Medieval History

Overview

You will also have access to world-class resources, most notably the impressive combined collections of the National Library or Scotland and of the University of Edinburgh Main Library. In addition to that, you will belong to a thriving community of scholars by becoming member of the highly cross-disciplinary Edinburgh Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (CMRS), which organises regular research seminars as well as a range of other academic and social events.

This Medieval History programme offered by The University of Edinburgh  includes a core course that offers knowledge of the principal categories of surviving primary evidence from the Middle Ages and the technical skills to use them. You will get the opportunity to work with a range of sources, from manuscripts held in the university library’s Special Collections, to objects in the city’s museums (subject to availability).

You will then be able to choose from two sets of optional courses, subject to availability. One set will allow you to further expand your research skills, including courses on Paleography, Latin and research methodology, for example. The other set contains courses reflecting the research specialism of our medieval historians.

It may also be possible to enroll on relevant courses in other parts of the University, such as the School of Divinity, the Edinburgh College of Art, and the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, which gives the opportunity to learn the value of an interdisciplinary approach to medieval research. On the whole the optional courses that we offer range widely in terms of chronology (from Classical Antiquity to the Renaissance), geography (the western fringes of Europe to the eastern Mediterranean) and methodology, and you will be able to select them in order to build your own path.

Career opportunities

Our students view the programme and a graduate degree from Edinburgh as an advanced qualification valued and respected by many employers, others are interested in pursuing long-term academic careers and therefore consider the MSc as preparation for a PhD. The combination of specialised skills training courses and research seminars, as well as independent research provides you with transferable skills that will be beneficial whatever path you choose.

Graduates pursue work in related areas such as museums, policy think tanks, national and international civil services, non-governmental organisations, galleries, libraries and historic trusts whilst others build on the transferable skills gained and enter areas as diverse as business, media, public administration and marketing.