Advanced Local History

Description

Students taking the Advanced Diploma come from a wide variety of backgrounds; they may live in any part of Britain, or worldwide; and they can be of any age. What all have in common is an enthusiasm for local history and a commitment to learning, and the variety of student experience provides a lively and stimulating study environment.

Students get the opportunity, with the help of their tutor, to produce their own piece of local historical research, and some of these have been developed into articles for scholarly journals.

Course aims

The aims of the Advanced Diploma in Local History via the Internet are:

• to provide an understanding of the nature of local history and of its relationship to other branches of historical studies
• to develop an awareness of, and a critical approach to, a wide range of historical evidence
• to provide and develop the skills needed for historical research, especially the manipulation of large amounts of information using databases
• to teach you to use what you have learned to produce good, scholarly historical writing.

Study format

All the course material will be provided on the course website. In addition to the course units it will include readings, documents, spreadsheets and database files. You will also have access to a wide range of electronic resources online. A reading list of recommended books will be sent to you well in advance.

The units will be published on the course website and studied in sequence. Normally you will have two weeks to study each unit, and within this framework you will be free to study in your own time and at your own pace. Details of the course timetable will be provided on enrolment. Your study of each unit will be guided by the Internet material and will involve a mixture of downloading and studying selected passages from historical sources, exploring wider reading online or in a library, doing self-study exercises with spreadsheets and databases, and participating in online discussion with your tutor and fellow students. You must also complete your assignments and submit them via the course website for assessment by the dates stipulated.

Detailed Course Facts

Application deadline July Tuition fee

• GBP 2235 Year (EEA)
• GBP 3820 Year (Non-EEA)

Start date September 2015 Credits 60 credits
Duration full-time 9 months Languages Take an IELTS test

• English

Delivery mode Online Educational variant Part-time Intensity Flexible Part-time variant Flexible Structure Fully structured Student interaction Online group works/assignments Attendance No Attendance Teacher support Continuous support with feedback on request More information Go To The Course Website

Course Content

Course syllabus

The course begins with a short preparatory unit, available from 09 September 2014, to familiarise you with study and discussion online. Module 1 begins in late September 2014 and Module 2 in March 2015.

Module 1: Concepts and Methods of Local History

This module will comprise eight units, making extensive use of original sources and case studies. There will be four written assignments, giving students an opportunity to practise historical skills and to write some local history. The units cover approaches to local history, finding primary and secondary sources, the critical use of evidence, personal testimony as a source, a practical guide to statistics and the use of Excel, record linkage, and effective writing and publication.

Module 2: Databases for Historians

The second module consists of six units and uses data sets for two contrasting communities, the Lancashire port of Liverpool 1650-1750 and the Oxfordshire market town of Woodstock in the 17th century. There will be one written assignment and a final project comprising a longer piece of historical writing using data analysis. Students will explore a database already created in order to practise different methods of querying, then move on to learn how to design, create and use their own database for the analysis of historical data. Two further units introduce some of the exciting ways in which historians are now using databases, with up-to-date examples.

English Language Requirements

IELTS band : 7 TOEFL paper-based test score : 600 TOEFL iBT® test : 100

To study at this university, you have to speak English. We advice you to

take an IELTS test.

Requirements

There are no formal entry qualifications for the Advanced Diploma in Local History but you should have some experience of local history at undergraduate level or its equivalent. This might have been gained through taking a course, or through research into family or local history using sources in libraries and record offices, for example.

Work Experience

No work experience is required.

Technological Requirements

Applicants should be familiar with the use of computers for purposes such as word-processing, using e-mail and searching the Internet. It is also essential to have some experience of Access or another database program before starting the Advanced Diploma. Short introductory courses are often available locally.

Related Scholarships*

• Academic Excellence Scholarship

  "The Academic Excellence Scholarship can provide up to a 50 % reduction in tuition per semester. These scholarships will be renewed if the student maintains superior academic performance during each semester of their 3-year Bachelor programme. The scholarship will be directly applied to the student’s tuition fees."

• Access Bursary

  Bursary for UK students all subjects where the variable tuition fee rate is payable.

• Alumni Bursary

  Alumni Bursary for UK Undergraduate students

* The scholarships shown on this page are suggestions first and foremost. They could be offered by other organisations than University of Oxford.

Funding

Sources of funding

Student Loans for students on Undergraduate Award Bearing Courses, including the Certificate of Higher Education

Students on Undergraduate Award Bearing courses who do not have an undergraduate degree are eligible to apply for a non means-tested student loan for all or part of their fees. If you apply for a student loan for all or part of your fees you may still apply for a Departmental bursary if you are on a low income (see below).

Departmental bursaries for those on Award Bearing Courses

If you are on a low income or certain income-related benefits you may be eligible to apply for a Departmental bursary, whether you have an undergraduate degree or not, and whether or not you also apply for a student loan.

Access to Learning Fund for those on Award Bearing Courses

The government provides the University with funds to help students on very low incomes with childcare and course costs. Access to Learning Fund grants cannot be used for paying tuition fees.

International Students

We advise international students to contact their local British Council, who can advise on studying in the UK. If you are on a Postgraduate Certificate or Diploma course you may find funding opportunities on the Oxford Fees, Funding, and Scholarship Search.

US Loans

Students applying for US loans should contact the US Loans team via their website.

Disabled Students' Allowance for students on Award Bearing, Masters and DPhil programmes

This is a non means-tested allowance aimed at helping people with a disability or learning difficulty (e.g. dyslexia) to study on the same basis as other students.

Professional and Career Development Loans

If you are taking a course in order to develop your career, it may be worth considering a Professional and Career Development Loan. You may qualify if you are taking a postgraduate course or a second Bachelors' degree.

Accreditation

Facts and figures

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