MA Humanitarianism and Conflict Response

For entry in the academic year beginning September 2026, the tuition fees are as follows:

• MA (full-time)
  UK students (per annum): £14,700
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £30,700
• MA (part-time)
  UK students (per annum): £7,350
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £15,400

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 . Always contact the department if you are unsure which fee applies to your qualification award and method of attendance.

Self-funded international applicants for this course will be required to pay a deposit of £1000 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.

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).

• Information on university funding, loans, and scholarships available on the Masters student funding page
• The Faculty of Humanities offered a range of scholarship opportunities for eligible applicants starting in September 2025. Please check back to confirm availability for September 2026 start.
• Please visit the school funding page for more information on subject funding available.
• Other funding for EU and international students is on our country-specific pages.

This course directly supports students in developing their research proposal for their final dissertation project. It discusses how to refine, hone and learn more about how to design a robust research project and what methods are most appropriate. It will look at how to develop a literature review, research questions, a theoretical framework. and how to use theory in research. The module explores different research methods in the social sciences, including quantitative and qualitative methods. Additionally, it considers ethical issues and questions of positionality that can arise when conducting research on topics such as disasters, humanitarianism, refugees, conflict and related issues.

• Provide students with a foundation for research design which will be useful in terms of preparing them for their dissertations and for equipping them with tools that can also be used following the completion of their MA in their professional lives.
• Provide students with an overview of central methods (both academic and those used in policy and practitioner environments) that are available for conducting research and evaluation in relation to humanitarian, disaster, and peacebuilding interventions.
• Demonstrate detailed knowledge of the strengths and limitations of a range of methods which can be used to research and evaluate humanitarian, disaster and peacebuilding interventions

• Identify and understand the range of purposes of a research project.
• Knowledge about how to build a research project.
• Knowledge of key methods to use when conducting research.
• Understanding of how to do qualitative and quantitative research.
• Understand how to analyse quantitative and qualitative data.

 

• Deepen critical thinking skills in relation to research.
• Critically use and assess methods in social science disciplines and methodological approaches.
• Understand how to build a research project.

 

• Critical reading of an array of sources (academic, journalistic, policy, practitioner).
• Search for, assess, and select literature from academic, practitioner and policy sources.
• Craft and complete rigorous academic research (i.e., choose research topic, develop research question, plan research steps and timeline, conduct research, develop argument, critical assessment of literature, writing and editing).
• Structure and present written arguments.
• Write a research dissertation proposal

• Apply analytical and synthesis skills in writing.
• Hone written skills.
• Be successful at complex discussion work on written tasks.

Assessment Task	Formative or Summative	Weighting
Proposal	Summative	50%
Essay	Summative	50%

 

 

Feedback Method	Formative or Summative
Written feedback on written assignments	Summative
Verbal one-to-one feedback (during the consultation hour or by making an appointment)	Formative

 

Blaikie, N. (2003) Analyzing Quantitative Data: From Description to Explanation. London: Sage.

Bryman, A (1988) Quantity and Quality in Social Research. London: Routledge.

Denzin, N.K. and Y.S. Lincoln. (eds.) (2005) Handbook of Qualitative Research. London: Sage.

Elliott, J. and Marsh C. (2008) Exploring Data: an Introduction to Data Analysis for Social Scientists. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Flick, U. (2006) An Introduction to Qualitative Research. London: Sage.

Henn, Matt, Mark Weinstein and Nick Foard (2006) A Short Introduction to Social Research. London: Sage Publications. Available from Manchester University Electronic Resources.

May, T. (2002) Qualitative Research in Action. London: Sage Publications.

Rumsey, D. (2003) Statistics for Dummies. Hoboken NJ: Wiley.