Ancient Philosophy

About

The MA in Ancient Philosophy is principally conceived as a research training programme which aims to build on the skills in independent learning acquired in the course of the student’s first degree and enable them to undertake fully independent research at a higher level. Contact time with tutors for taught modules is typically a total of 5 hours per week (rising to 7 for someone beginning Latin or ancient Greek at this level), with an emphasis on small group teaching, and a structure that maximises the value of this time, and best encourages and focuses the student’s own independent study and preparation. On average, around 2 hours a week of other relevant academic contact (research seminars, dissertation supervision) is also available.

At the heart of the course is a module focused on the range of research methods and resources available to someone working in the field of Classics. This is run as a weekly class, with a mixture of lectures and student-led discussions. Four further elective modules deal with particular specialised subjects. Students must choose one module involving work with a relevant foreign language (ancient or modern), and one dealing directly with research on ancient philosophy. All those offered will form part of the current research activity of the tutor taking the module. Numbers for each module are typically very small (there are rarely more than five in a class). Typically, classes are two hours long and held fortnightly, and discussion is based on student presentations. (Modules for those beginning ancient Latin or Greek are typically more heavily subscribed, but their classes also meet more often: 3 hours per week.) All students write a 15,000-word dissertation, for which they receive an additional five hours of supervisory contact with an expert in their field of interest. 

All staff teaching on the MA are available for consultation by students, and advertise office hours when their presence can be guaranteed. The MA Director acts as academic adviser to MA students, and is available as an additional point of contact, especially for matters concerning academic progress. MA students are strongly encouraged to attend the Department’s two research seminar series. Although not a formal (assessed) part of the MA, we aim to instil the message that engagement with these seminars across a range of subjects is part of the students’ development as researchers and ought to be viewed as essential to their programme. In addition, MA students are welcomed to attend and present at the ‘Junior Work-in-Progress’ seminar series organised by the PhD students in the Department. Finally, the student-run Classics Society regularly organises guest speakers – often very high-profile scholars from outside Durham.

Content

This is a specialist programme geared towards preparing students for higher research in ancient philosophy - partly through direct research training, and partly through modules taught by experts in their field in small-group seminars. Durham has a longstanding tradition of international excellence in the field of ancient philosophy, with several recent doctoral students having gone on to take up academic positions in the UK and abroad. The programme lasts for one year (two years part-time), and centres around a core module on a topic in ancient philosophy.

Other key elements of the course include a core research training module, a 15,000 word dissertation, and one elective module, which is offered in the areas of current research interests of members of staff.

Course Structure

For information on the structure of the course, please view our website.

Core Modules

• Dissertation
• Classical Research Methods and Resources
• Compulsory language module (Latin for research/Ancient Greek for research/another ancient language/modern language)
• Forms After Plato or Ancient Philosophers on Origins or Ancient Philosophers On Necessity, Fate and Free Will. 

Optional Modules

In previous years, optional modules available included:

• Forms After Plato
• Latin Text Seminar
• Greek Text Seminar
• Akkadian
• Latin Love Elegy
• Religious Life in The Roman Near East
• Monumental Architecture of The Roman East
• Vitruvius, On Architecture: The First Treatise On Architecture, Its Significance and Legacy
• Greek Sacred Regulations
• Ancient Philosophers On Necessity, Fate and Free Will
• The Classical Tradition: Art, Literature, Thought
• Comparative Approaches to Homeric Epic
• Greek Text Seminar On Homeric Epic
• Latin Text Seminar On Roman Epic
• Life and Death On Roman Sarcophagi
• Juvenal's Satires in Context
• Ancient Philosophers On Origins
• Animals in Graeco-roman Antiquity
• The Queen of The Desert: Rise and Decline of Palmyra's Civilization
• The Roman Republic: Debates and Approaches.
• Rewriting empire: Eusebius of Caesara and the First Christian History

Not all modules will be offered every year, and new modules (both elective and core) are added regularly. Students may also be substitute modules offered in other departments such as Theology, Philosophy, English, Archaeology, or History

Subject requirements, level and grade

• A good second class honours degree in a relevant subject (typically 2:1 honours) or international equivalent (e.g. USA 3.3 g.p.a.; Greek 6.5 / Lian Kalos).
• Since all postgraduate degrees are meant to build on your undergraduate work, we ask for a previous degree in a 'relevant' subject. For the MA programme in Ancient Philosophy you must have studied this field at the highest level of your undergraduate course.

Preferred Tests:

a. IELTS: 6.5 (no component under 6.0)

b. TOEFL iBT (internet based test): 92 (no component under 23)

c. Cambridge Proficiency (CPE): Grade C

d. Cambridge Advanced (CAE): Grade A

e. Cambridge IGCSE First Language English at Grade C or above [not normally acceptable for students who require a Tier 4 student visa]

f. Cambridge IGCSE English as a Second Language at Grade B or above [not normally acceptable for students who require a Tier 4 student visa]

g. GCSE English Language at grade C or above

h. Pearson Test of English (overall score 62 (with no score less than 56 in each component))

Alternative accepted tests when those listed in a.-h. above are unavailable to the applicant (if the applicant requires a Tier 4 visa to study, advice on the suitability of these alternatives must be sought from the Student Recruitment and Admissions Office):

i. Certificate of Attainment (Edexcel)

j. GCE A-levels (AQA, CIE, Edexcel, CCEA, OCR, WJEC) at grade C or above in an essay based, humanities or social science subject from the following list: History, Philosophy, Government and Politics, English Language, English Literature, Geography, Religious Studies, Economics, Business Studies, Law and Sociology. Modern or Classical Languages are not acceptable in meeting this requirement.

k. International Baccalaureate with a minimum of grade 5 in Standard Level English or a minimum of grade 5 if taken at Higher Level.

l. NEAB (JMB) Test in English (Overseas)

m. Singapore Integrated Programme (SIPCAL) at grade C or above in an essay based, humanities or social science subject from the following list: History, Philosophy, Government and Politics, English Language, English Literature, Geography, Religious Studies, Economics, Business Studies, Law and Sociology. Modern or Classical Languages are not acceptable in meeting this requirement.

n. Singapore Polytechnic Diploma and Advanced Diplomas at GPA 3.0 or above

o. WAEC and NECO Grade B3 or above from Nigeria and Ghana