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Internationally recognised scholars in English Literature teach this intensive research-focused Masters degree. You’ll work with cutting-edge research-active staff to push forward the latest developments in literary criticism.

The English division in the Department of Humanities has a number of exciting and interdisciplinary research groups, with particular strengths in the Early Modern period, the Long Eighteenth Century, Modernism, Gender, and Popular Culture.

You’ll have the opportunity to develop your own scholarly interests by researching and writing a 20,000 word dissertation. Recent MRes projects have encompassed a range of subjects including a feminist critique of the Tomb Raider video game franchise, the female authorship of eighteenth-century medical tracts, and an examination of loss in the works of Joseph Conrad, the role of children in Holocaust contemporary literature and the use of violence in dystopias such as The Handmaid's Tale and The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
You might want to develop your employability prospects or be interested in continuing your studies at PhD level, but are still looking for inspiration on exactly where to focus and how to acquire the necessary research skills and methods. Whether taken for the love of literature, or for personal or professional development, the MRes will enhance skills such as communication, self-management and project planning. 

Find our more about studying a MRes at Northumbria University here.

 

Course Information

Level of Study
Postgraduate

Mode of Study
1 year Full Time
1 other options available

Department
Humanities

Location
City Campus, Northumbria University

City
Newcastle

Start
September 2025

Fees
Fee Information

Modules
Module Information

Videos / English Literature

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Explore our immersive 360 tours, informative subject videos, inspirational student profiles, ground-breaking research, and a range of life at university blogs videos and articles.

Entry Requirements 2025/26

Standard Entry

Applicants should normally have:

A minimum of a 2:1 honours degree in English, or a related discipline.

Applicants are required to submit a statement of their proposed area of study in order to identify a suitable supervisor.

International qualifications:

If you have studied a non UK qualification, you can see how your qualifications compare to the standard entry criteria, by selecting the country that you received the qualification in, from our country pages. Visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/yourcountry

English language requirements:

International applicants are required to have a minimum overall IELTS (Academic) score of 6.5 with 6 in each component (or approved equivalent*).

 *The university accepts a large number of UK and International Qualifications in place of IELTS.  You can find details of acceptable tests and the required grades you will need in our English Language section. Visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/englishqualifications

For further admissions guidance and requirements, please visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/admissionsguidance Please review this information before submitting your application.

Fees and Funding 2025/26 Entry

Full UK Fee: £9,700

Full International Fee: £19,350



Scholarships and Discounts

Discover More about Fees, Scholarships and other Funding options for UK and International applicants.

ADDITIONAL COSTS

Students may wish to but are not compelled to purchase supplemental material for research, such as primary texts specific to the project, for their own personal use to allow for annotation and close engagement. The combined cost of purchasing and/or printing primary texts is approximately £100, though this figure depends on editions purchased and can be reduced significantly by using the library, purchasing second hand copies accessing e-books and locating articles electronically where possible and appropriate.

If you’d like to receive the latest updates from Northumbria about our courses, events, finance & funding then enter your details below.

* At Northumbria we are strongly committed to protecting the privacy of personal data. To view the University’s Privacy Notice please click here

Modules

Module information is indicative and is reviewed annually therefore may be subject to change. Applicants will be informed if there are any changes.

EL7019 -

Research Methods: Traditional and Digital (Core,30 Credits)

On this module you will learn key approaches to English literary research – how to plan and carry out rigorous research using a variety of traditional and more modern tools and approaches. The module’s content will help prepare you for the challenge of completing a successful dissertation by empowering your knowledge of and proficiency with literary research tools.

More information

EL7021 -

Critical Contexts (Core,30 Credits)

In this module you will learn about some of the key ideas and theories that can help us understand theoretical and conceptual approaches to literary texts. From week to week, readings of primary texts past and present will be informed by selected critical and theoretical work focussed on specific aspects of the material, such as ideological and discursive constructions of gender, race, class, and national identity. This theoretical material will be provided in a Reading Pack of excerpted material, offering a representative sample of a range of thinkers’ work, and motivating further exploration of their ideas. Seminars will allow in-depth discussion of the texts and concepts appropriate to Masters level study.

The module aims to problematise our assumptions about how literary texts are constructed in relation to ideological and discursive practices, and about the relationships between texts, theory and contexts. It enables you to acquire skills necessary to analyse literature at the Masters level, using sophisticated, appropriate, and up-to-date critical and theoretical approaches

More information

EL7028 -

MRes Dissertation (Core,90 Credits)

In this module you will identify a research question and produce a 20,000 word dissertation, or 10,000 word Dissertation with major project for designated programme pathways, which represents the culmination of your postgraduate studies on the MRes programme. It will enable you to apply the skills you have acquired in other modules and yield a discrete body of primary sources related to an identifiable area of enquiry. As an exercise in research it is intended to develop further your research skills and your ability to work independently. Dissertation topics will be supervised by an appropriate tutor, who will guide you through the various stages of formulating, researching and writing this substantial piece of work. You will operate at a higher level of independent learning and research than in the taught modules, albeit with the support of a supervisor who has specialist knowledge in your chosen area of interest.

More information

HI7011 -

Research Development (Core,30 Credits)

In this module you will develop an aspect of your research project and present it in a professional manner to an audience of academics and students. You will work with classmates to organize, advertise, and present a one-day symposium of research papers that express your scholarly projects. The module aims to advance your professional skills and professional abilities by practice. You will learn how to effectively present a piece of research, develop event planning skills, gain practical project management experience, all of which are necessary to sustain this type of work.

More information

YC7000 -

Academic Language Skills for Social Sciences & Humanities (Core – for International and EU students only,0 Credits)

Academic skills when studying away from your home country can differ due to cultural and language differences in teaching and assessment practices. This module is designed to support your transition in the use and practice of technical language and subject specific skills around assessments and teaching provision in your chosen subject. The overall aim of this module is to develop your abilities to read and study effectively for academic purposes; to develop your skills in analysing and using source material in seminars and academic writing and to develop your use and application of language and communications skills to a higher level.

The topics you will cover on the module include:

• Understanding assignment briefs and exam questions.
• Developing academic writing skills, including citation, paraphrasing, and summarising.
• Practising ‘critical reading’ and ‘critical writing’
• Planning and structuring academic assignments (e.g. essays, reports and presentations).
• Avoiding academic misconduct and gaining credit by using academic sources and referencing effectively.
• Listening skills for lectures.
• Speaking in seminar presentations.
• Presenting your ideas
• Giving discipline-related academic presentations, experiencing peer observation, and receiving formative feedback.
• Effective reading techniques.
• Developing self-reflection skills.
• Discussing ethical issues in research, and analysing results.
• Describing bias and limitations of research.

More information

Modules

Module information is indicative and is reviewed annually therefore may be subject to change. Applicants will be informed if there are any changes.

EL7019 -

Research Methods: Traditional and Digital (Core,30 Credits)

On this module you will learn key approaches to English literary research – how to plan and carry out rigorous research using a variety of traditional and more modern tools and approaches. The module’s content will help prepare you for the challenge of completing a successful dissertation by empowering your knowledge of and proficiency with literary research tools.

More information

EL7021 -

Critical Contexts (Core,30 Credits)

In this module you will learn about some of the key ideas and theories that can help us understand theoretical and conceptual approaches to literary texts. From week to week, readings of primary texts past and present will be informed by selected critical and theoretical work focussed on specific aspects of the material, such as ideological and discursive constructions of gender, race, class, and national identity. This theoretical material will be provided in a Reading Pack of excerpted material, offering a representative sample of a range of thinkers’ work, and motivating further exploration of their ideas. Seminars will allow in-depth discussion of the texts and concepts appropriate to Masters level study.

The module aims to problematise our assumptions about how literary texts are constructed in relation to ideological and discursive practices, and about the relationships between texts, theory and contexts. It enables you to acquire skills necessary to analyse literature at the Masters level, using sophisticated, appropriate, and up-to-date critical and theoretical approaches

More information

EL7028 -

MRes Dissertation (Core,90 Credits)

In this module you will identify a research question and produce a 20,000 word dissertation, or 10,000 word Dissertation with major project for designated programme pathways, which represents the culmination of your postgraduate studies on the MRes programme. It will enable you to apply the skills you have acquired in other modules and yield a discrete body of primary sources related to an identifiable area of enquiry. As an exercise in research it is intended to develop further your research skills and your ability to work independently. Dissertation topics will be supervised by an appropriate tutor, who will guide you through the various stages of formulating, researching and writing this substantial piece of work. You will operate at a higher level of independent learning and research than in the taught modules, albeit with the support of a supervisor who has specialist knowledge in your chosen area of interest.

More information

HI7011 -

Research Development (Core,30 Credits)

In this module you will develop an aspect of your research project and present it in a professional manner to an audience of academics and students. You will work with classmates to organize, advertise, and present a one-day symposium of research papers that express your scholarly projects. The module aims to advance your professional skills and professional abilities by practice. You will learn how to effectively present a piece of research, develop event planning skills, gain practical project management experience, all of which are necessary to sustain this type of work.

More information

YC7000 -

Academic Language Skills for Social Sciences & Humanities (Core – for International and EU students only,0 Credits)

Academic skills when studying away from your home country can differ due to cultural and language differences in teaching and assessment practices. This module is designed to support your transition in the use and practice of technical language and subject specific skills around assessments and teaching provision in your chosen subject. The overall aim of this module is to develop your abilities to read and study effectively for academic purposes; to develop your skills in analysing and using source material in seminars and academic writing and to develop your use and application of language and communications skills to a higher level.

The topics you will cover on the module include:

• Understanding assignment briefs and exam questions.
• Developing academic writing skills, including citation, paraphrasing, and summarising.
• Practising ‘critical reading’ and ‘critical writing’
• Planning and structuring academic assignments (e.g. essays, reports and presentations).
• Avoiding academic misconduct and gaining credit by using academic sources and referencing effectively.
• Listening skills for lectures.
• Speaking in seminar presentations.
• Presenting your ideas
• Giving discipline-related academic presentations, experiencing peer observation, and receiving formative feedback.
• Effective reading techniques.
• Developing self-reflection skills.
• Discussing ethical issues in research, and analysing results.
• Describing bias and limitations of research.

More information

Study Options

The following alternative study options are available for this course:

Any Questions?

Our Applicant Services team will be happy to help.  They can be contacted on 0191 406 0901 or by using our Contact Form.

 

All information is accurate at the time of sharing. 

Full time Courses are primarily delivered via on-campus face to face learning but could include elements of online learning. Most courses run as planned and as promoted on our website and via our marketing materials, but if there are any substantial changes (as determined by the Competition and Markets Authority) to a course or there is the potential that course may be withdrawn, we will notify all affected applicants as soon as possible with advice and guidance regarding their options. It is also important to be aware that optional modules listed on course pages may be subject to change depending on uptake numbers each year.  

Contact time is subject to increase or decrease in line with possible restrictions imposed by the government or the University in the interest of maintaining the health and safety and wellbeing of students, staff, and visitors if this is deemed necessary in future.

 

Accessibility and Student Inclusion

Northumbria University is committed to developing an inclusive, diverse and accessible campus and wider University community and are determined to ensure that opportunities we provide are open to all.

We are proud to work in partnership with AccessAble to provide Detailed Access Guides to our buildings and facilities across our City, Coach Lane and London Campuses. A Detailed Access Guide lets you know what access will be like when you visit somewhere. It looks at the route you will use getting in and what is available inside. All guides have Accessibility Symbols that give you a quick overview of what is available, and photographs to show you what to expect. The guides are produced by trained surveyors who visit our campuses annually to ensure you have trusted and accurate information.

You can use Northumbria’s AccessAble Guides anytime to check the accessibility of a building or facility and to plan your routes and journeys. Search by location, building or accessibility feature to find the information you need. 

We are dedicated to helping students who may require additional support during their student journey and offer 1-1 advice and guidance appropriate to individual requirements. If you feel you may need additional support you can find out more about what we offer here where you can also contact us with any questions you may have:

Accessibility support

Student Inclusion support

If you’d like to receive the latest updates from Northumbria about our courses, events, finance & funding then enter your details below.

* At Northumbria we are strongly committed to protecting the privacy of personal data. To view the University’s Privacy Notice please click here

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