MA Film Studies

Fees for entry in 2027 have not yet been set. For reference, the fees for the academic year beginning September 2026 were as follows:

• MA (full-time)
  UK students (per annum): £13,700
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £28,400
• MA (part-time)
  UK students (per annum): £6,850
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £14,200

The fees quoted above are fully inclusive of tuition, administration and computational costs.

Fees for entry are subject to yearly review. The University reserves the right to increase your tuition fee by up to 7% each year for courses lasting more than one year, including to reflect rising costs associated with delivering our educational and wider student experience. Postgraduate fees information .

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

International student CAS deposit

Self-funded international applicants are required to pay a deposit of £2500 towards their tuition fees before a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) is issued. Some applicants will be required to pay a higher deposit. More information on tuition fee deposits .

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).

We know that student finance can be complicated. The links below provide further information to help guide you.

• Learn more about - student finance options for UK students.
• Learn more about - fees and finance for international students .
• Graduates of The University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University can receive a 10% discount on their master's degree tuition fees as part of our Manchester Alumni Loyalty Discount scheme.

As part of this course, students will undertake a placement of 15-20 days in collaboration with a cultural organisation (usually arranged by staff) supported by a series of lectures/workshops and tutorials. Assessment will be based on documentation, analysis and reflection on the work undertaken.  

 

The course is designed to enable you to develop and evaluate personal transferable skills and attributes within a working environment. It also provides you with the opportunity for close analysis of various professional creative practices and theories, and the acquisition of knowledge and experiences that will support the preparation of assessment tasks for an MA programme. Most importantly, it will help to develop skills for lifelong learning, networking and an awareness of the cultural sector(s). University education is not separate from the ‘real world’ and the placement is part of the process that develops links between the student and the profession in the region and wider economy.

 

During the placement period, students are under the direct supervision of a supervisor assigned from within the host organisation, with support from staff within the Institute for Cultural Practices. You will have access to placement tutorials to discuss any concerns or issues, as well as lecture/workshops to support your reflection on the placement experience.

(All fieldwork is subject to government guidelines)

 

• To provide students with the opportunity to acquire practical experience within the cultural sector and/or use their knowledge and research skills in cultural organizations;

• To develop further individual transferable skills gained in the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures MA programmes;

• To develop organisational awareness and build an appreciation of the working environment for cultural professionals;

• To engage with local employers in the sector through student mentoring, work-based interaction and feedback;

• To provide material for reflective practice and analysis; • To develop career choices;

• To enable the industry to develop future employees and to demonstrate the career potential that is available.

(All fieldwork is subject to government guidelines)

 

The core principle behind the placement as a learning experience is for you to undertake practice, reflect on it and then critically analyse this experience. Lectures/workshops and small group tutorials will be provided at key points of the process in order to support the individual experiences of the students and provide time for developing reflection and analysis. These sessions will introduce and support students’ work on their assessed reports. 

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the field of contemporary museum practice, the social, ethical, political and financial contexts in which the cultural sector operates today  
• Develop knowledge and understanding of professional practices, institutional and policy contexts from direct experience as part of the work placement; 

• Critically evaluate an organisation’s role in relation to institutional objectives, other roles and professional practices within the placement organization;
• Apply methods and approaches learnt in the academic context to professional practice; 

• Respond effectively to objectives set within a professional context, identifying specific challenges and possible solutions;
• Develop and apply relevant practical skills as appropriate to the placement objectives;
• Communicate information and ideas effectively in a professional environment; 

• Display planning and decision-making skills in complex and unpredictable situations;
• Critically evaluate personal performance through monitoring and analytical reflection.

 

Work Placement Report 30 credits

100%

 

Tutorials	Formative
Written feedback on Work Placement Report	Summative

 

 The readings listed below relate to reflective practice. You will need to identify specific sources and literature relevant to your placement. This might include: publications by professional bodies, documents used by professionals you are working with, academic sources you have read as part of your studies on your MA or previously, and literature you have identified through your own research.

 

Amulya, Joy (2011), What is reflective practice? (Center for Reflective Community Practice: Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Access at: http://www.communityscience.com/images/file/What%20is%20Reflective%20Practice.pdf

 

Bolton, Gillie (2014), Reflective practice: writing and professional development (4th ed.; London: SAGE).

 

Campbell, Fiona and Harvey, Jen (1992), The workplace experience: a guide for students on placement (Edinburgh: Napier Polytechnic).

 

Cunliffe, Ann L. (2004), 'On becoming a critically reflexive practitioner', Journal of Management Education, 28, 407-26.

 

Moon, Jennifer A. (2004), Reflection in learning and professional development: theory and practice (2nd ed.; London: Kogan Page).

 

          (2004), A handbook of reflective and experiential learning: theory and practice (on-line ed.; Hoboken: Taylor & Francis).

 

          (2006), Learning journals: a handbook for reflective practice and professional development (London: Routledge).

 

Schon, Donald A. (1987), Educating the reflective practitioner: towards a new design for teaching and learning in the professions (San Francisco: Jossey Bass).

 

(2006), The reflective practitioner: how professionals think in action (new ed.; London: Ashgate).

 

Also recommended are the book chapters in Section 5 ‘Commentaries from the Field’ in: Janes, Robert R. (ed.) (2012), Museums and the Paradox of Change (London: Routledge).