About this course
Explore postcolonialism and world literature with a master’s degree at the University of Southampton.
Our course gives you the chance to specialise in postcolonial and world literary culture, covering topics such as:
- legacies of colonialism and imperialism
- aftermath of decolonisation
- relationship between gender and nationalism
- fault lines in postcolonial national narratives
On completion of the course, you’ll be ready for a career in teaching, librarianship, museums and galleries, publishing or heritage.
You’ll get the chance to carry out advanced research and independent critical thinking, and to make effective use of archives, manuscripts, and research libraries.
This pathway is linked to the Southampton Centre for Imperial and Postcolonial Studies. This group brings together academics, writers and research students to explore the practices, experiences and legacies of imperial power in a global setting, from the early-modern period to the present. The centre also hosts events including seminars, workshops and conferences.
We offer a flexible module structure which is designed to give you an advanced understanding of cultural analysis, textual interpretation and theoretical method.
You’ll explore the interrelations of text, theory and culture across the field of English literary and cultural studies. We’ll work with you to:
- develop your knowledge of critical and research methods
- raise your awareness of the historical and critical reception of literature in various periods
- explore the role of literature in a contested cultural framework
Flexible study
If you prefer, you can apply to study this course as:
- a part-time master's - study the same course content over 2 or more years
Your modules and fees may vary if you choose a different study option.
We regularly review our courses to ensure and improve quality. This course may be revised as a result of this. Any revision will be balanced against the requirement that the student should receive the educational service expected. Find out why, when, and how we might make changes.
Our courses are regulated in England by the Office for Students (OfS).
Course lead
Your course leader is Kevin Brazil, Associate Professor of English Literature. Kevin has published widely on contemporary literature, visual art, and queer writing. Visit Professor Brazil's staff profile to learn more about his work.
Related pathways
We offer 3 other specialist pathways on our MA English Literary Studies degree:
If you'd prefer a more general approach you can choose individual modules from each pathway.
Learn more about this subject area
Course location
This course is based at Avenue.
Awarding body
This qualification is awarded by the University of Southampton.
Download the Course Description Document
The Course Description Document details your course overview, your course structure and how your course is taught and assessed.
Entry requirements
You'll need a 2:1 degree in English literature or a related subject.
Find the equivalent international qualifications for your country.
You will also need to provide a sample of written work for assessment. The sample should be approximately 2,500 words in length.
English language requirements
If English isn't your first language, you'll need to complete an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) to demonstrate your competence in English. You'll need all of the following scores as a minimum:
IELTS score requirements
- overall score
- 6.5
- reading
- 6.5
- writing
- 6.5
- speaking
- 6.0
- listening
- 6.0
We accept other English language tests. Find out which English language tests we accept.
Pre-masters
If you don’t meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.
If you don’t meet the academic requirements, you can complete a pre-master's programme through our partnership with ONCAMPUS. Learn more about the programmes available.
Got a question?
Please contact us if you're not sure you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000
Course structure
This is a full-time master’s course. You’ll study for 12 months, from September to the following September.
In the first 9 months (semesters 1 and 2) you’ll study the taught part of your course.
This is made up of modules that everyone on the course takes, and modules we’ll ask you to choose from a list of options. We’ll also begin preparing you for your independent research project and dissertation.
For the last 3 months, over the summer, you’ll work independently to research and write your dissertation. You’ll have one-to-one meetings with your supervisor during this time to discuss your progress.
Want more detail? See all the modules in the course.
Modules
The modules outlined provide examples of what you can expect to learn on this degree course based on recent academic teaching. As a research-led University, we undertake a continuous review of our course to ensure quality enhancement and to manage our resources. The precise modules available to you in future years may vary depending on staff availability and research interests, new topics of study, timetabling and student demand. Find out why, when and how we might make changes.
Year 1 modules
You must study the following modules :
Adventures in Literary Research
Adventures in Literary Research will provide you with the advanced knowledge and skills you need to be a successful researcher and scholar in the field of literary studies. You will learn about the methodologies of theory and criticism, book history, text...
English Dissertation
This module allows you to undertake independent research, with guidance from a supervisor, to produce an in-depth, scholarly study of an aspect or body of literature which particularly interests you. Every student will have a supervisor appointed for t...
You must also choose from the following modules :
Approaches to Shakespeare, Past and Present
This module approaches Shakespeare from a number of perspectives. It thinks about Shakespeare now: how his plays continue to be performed and adapted, on stage and for the screen, in the UK and abroad, and about how Shakespeare is continually being reinve...
Approaches to the Long Eighteenth Century
The core course for the MA, convened on a multidisciplinary basis, and taught by all those contributing to the MA in a given year, will introduce students to the key theoretical, historiographical and conceptual debates surrounding the study of the long e...
Approaches to the Long Nineteenth Century (1789-1914)
This core module for the MA English Literary Studies (Nineteenth-Century) pathway, taught by all those contributing to the pathway in a given year, will introduce students to the key critical, theoretical, historiographical and conceptual debates surround...
Approaches to the Long Twentieth Century (1914-Present)
This core module for the MA English Literary Studies (Twentieth-Century) pathway, taught by all those contributing to the pathway in a given year, will introduce students to the key critical, theoretical, historiographical and conceptual debates surroundi...
Digital Forms
This module explores the relationship between digital culture and contemporary fiction. It gives you the opportunity to critically examine how the digital world in which you may, or may not, interact with everyday appears in both online and offline litera...
Literary Industries and New Media
The global industries shaping contemporary literary cultures are diverse, dynamic and rapidly changing. They incorporate children’s literature, graphic novels, plays and poetry, site-specific and experimental writing, popular genre fiction, as well as the...
Memory in National and Transnational Contexts
Whether in the form of monuments, stories or rituals a desire to remember seems to be everywhere in most if not all contemporary nation states. In some respect this has been fuelled by the continually evolving international situation, which has posed a se...
Narrative Non-Fiction: From Literary Journalism to Memoir
Writing is inherently an interdisciplinary art. From novelists to poets to narrative non-fiction writers, writers tend to delve into fields that are not their own. Ian McEwan shadows neurologists for several years as he was researching Saturday; Hilary Ma...
Nation, Culture, Power
This module offers an in-depth exploration of three concepts that have shaped the modern world: nation, culture, and power. Drawing on staff expertise in cultural and critical theory, the module will investigate the key questions that worldwide thinkers a...
Scriptwriting
This module is an introduction to the basic skills and contexts of script writing. It is not aimed at any one specific medium but will offer introductions to the requirements of theatre and film. You will be expected to engage in some practical drama work...
Special Project
The Special Project module will allow you to produce a written assignment or equivalent on a topic of your choice, undertaking independent research with individual guidance and supervision sessions with your tutor. Meetings will be focused on readings s...
Special Project (Text, Context, Intertext)
The Special Project module will allow you to produce a written assignment or equivalent on a topic of your choice, undertaking independent research with individual guidance from the convenor. The number of supervisions you have will depend on the size of...
Special Project (Text, Context, Intertext)
The Special Project (Text, Context, Intertext) module will allow you to write a written assignment or equivalent on a topic of your choice, undertaking independent research with individual guidance from the convenor. You will normally have three one-to-o...
Special Project (Text, Culture, Theory)
The Special Project (Text, Culture, Theory) module will allow you to produce a written assignment or equivalent on a topic of your choice, undertaking independent research with individual guidance from the convenor. The number of supervisions you have wi...
The Art and Craft of Fiction
This module offers advanced training in the writing of fiction, and does so in a wider international context than the usual selection of UK and possibly US texts allows. Instead of basing our examples of good practice only in British and American fiction,...
Themes in American History
This module draws upon the expertise of three US historians to explore different dimensions of the American past, from the founding of the republic forward. This year, we will be focusing on the theme: ‘The other among us: conspiracies, cults and counterr...
Themes in Imperial History
This module will provide students with an opportunity to explore some key themes in imperial history, with a likely focus on the history and historiography of the British Empire. Topics may be drawn from any period in imperial history, from the beginnings...
Themes in Jewish History
This module offers an overview of the development of Jewish/non-Jewish relations from antiquity to the post-Holocaust era. We will explore change and continuity in the nature of responses towards Jews, and the creation of Jewish identities in relation to ...
Themes in Modern British History
Historians have become interested in ‘ordinary people’ in recent years. Why? This module explores this question through looking at case-studies of women’s, men’s and children’s histories in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Britain, and at varieties of ‘o...
Themes in Modern European History
This module offers an extended exploration of the question: what is European history, and how do we go about writing it? It explores how the development of the discipline, and indeed the field, has trained us to see (and not to see) certain histories in...
Themes in the Long Eighteenth Century
Beginning with the Restoration and ending with the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars this module will trace key themes in the development of society and culture cross the long eighteenth century. We will consider a key primary source for each topic as a ...
Writing for Children and Young People
This module covers the essential elements of writing for children and young people. It is a practical module that will look at a range of texts from picture books to novels for teenagers. It will cover the essential elements of writing quality fiction and...
Learning and assessment
Learning
We’re committed to giving you a relevant, modern and above all enjoyable experience that will ensure you graduate with the skills and understanding you need for your chosen career or further research. Our module leaders are experts in their chosen fields and will engage you with their own experiences of research. Their teaching methods will challenge you intellectually and expose you to new ideas, approaches and perspectives.
The learning activities for this course include:
- small seminar groups
- student-led debates
- group work
- oral presentations
- individual consultation
We also offer additional opportunities such as exploring a unique collection of early women's writing at Chawton House Library, visiting a 19th-Century handpress printing workshop, and the chance to hear from visiting speakers from international universities.
A large part of postgraduate study is independent learning. This course will develop your critical awareness, encouraging you to reflect on the methodologies employed in further study and to apply these to your reading and research. Subject to availability, you may choose to take 2 special projects in an area of departmental expertise.
Assessment
Depending on the modules you choose, we’ll assess you through a combination of:
- essays
- group presentations
- independent research project and dissertation
Dissertation
You’ll complete independent research, with guidance from a supervisor, to produce an in-depth, scholarly study of an aspect or body of literature which interests you. The 15,000-word dissertation is your chance to demonstrate the knowledge and skills you have developed throughout the course.
Academic Support
You’ll have access to:
- sample anonymised dissertations from previous years
- research seminars and visiting lectures
- general guidance and support from your Personal Academic Tutor
- dissertation guidance from your supervisor
Careers
A master's in postcolonial and world literature is excellent preparation for a career in teaching, publishing and arts administration. Our graduates go on to careers in:
- writing (from journalism to fiction)
- education
- international PhD programmes
- teaching
- broadcasting
- creative industries
Careers services at Southampton
We're a top 20 UK university for employability (QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2022). Our Careers, Employability and Student Enterprise team will support you throughout your time as a student and for up to 5 years after graduation. This support includes:
- work experience schemes
- CV/resume and interview skills workshops
- networking events
- careers fairs attended by top employers
- a wealth of volunteering opportunities
- study abroad and summer school opportunities
We have a thriving entrepreneurship culture. You'll be able to take advantage of:
- our dedicated start-up incubator, Futureworlds
- a wide variety of enterprise events run throughout the year
- our partnership in the world’s number 1 business incubator, SETsquared
Fees, costs and funding
Tuition fees
Fees for a year's study:
- UK students pay £9,250.
- EU and international students pay £24,200.
Deposit
If you're an international student on a full-time course, we'll ask you to pay £2,000 of your tuition fees in advance, as a deposit.
Your offer letter will tell you when this should be paid and provide full terms and conditions.
Find out about exemptions, refunds and how to pay your deposit on our tuition fees for overseas students page.
What your fees pay for
Your tuition fee covers the full cost of tuition and any exams. The fee you pay will remain the same each year from when you start studying this course. This includes if you suspend and return.
Find out how to pay your tuition fees.
Accommodation and living costs, such as travel and food, are not included in your tuition fees. There may also be extra costs for retake and professional exams.
Explore:
10% alumni discount
If you’re a graduate of the University of Southampton, you could be eligible for a 10% discount on your postgraduate tuition fees.
Postgraduate Master’s Loans (UK nationals only)
This can help with course fees and living costs while you study a postgraduate master's course. Find out if you're eligible.
Southampton Humanities Postgraduate Global Talent Scholarship
Twenty scholarships of £5,000 are available to international students joining our postgraduate master’s courses at the School of Humanities in September 2023.
Find out more about the Southampton Humanities Postgraduate Global Talent Scholarship, including eligibility, deadlines and how to apply.
Southampton Arts and Humanities Deans Global Talent Scholarship
Ten scholarships of £10,000 each are available to international students studying for an undergraduate degree or a postgraduate master’s degree in Arts and Humanities.
Find out more about the Southampton Arts and Humanities Deans Global Talent Scholarship, including eligibility, deadlines and how to apply.
Other postgraduate funding options
A variety of additional funding options may be available to help you pay for your master’s study. Both from the University and other organisations.
Funding for EU and international students
Find out about funding you could get as an international student.
How to apply
- Use the 'apply for this course' button on this page to take you to our online application form.
- Search for the course you want to apply for.
- Complete the application form and upload any supporting documents.
- Submit your application.
For further details, read our step by step guide to postgraduate taught applications.
Application deadlines
- Applicants permanently resident in China: Closed on Wednesday 29 November 2023, midday UK time
- Applicants permanently resident in other countries: Monday 29 July 2024, midday UK time
- Applicants permanently resident in the UK: Friday 30 August 2024, midday UK time
Application assessment fee
We’ll ask you to pay a £50 application assessment fee if you’re applying for a postgraduate taught course.
This is an extra one-off charge which is separate to your tuition fees and is payable per application. It covers the work and time it takes us to assess your application. You’ll be prompted to pay when you submit your application which won’t progress until you've paid.
If you're a current or former University of Southampton student, or if you’re applying for certain scholarships, you will not need to pay the fee. PGCE applications through GOV.UK and Master of Research (MRes) degree applications are also exempt. Find out if you’re exempt on our terms and conditions page.
Supporting information
When you apply you’ll need to submit a personal statement explaining why you want to take the course.
You’ll need to include information about:
- your knowledge of the subject area
- why you want to study a postgraduate qualification in this course
- how you intend to use your qualification
You'll also need to submit two academic references.
Please include the required paperwork showing your first degree and your IELTS English language test score (if you are a non-native English speaker) with your application. Without these, your application may be delayed.
You may also be asked to provide:
- a sample of written work
What happens after you apply
You'll be able to track your application through our online Applicant Record System.
We receive a high volume of applications for this course. This means you may not receive a response to your application for up to 12 weeks.
Unfortunately, due to number of applications we receive, we may not be able to give you specific feedback on your application if you are unsuccessful.
We may invite you to an interview, which will take place by phone if you live abroad. You'll get an email from the admissions tutor if we'd like to talk to you before offering you a place.
Equality and diversity
We treat and select everyone in line with our Equality and Diversity Statement.
Got a question?
Please contact us if you're not sure you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000