The MPhil in Archaeology adds a student-led research project onto the MSt year. It is ideal if you are thinking of carrying on to doctoral research and wish to acquire higher levels of research skills and/or complete a medium-sized individual research project before embarking on doctoral study. Flexibility is built into the degree to allow you to create your own unique courses that reflect your chosen area of study.

You will have a supervisor in your main area of interest, who will usually supervise your dissertation and may provide some other teaching, and will advise on option choices and monitor overall progress. Each member of the academic staff in archaeology offers at least one different subject in his or her areas of specialism over the year, but not all courses listed will be available every year.

Teaching is mainly through small-group tutorials or classes of one to five students, for which you will prepare short essays on a weekly basis. Tutorials are supplemented by a wide range of lecture courses and graduate seminars.

The options are examined by pre-set essays, while the core paper is assessed by a written three-hour examination at the end of the final term of the first year. In their second year students take one additional option, examined by pre-set essays, along with their thesis. The thesis subject is decided by the end of the first year, with any fieldwork taking place in the long vacation. Research and writing occupy most of the second year. There may be a viva voce examination for the whole course.