The MPhil is offered by the Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages as a full-time period of research and introduces students to research skills and specialist knowledge of specific cultural areas.

The course aims

1. to offer students with relevant experience at degree level a self-contained one-year course in which they have the opportunity for in-depth study of specific aspects of European and comparative literatures and cultures (and in some cases film, history and the visual arts) and critical theory;
2. to offer a course which is also designed as the first year of research towards a PhD.

These aims are achieved by

1. offering an overview in central aspects of modern literary/cultural theory and critical approaches in order to develop a general understanding of the field;
2. offering an opportunity for in-depth study of two areas in critical theory and approaches and for developing skills to write on theory and to use theory or palaeographical and bibliographical techniques as a tool in the study of literary or other cultural texts;
3. offering an opportunity for expanding knowledge of the literature and culture of specific periods and language areas beyond undergraduate level;
4. offering an opportunity for in-depth and sustained work on individual essay and thesis topics;
5. offering the opportunity either to specialise in one European language area or to continue work in several languages (in the latter case offering guidance in developing comparative research projects);
6. offering an opportunity to give seminar papers to a specialist audience in order to develop skills in presenting work and discussing the issues which arise from it with other MPhil students and senior members of the Faculty;
7. offering an opportunity to learn to work to tight deadlines (time management);
8. offering practice in writing shorter essays with a strict deadline (4,500 words);
9. offering training in developing a realistic research project, guidance in writing this up as a thesis (14-15,000 words) within a limited period of time and experience in independent research;
10. offering an opportunity to develop bibliographical, editorial and other research skills;
11. offering an opportunity to work under the supervision of specialists in relevant areas;
12. offering the opportunity to participate in the research culture of the Faculty, attending Faculty graduate seminars and reading groups.

In addition to these subject-specific skills, the following general transferable skills are also acquired:

General transferable skills

1. The relatively intense timetable of the MPhil demands that students develop exemplary time-management skills. They work in collaboration with their supervisors to devise appropriate plans of study, and have to ensure that they meet all deadlines, formal and informal.
2. Students are expected to make regular presentations in seminar situations. This develops their oral presentation skills.
3. Written work is assessed on the basis of a demonstration of scholarly research and critical analysis. That is, students are expected to present a lucid, coherent and carefully substantiated exposition of a critical viewpoint. Writing must be in clear, grammatically correct, continuous prose, and must function as a single, comprehensible, persuasive, cumulative demonstration, not as a series of disconnected insights. The organisation of the argument of the essay or thesis, and its prose style, are of crucial importance.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the programme students will have:

1. developed a knowledge of critical theory and an ability to work with theory or specific critical approaches;
2. developed a deeper knowledge of one or more areas of European, Latin American and Comparative Literatures and Cultures and of the critical debates within that (or those) area(s);
3. developed more advanced critical judgement and sensitivity to literary texts;
4. demonstrated advanced skills in literary analysis;
5. developed intellectual and practical research skills;
6. presented their own ideas in a public forum.

Continuing

For those applying to continue from the MPhil to PhD, the minimum academic standard is a distinction on the MPhil.

The ELAC MPhil is a nine-month course that runs from October to June of any given academic year.  It is classified as a research Master's.  Students are expected to submit coursework and a thesis during the year, as follows:

Michaelmas Term: Core Course

During the first term of study, students attend weekly lectures and mini-seminars designed to give them a broad insight into European literature and culture.  At the end of this term, they submit one  essay.  The essay focuses on a specific theoretical framework or critical approach.  Alternatively those following the early modern and medieval pathway may submit a paleography exercise as assessment for this course.  

The Medieval and Early Modern pathway  is aimed at students who wish to specialize in subjects linked to Medieval and/or Early Modern studies. The course offers tailored training to students working in this field, providing theoretical and practical tools to read, understand and work on pre-modern sources. The pathway is a flexible structure that can be adjusted to particular needs and interests offering a wide range of approaches to a variety of texts and historical contexts. This course is particularly suited to students wishing to pursue their graduate studies further and work on a PhD in Medieval and/or Early Modern studies. 

Lent Term: Modules

Students can choose two modules from a range of module options. Some are shared with different MPhils (e.g. Film and Screen Studies) and other Departments and Faculties within the University, such as the Centre of Latin American Studies.  The list of modules can change from year to year depending on the availability of academic staff.

During Lent Term, students attend weekly group seminars led by the module covenor, lasting around 1.5 to 2 hours per week per module.  Two essays are submitted at the end of Lent Term.

Examples of modules that may be offered:

• Modern and Contemporary French and Francophone Culture: Articulations of the Real
• Searching for Happiness
• Inventing History
• The alterity of medieval literature
• Enlightenment and its Critics: from Kant to Foucault
• Memory and Subjectivity in the German Novel
• The Modern City
• Cultures of the Renaissance
• Marginalities in Nineteenth-Century European Culture
• New Commitments: Literature, Cinema and Culture in Italy 1960 - present
• Dante: Medieval and Modern
• Women Writers in Early Modern Italy
• Culture and Society of East Slavic Lands from the Mongol Invasions to the Battle of Poltava
• Literature and Nationalism in Russia and Eastern Europe
• Revolutionising Body and Mind in Early Twentieth-Century Russia
• Al-Andalus and España: Translatio and Tolerance
• Golden Age Literature and Culture: The Baroque Marvel
• Movements and Crossings: Literary History and the Limits of Representation (Iberian module)
• Latin American Literary Culture
• Latin American Film and Visual Arts

Easter Term

During this term, students write a thesis. Theses must, according to the criteria laid down by the Board of Graduate Studies, 'represent a contribution to learning'. Theses must be written in English. The arrangements for their preparation are similar to those for the essays.  Titles are chosen by students, in consultation with module convenors and/or prospective supervisors, and then have to be approved by the Faculty Degree Committee.

Topics and precise thesis titles must be submitted by a specific deadline in Lent Term. Up to this point the Course Director is the titular supervisor of MPhil students, but once the thesis topics are approved, a specialist supervisor is appointed for each student. 

Placements

http://www.clare.cam.ac.uk/Finance-and-Scholarships/

Feedback

Students can expect to receive an online feedback report each term.  Also feedback on the essays and thesis are provided in the form of a written report.

Assessment

Thesis

Students will be asked to submit a thesis of  no more than 15,000 words.  The examiners have the option to conduct an oral examination with the candidate.

Essays

Students will be asked to complete 3 X 4,500 word essays.  The core course essay is substitutable with a paleography exercise for those taking the Early Modern and Medieval pathway.

• Magistr (Master's Degree) at Pass level. Diploma Specialista (completed post-1991) with a minimum overall grade of good or 4/5 Bachelor's from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and other prestigious institutions with an overall grade of 4/5 Bologna Bachelor's from other institutions with an overall grade of 5/5, Excellent
• Diploma Specialista (completed post-1991) with a minimum overall grade of Excellent or 5/5 Bachelor's from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and other prestigious institutions with an overall grade of 5/5
• IELTS (Academic) 7.5
• TOEFL Internet Score 110
• £50 application fee
• First Academic Reference
• Second Academic Reference
• Transcript
• Research Proposal. Outline of proposed MPhil thesis research (max one page)
• Sample of Work. Approx 3000 word writing sample in English
• Personal Reference. This is only required if you are applying for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship.

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