips students with powers of fine discrimination and judgement that will set them apart in workplaces of many kinds. The skills it fosters are those which enable graduates to deal logically with the complex demands of a whole range of careers. These skills include: the ability to process large amounts of information the ability to organise disparate material into a coherent argument the capacity to compare many different views and come to a decision about the merits of each the independence to define a complex project and bring it to completion with minimal input. imaginative and creative responsiveness to problems powers of expression (both written and oral) which allow for the lucid delineation of nuanced ideas. Such skills are essential for those considering careers in, for example, journalism, publishing, management, and the law. Graduates have gone on to work in a wide variety of professions. Alumni of SotA Master's degrees include lecturers, communication specialists, broadcasters, writers, teachers, librarians, public relations managers and publishers. MRes Arts students will have access to the University's Careers and Employability Service and to careers events at both School and University level. Supervisors and other academic staff will be able to provide guidance and support to students intending to progress to doctoral study and academic careers.