Overview
- Degree awarded
- Master of Science (MSc)
- Duration
- 1 year
- Entry requirements
-
We require a UK Honours degree with a First classification or the overseas equivalent, in a field pertaining to the chosen pathway.
When assessing your academic record we take into account the grades you have achieved and the standing of the institution where you studied your qualification.
- How to apply
- Apply online
Course options
| Full-time | Part-time | Full-time distance learning | Part-time distance learning | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSc | Y | N | N | N |
Course overview
- Research-intensive master's degree at one of the top ten Geography departments in the UK (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021), perfect if you're considering PhD study and/or a career in research.
- The course will develop your research skills and knowledge of human geography.
- It complies with the research training requirements for ESRC scholarships for a PhD scholarship (commonly termed +3), and also suitable as the master's year as part of an ESRC scholarship award that covers both the master's and PhD (commonly termed a 1+3 award).
Open days
The University holds regular open days , where you will have the opportunity to tour the campus and find out more about our facilities and courses.
You will find out more about the School of Environment, Education and Development, our resources, and meet academic and admissions staff who will be able to answer any questions you have.
Fees
For entry in the academic year beginning September 2024, the tuition fees are as follows:
-
MSc (full-time)
UK students (per annum): £12,500
International, including EU, students (per annum): £24,000
Further information for EU students can be found on our dedicated EU page.
The fees quoted above will be fully inclusive for the course tuition, administration and computational costs during your studies.
All fees for entry will be subject to yearly review and incremental rises per annum are also likely over the duration of courses lasting more than a year for UK/EU students (fees are typically fixed for international students, for the course duration at the year of entry).
For general fees information please visit postgraduate fees Self-funded international applicants for this course will be required to pay a deposit of £1,000 towards their tuition fees before a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) is issued. This deposit will only be refunded if immigration permission is refused. We will notify you about how and when to make this payment.
Policy on additional costs
All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).
Scholarships/sponsorships
We offer a number of postgraduate taught scholarships and merit awards to outstanding applicants and international students, such as the Manchester Humanities International Excellence Scholarship .
In addition, the Manchester Alumni Scholarship Scheme offers a £3,000 reduction in tuition fees to University of Manchester alumni who achieved a first-class bachelor's degree within the last three years and are progressing to a postgraduate taught master's course.
For more information, visit our Funding opportunities page or explore the University's postgraduate funding database .
Contact details
- School/Faculty
- School of Environment, Education and Development
- Contact name
- School of Environment, Education and Development +44 (0) 161 275 2814
- Telephone
- +44 (0) 161 275 2814
- mie.admissions@manchester.ac.uk
- Website
- https://www.seed.manchester.ac.uk/
- School/Faculty
-
See: The School .
Courses in related subject areas
Use the links below to view lists of courses in related subject areas.
Entry requirements
Academic entry qualification overview
We require a UK Honours degree with a First classification or the overseas equivalent, in a field pertaining to the chosen pathway.
When assessing your academic record we take into account the grades you have achieved and the standing of the institution where you studied your qualification.
English language
For the latest information on demonstrating your English proficiency for those whose first language is not English, please see our language requirements .
This programme also accepts successful completion of the 6 and 10 Week Pre-sessional English Language course. We accept the following qualifications which must be valid on the start date of the Pre-sessional course.
Pre-sessional 6 Week Course Requirement:
IELTS - 6.0 Overall with 6.0 in writing, no more than one subskill at 5.5 and no subskill below 5.5
TOEFL iBT - 80 overall with 20 in writing, and 20 in speaking, with a minimum of 18 in all other subskills
Pearson PTE Academic or Academic UKVI - 65 overall with 65 in writing, no more than one subskill of 59 and no other subskill below 59.
Pre-sessional 10 Week Course Requirement:
IELTS - 5.5 overall with no element below 5.5
TOEFL iBT - 72 overall with 20 in speaking and no other element below 18
Pearson PTE Academic UKVI - 59 overall and no element below 59
English language test validity
Other international entry requirements
We accept a range of qualifications from across the globe. To help international students the university provides specific information for many individual countries. Please see our country-specific information page for guidance on the academic qualifications which may be accepted from your country.
Application and selection
How to apply
Advice to applicants
Please submit the following documents with your completed application form:
-
copies of official degree certificates and transcripts of your previous study, showing the subjects taken and grades obtained. If these documents are in languages other than English, please provide official translations;
-
your CV;
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copies of English Language Certification, such as IELTS, TOEFL or Pearson test score report.
Ensure that you enclose all the necessary documents to avoid any delays.
How your application is considered
Once your application has been received, our admissions team will contact you. We may ask you to submit additional information, if necessary.
Please note, the course may reach capacity before the official closing date of 31st of August, so all students are advised to apply as soon as possible.
Returning to education
Return-to-learn students are those who have had a substantial period away from any formal learning. Often such learners have pursued careers or raised a family.
We understand that students come from many different backgrounds, with varying qualifications, careers and skills, but they often bring to their studies a high degree of motivation and experience.
We recognise that standard selection measures and procedures may not enable these learners to demonstrate fully their suitability for their chosen course.
Where appropriate, admissions officers will seek and consider alternative evidence in order to give such learners equivalent consideration. Where they deem this alternative evidence meets entry criteria fully, the learner will not be required to meet the standard academic entry requirements.
Re-applications
If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful you may apply again. Your application will be considered against the standard course entry criteria for that year of entry.
In your new application, you should demonstrate how your application has improved. We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen course.
Course details
Course description
MSc Research Methods is a research-intensive master's designed for those who wish to continue to PhD and/or are considering embarking on a career in research. It has a strong focus on developing research skills combined with further study in human geography.
The MSc is designed to comply with the research training requirements for two ESRC scholarships as administered by the North West Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (NWSSDTP): the three-year PhD scholarship (commonly termed +3) and the four-year scholarship that covers an eligible one year master's and a three-year PhD (commonly termed 1+3).
The course is ideal if you want to apply for an ESRC scholarship through the NWSSDTP or a School of Environment, Education and Development scholarship.
NWSSDTP approved master's must meet the minimum research training requirement expected by the ESRC.
Manchester is the ideal place to study Geography. The world's first industrial city, now a vibrant twenty-first century metropolis set between three National Parks, Manchester and its environment are an important resource for field teaching throughout your course.
Geography has been taught at The University of Manchester for more than 125 years.
We have a vibrant community of students and academic staff, with a wide range of teaching and research interests and an impressive international research reputation.
Aims
You will:
- develop as a well-rounded researcher who can access the full range of research in relation to human geography;
- actively and practically engage with research methods used in the context of human geography;
- attend introductory PhD research training lectures, seminars and tutorials and get a taste of life as a PhD student.
Special features
- Geography has been studied at Manchester for more than 125 years, and we're one of Europe's best-equipped universities for the subject.
- We're home to world-class academics and the new Manchester Urban Institute (MUI).
- Benefit from worldwide fieldwork opportunities and strong industry links.
- Join the Manchester University Geographical Society (MUGS) , a society run by Geography students for Geography Students.
Coursework and assessment
You will conduct a small-scale piece of empirical research of relevance and use this as the basis for your dissertation. The emphasis of the dissertation will be on the use of methodology in the context of:
- tracing the application of certain methods to the investigation of particular issues;
- discussing how that methodology functioned in practice;
- research reflexivity.
You will be expected to report on the findings of the study, although the scale of the work will necessitate modest aims and outcomes, given that you will require space to provide in-depth methodological critique and potentially also methods development as an outcome of their study.
You'll have the option to choose to undertake a literature-based dissertation, in which case there will be an expectation that a formal review methodology will be used to conduct the review.
The form the dissertation ultimately takes will reflect the particular study conducted, and its structure will be negotiated and agreed with your supervisor. All dissertations undertaken will be required to contribute to meeting the ESRC's research training criteria.
Course unit details
Core course units typically include:
- Research Literacy and Design;
- Qualitative Research Approaches;
- Quantitative Research Approaches;
- Dissertation.
You will select one from the following options:
- Doing Environmental Research;
- Development Fieldwork;
- Independent Research Methods.
You will also select four units from our Geography postgraduate portfolio.
Course unit list
The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.
| Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/optional |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research Literacy and Design | EVDV70001 | 15 | Mandatory |
| Qualitative Research Approaches | EVDV70012 | 15 | Mandatory |
| Quantitative Research | EVDV70022 | 15 | Mandatory |
| Developing Researcher Reflexivity | EVDV70011 | 15 | Optional |
| Independent Research Methods | EVDV70032 | 15 | Optional |
| Doing Environmental Research | GEOG70472 | 15 | Optional |
| Issues in Environmental Policy | GEOG70912 | 15 | Optional |
| Key Debates in Environmental Governance | GEOG70921 | 15 | Optional |
| Development Fieldwork | MGDI60502 | 15 | Optional |
| Digital Planning - Decision Support Systems | PLAN60962 | 15 | Optional |
Facilities
We are one of Europe's best-equipped universities for geography, with numerous laboratories. These include the main teaching laboratory, microscopy laboratory, and sediments and project laboratories.
You can also learn professional skills such as coding and programming specialist, industry-standard software such as image processing, GIS, GPS and cartographic representation.
The University's Main Library is home to the University Map Collection, which comprises about 100,000 map sheets of every part of the world.
For more information visit our Facilities webpage .
Disability support
Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service.
For more information, email dass@manchester.ac.uk
Careers
Career opportunities
MSc Research Methods is ideal if you are considering PhD study and/or a career in research in human geography.
Geography graduates have particularly great employment prospects and go on to shape environmental policy through positions in the public and private sectors.
Our graduates have gone on to successful careers in areas including:
- consultancy;
- research;
- non-governmental organisations;
- project management;
- environmental management;
- agriculture and forestry;
- environmental sciences;
- energy;
- oil and gas;
- marketing;
- finance;
- water.
Top employers of our graduates include DEFRA, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Organic Soil Association, the UK Atomic Energy Authority, and UNEP.
View our careers and employability page for more information.
Careers support
The University has its own dedicated Careers Service that you would have full access to as a student and for two years after you graduate. At Manchester you will have access to a number of opportunities to help boost your employability