Cultural Heritage, _MSc

This course, which is prescribed for all taught postgraduate students, is studied entirely online, takes approximately 5-6 hours to complete and can be taken in one sitting, or spread across a number of weeks.

Topics include orientation overview, equality and diversity, health, safety and cyber security and how to make the most of your time at university in relation to careers and employability.

Successful completion of this course will be recorded on your Enhanced Transcript as ‘Achieved’.

30 Credit Points

This course introduces students to the basic tenets of cultural heritage management at national and international level. Through the interdisciplinary lens of heritage studies, you will learn about the different political, social and economic meanings of heritage. Specific focus is placed on archaeological heritage, how its significance and stewardship has changed over time, and what policies and practices inform its management today. You will also learn about key challenges facing the sector.

30 Credit Points

Museums worldwide are grappling with the complex legacies of colonialism that have shaped collections, institutional practices, and museum relationships with their users. This course introduces students to current debates regarding how - and if - the museum can fully decolonise. It also gives them a grounding in the historical, social, and institutional contexts which have led to these debates, and introduces practice-based strategies to address one of the key challenges facing museums and heritage institutions today.

30 Credit Points

In a series of research-led lectures and seminars, students investigate what characterises the Archaeology of the North from environmental, socio-cultural, and ideological aspects. We examine several inter-locking themes, from the first colonisations of the North tracing how these earlier populations established the cultural, ethnic and religious diversity that define later periods. Students will be introduced to the ecological characteristics of higher latitudes, and examine the diverse ways in which communities have made the Northern World their home. We also examine how human communities have responded to climate changes in the past, resilience and adaptation, technology, and spirituality amongst Northern peoples

30 Credit Points

In this course students will follow the development of archaeological thought from its roots in the scientific revolution of the 17th century through to the post-modern thinkers and finally discovering where the current theoretical debates stand. Students will explore the links between the theoretical development of archaeological research and the general developments in the history of science and philosophy. Students also explore different methodologies central to archaeological research, discuss what constitute archaeological data, and how to design a research project. Students will also discuss research ethics, and scientific agendas. These issues are explored through a series of lectures and seminars.

30 Credit Points

This course examines “who” is represented in current frameworks for cultural heritage management, and explores possibilities and problems linked to community engagement. You will learn about approaches and ethics when working with groups that have a stake in archaeological sites and narratives, from indigenous peoples to experts and politicians. Through a joint field project, you will gain direct experience in identifying and engaging Aberdeenshire communities in heritage interpretation.

30 Credit Points

In a series of text based student-led seminars we study past Northern Peoples and Cultures through key topical debates, characteristic for different cultural regions and time periods. In the seminars students examine a range of northern contexts, from prehistory to more recent times all over the Circumpolar North. Students encounter topics as versatile as animal domestication in Northern Eurasia, Scandinavian Vikings, and Colonial North America illustrating the diversity of life and thought in Northern communities. Each seminar will also explore how particular key issues have become central to the 'identity' of archaeological research in the respective areas

30 Credit Points

As an advanced engagement with current trends and approaches in Northern Archaeology students examine current cutting edge debates associated with new theories and methodologies in archaeological research. Students will encounter the versatility of methodological and theoretical approaches in Northern research through four different themes central to the Archaeology of the North; Body and Death, Heritage and Memory, Social Space and Structures, Human and Environment. Each theme is explored through series of research led seminars and a practical, approaching the theme from different theoretical/methodological angels. The main assessment of the course is an Internal Masters Conference on these four themes.

30 Credit Points

Art and culture are integral to our daily lives, and the ways in which these are experienced are continually changing. Whether it is in a street performance, a public gallery, an academic festival, a webcast, a documentary or in social media, the relationship between the creative artist and those who consume it, is complex and can itself be a creative process. This course explores the many ways in which creative materials can be brought to public view, and how different forms of communication, aural, verbal and visual, can enhance public engagement with aesthetic experiences and the discourses around these.

30 Credit Points

Taught by museum and law academics, this course will examine cultural property issues such as treasure trove, looting and repatriation, forgery, sacred and street art, and the derogatory treatment of art. Objects from the University Museum and collections worldwide will be drawn on to illustrate aspects of the course. Museum practice and operational experience will also inform certain aspects. Students will be encouraged to explore and develop their own ideas. Facilitating this, the course will include a programme of case studies and/or issue papers to be presented by students for class discussion.

60 Credit Points

The final research project in the MSc in Cultural Heritage offers the opportunity to delve deep into a heritage issue or case study that interests you. By conversing with relevant literature and analysing a unique source material, you will become proficient in collecting, evaluating and synthesizing knowledge, and produce your own slice of original research. The project can be completed as a regular dissertation or as an applied research project based on a work-placement.

This course, which is prescribed for all taught postgraduate students, is studied entirely online, takes approximately 5-6 hours to complete and can be taken in one sitting, or spread across a number of weeks.

Topics include orientation overview, equality and diversity, health, safety and cyber security and how to make the most of your time at university in relation to careers and employability.

Successful completion of this course will be recorded on your Enhanced Transcript as ‘Achieved’.

30 Credit Points

This course examines “who” is represented in current frameworks for cultural heritage management, and explores possibilities and problems linked to community engagement. You will learn about approaches and ethics when working with groups that have a stake in archaeological sites and narratives, from indigenous peoples to experts and politicians. Through a joint field project, you will gain direct experience in identifying and engaging Aberdeenshire communities in heritage interpretation.

30 Credit Points

As an advanced engagement with current trends and approaches in Northern Archaeology students examine current cutting edge debates associated with new theories and methodologies in archaeological research. Students will encounter the versatility of methodological and theoretical approaches in Northern research through four different themes central to the Archaeology of the North; Body and Death, Heritage and Memory, Social Space and Structures, Human and Environment. Each theme is explored through series of research led seminars and a practical, approaching the theme from different theoretical/methodological angels. The main assessment of the course is an Internal Masters Conference on these four themes.

30 Credit Points

In a series of text based student-led seminars we study past Northern Peoples and Cultures through key topical debates, characteristic for different cultural regions and time periods. In the seminars students examine a range of northern contexts, from prehistory to more recent times all over the Circumpolar North. Students encounter topics as versatile as animal domestication in Northern Eurasia, Scandinavian Vikings, and Colonial North America illustrating the diversity of life and thought in Northern communities. Each seminar will also explore how particular key issues have become central to the 'identity' of archaeological research in the respective areas

30 Credit Points

Art and culture are integral to our daily lives, and the ways in which these are experienced are continually changing. Whether it is in a street performance, a public gallery, an academic festival, a webcast, a documentary or in social media, the relationship between the creative artist and those who consume it, is complex and can itself be a creative process. This course explores the many ways in which creative materials can be brought to public view, and how different forms of communication, aural, verbal and visual, can enhance public engagement with aesthetic experiences and the discourses around these.

30 Credit Points

Taught by museum and law academics, this course will examine cultural property issues such as treasure trove, looting and repatriation, forgery, sacred and street art, and the derogatory treatment of art. Objects from the University Museum and collections worldwide will be drawn on to illustrate aspects of the course. Museum practice and operational experience will also inform certain aspects. Students will be encouraged to explore and develop their own ideas. Facilitating this, the course will include a programme of case studies and/or issue papers to be presented by students for class discussion.

30 Credit Points

This course introduces students to the basic tenets of cultural heritage management at national and international level. Through the interdisciplinary lens of heritage studies, you will learn about the different political, social and economic meanings of heritage. Specific focus is placed on archaeological heritage, how its significance and stewardship has changed over time, and what policies and practices inform its management today. You will also learn about key challenges facing the sector.

30 Credit Points

Museums worldwide are grappling with the complex legacies of colonialism that have shaped collections, institutional practices, and museum relationships with their users. This course introduces students to current debates regarding how - and if - the museum can fully decolonise. It also gives them a grounding in the historical, social, and institutional contexts which have led to these debates, and introduces practice-based strategies to address one of the key challenges facing museums and heritage institutions today.

30 Credit Points

In a series of research-led lectures and seminars, students investigate what characterises the Archaeology of the North from environmental, socio-cultural, and ideological aspects. We examine several inter-locking themes, from the first colonisations of the North tracing how these earlier populations established the cultural, ethnic and religious diversity that define later periods. Students will be introduced to the ecological characteristics of higher latitudes, and examine the diverse ways in which communities have made the Northern World their home. We also examine how human communities have responded to climate changes in the past, resilience and adaptation, technology, and spirituality amongst Northern peoples

30 Credit Points

In this course students will follow the development of archaeological thought from its roots in the scientific revolution of the 17th century through to the post-modern thinkers and finally discovering where the current theoretical debates stand. Students will explore the links between the theoretical development of archaeological research and the general developments in the history of science and philosophy. Students also explore different methodologies central to archaeological research, discuss what constitute archaeological data, and how to design a research project. Students will also discuss research ethics, and scientific agendas. These issues are explored through a series of lectures and seminars.

60 Credit Points

The final research project in the MSc in Cultural Heritage offers the opportunity to delve deep into a heritage issue or case study that interests you. By conversing with relevant literature and analysing a unique source material, you will become proficient in collecting, evaluating and synthesizing knowledge, and produce your own slice of original research. The project can be completed as a regular dissertation or as an applied research project based on a work-placement.