MRes Arts and Humanities
Belfast, United Kingdom
M.Res. (Master of Research)
DURATION
3 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
14 Aug 2026
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 23,000 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* international fee
The MRes in Arts and Humanities is a research preparation degree that offers students the opportunity to undertake advanced studies within the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Queen’s. The course is structured around the personal research interests of each student and supported by a bespoke research preparation portfolio and a range of optional modules in areas related to the research. The MRes is available in a wide range of disciplines within the School of Arts, English and Languages and also in Archaeology.
Arts and Humanities highlights
Career Development
The MRes develops analytical and critical research skills, as well as project management capacities, relevant to a variety of professional and intellectual contexts.
Student Experience
The MRes allows great freedom of choice regarding the subject of study and how it is studied. It encourages the student to work independently, as well as having the expertise and guidance of a supervisory team.
World Class Facilities
The Graduate School at Queen’s is ranked 1st in the UK (International Student Barometer). Further world-class facilities include the state-of-the-art Sonic Arts Research Centre, as well as the McClay library (opened July 2009) – with 2,200 reader spaces and housing 1.2 million volumes.
Internationally Renowned Experts
You will be taught by staff with research profiles of international standing (REF 2021 over 99% QUB research environment was world-leading or internationally excellent), with a wide range of interests in arts and humanities subjects.
How do I fund my study?
The Department for the Economy will provide a tuition fee loan of up to £6,500 per NI / EU student for postgraduate study.
A postgraduate loans system in the UK offers government-backed student loans of up to £11,836 for taught and research Masters courses in all subject areas (excluding Initial Teacher Education/PGCE, where undergraduate student finance is available). Criteria, eligibility, repayment and application information are available on the UK government website.
Course Structure
Students may enrol on a full-time (1 year) or part-time basis.
The MRes is awarded to students who successfully complete four taught modules (80 CATS points) and a 20,000 word dissertation plus seminar presentation or final portfolio of similar depth and scope (100 CATS points).
Exit qualifications are available: students may exit with a Postgraduate Certificate by successfully completing 60 CATS points from taught modules.
Core Modules
- Research Preparation Portfolio I (20 credits)
- Dissertation (100 credits)
- Portfolio (100 credits)
- Research Preparation Portfolio II (20 credits)
Optional Modules
- Independent Study (20 credits)
- Research Methods in International Cultural Studies (20 credits)
- Independent study in Celtic (30 credits)
- Independent Study in Arts, Languages and Humanities (20 credits)
- Research Theory and Practice (20 credits)
- Discourses of Crime and Deviance (20 credits)
- Principles of Community Interpreting (20 credits)
- Workplace Internship (20 credits)
- Advanced Studies in Music (20 credits)
- Research Methods in Modern Languages (20 credits)
- Audiovisual Translation (10 credits)
- Literary Research Methods (20 credits)
- Advanced Excavation (20 credits)
- Corpus Linguistics (20 credits)
- Incorrigibly Plural (20 credits)
- Professional Development and Work Placement (20 credits)
- Research in Arts and Cultural Industries Management (20 credits)
- Research Methods 2: Skills in Linguistic Research and Data Analysis (20 credits)
- Research Methods 1: Research Design in Linguistics (20 credits)
- Engaging Audiences (20 credits)
- Cultural Policy: International Perspectives (20 credits)
- Belfast: Place, Identity and Memory in a Contested City (20 credits)
- Name Studies (20 credits)
- Phonetics and Phonology: Concepts and Practices (20 credits)
- Kingship and Colonisation in Medieval Ireland: Interdisciplinary Perspectives (20 credits)
- Language Revival, Reconciliation and Politics in Northern Ireland (20 credits)
- Literary Translation (10 credits)
- Migrating Identities (20 credits)
- Broadcasting Genre (20 credits)
- Discourse Analysis Traditional to Digital (20 credits)
The MRes forms an excellent foundation for doctoral (PhD) work. It is also ideal for students who wish to undertake an independent research project for personal and professional development. It encourages analytical and critical research skills and project management capacities relevant to a variety of professional and intellectual contexts.
Prizes and Awards
If studying a modern language on the MRes, students may be considered for the Henry Hutchinson-Stewart or Musgrave Scholarships, as well as the Bulletin of Spanish Studies Postgraduate Bursary.
If studying music or music technology, students may be considered for the Douglas C. Harrison bursary or the May Turtle award.
Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills
In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills. For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more. So not only do you graduate with a degree recognised from a world leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall. We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.