Overview and entry requirements

Our MA in Migration and Diaspora Studies is a broad-based degree for students who want to receive research training in migration and diaspora, as well as humanitarian and refugee studies. This two-year intensive language pathway is directed at students who wish to combine knowledge of migration and diaspora with expertise in a regional language. It prepares students to apply their knowledge in a specific region by achieving proficiency in a language.

Like the MA Migration and Diaspora Studies, this programme is engaged and practice oriented and offers the possibility of creative assignments along with conventional assessment forms. It is enthused by the belief that knowledge and practice produced by diaspora and migrants' grassroots organisations, activists, practitioners and artists should be intertwined with academic knowledge, and validated as part of a real decolonising effort. 

Students enrolled in the MA programme have the unique chance to carry out internships while studying through the module 'From Theory to Practice and Back: Work-placements in Migration Research'. The internships aim to bridge theory and practice in the fields of migration, diaspora and humanitarian practice.

The course is available exclusively to students enrolled in the MA Migration and Diaspora Studies. The course is organised in the form of internships and independent study projects, along with some class seminars in collaboration with the organisations, with whom we partner. Students have the opportunity to work with a broad range of organisations operating in areas as varied as migrants' support and refugees’ legal protection, activist and political campaigns and networks, as well as galleries and art collectives promoting diaspora and BAME cultures, identities, and arts. You may also be interested in this degree if you come from other disciplines, such as Law or Politics, and now wish to incorporate an anthropological perspective on issues of migration and diaspora.

Combine Migration and Diaspora with Intensive Language

Intensive Language pathways: Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Persian, South East Asian Languages (Indonesian, Vietnamese), Swahili, Turkish.

Why study MA Migration and Diaspora Studies and Intensive Language at SOAS

• SOAS ranked 5th in the UK in the 2022 QS World University Rankings for Anthropology, and 10th worldwide
• the Department of Anthropology and Sociology has been ranked 4th overall in the UK in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021, with 42.4% of our research output rated at 4* (world-leading)
• The MA Migration and Diaspora Studies programme has a first-rate graduate employability record
• increase your knowledge of the transnational nature of the modern world
• engage with critical theories to understand the management of mobility and the impact of humanitarian relief
• understand the role of migration in the major political and cultural processes of the contemporary world
• unique opportunity of internerships to bridge theory and practice

The MA Migration and Diaspora Studies and Intensive Language degree offers students a chance to pursue their specific areas of interest by selecting from optional modules:

• a broad-based perspective enhancing your knowledge in light of continuing contemporary research
• a specific area, allowing you to study diaspora and migration issues in depth in relation to a particular discipline or region.

The MA in Migration and Diaspora Studies is considerably enriched by the SOAS Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies, which runs seminars, films and public lectures and also hosts a number of international scholars. The Centre is also a part of a migration research network of London colleges including LSE and UCL. Students on the programme therefore have unparalleled access to a critical body of scholars and scholarship on migration and diaspora related issues.

Prospective students are encouraged to contact the Programme Convenor, Dr Ruba Salih (ruba.salih@soas.ac.uk) at an early stage of their application to seek advice on the most appropriate options for study. 

See Department of Anthropology and Sociology

Start of programme: September

Mode of Attendance: Full-time or Part-time

May be combined with:

MA Migration and Diaspora Studies can be combined with the following Intensive Language pathways: 

• Arabic
• Chinese
• Japanese
• Korean
• Persian
• South East Asian Languages: Indonesian, Vietnamese
• Swahili
• Turkish

Structure

Students must take 315 credits in total, comprised of 255 taught credits (45 of which are taught abroad as part of a Summer School) and a 60-credit dissertation as outlined below.

• Year 1: students on the two-year Intensive Language programmes take 60 credits of intensive language instruction and 60 credits in the discipline. During the summer, they participate in a Summer School abroad.
• Year 2: students take another 30 language credits as well as 60 credits in the discipline; they also complete their dissertation in the discipline. 

Students are also required to audit 15PANH002 Ethnographic Research Methods, that is, to attend lectures for this module (without attending seminars or submitting any assessments). The module does not count towards the total of 315 credits.

The structure of the programme can be adjusted for those who wish to take the programme part-time over a period of four years and/or for those who have a previous background in Anthropology. For more information email: anthsoc@soas.ac.uK

The Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics offer information on the Intensive Language part of the programme.

Programme

Programme Specification

• MA Migration and Diaspora Studies and Intensive Language Programme Specification (pdf; 536kb)

Important notice

Teaching & Learning

SOAS has a large range of options on migration and diaspora related issues across the school. Teaching methods and assessment vary across these options, and their availability will depend on appropriate staff being available in the relevant academic year.

In addition, students are required to attend the weekly seminars held by the Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies, where they will hear international scholars give papers on a variety of migration and diaspora related topics. The seminars provide an invaluable backdrop for the transdisciplinary approach of the programme overall. Students are also encouraged to apply to the London in Motion workshop: 

The student learning experience is also be enhanced by the public lectures, films and workshops the Centre organises.

Contact hours

During the academic year, modules are delivered through a combination of lectures, tutorials and/or seminars. Students can expect an average of two hours of classroom time per week for each module. Outside of the classroom, students explore topics of the module through independent study and through personal exchanges with teachers and fellow students. In some cases, modules are taught by several teachers within the department to provide students with an array of perpsectives on the subject. All modules involve the active participation of students in the discussion of ideas, viewpoints and readings.

Dissertation

The MA Migration and Diaspora culminates in a 10,000-word dissertation, based on original research on a topic of the student's own choosing and developed in discussion with a supervisor.

Year abroad

All students participate in a Summer School abroad for the selected language.

Aims and outcomes

• introduce students to important areas of contemporary social theory which deal with issues of migration, globalisation, the postcolonial world, and cultural transformations
• ground students in the historical basis of these issues
• encourage transdisciplinary thinking on issues of migration
• enable students to translate theoretical perspectives for practical application in the material world
• provide students with a near proficient ability in a language

SOAS Library

SOAS Library is one of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, attracting scholars from all over the world. The Library houses over 1.2 million volumes, together with significant archival holdings, special collections and a growing network of electronic resources.

Tuition fees

Fees for 2022/23 entrants, per academic year (Band 1 tuition fee) 

Please note that fees go up each year. Two-year full-time programmes have 2 years of full-time fees; the fee in the second year will be higher than the fee for the first year (the full time fee above is for the first year only).

For full details of tuition fees, see our postgraduate tuition fees page.

Scholarships

For further details and information on external scholarships visit the Scholarships section

Employment

Students from SOAS’ Department of Anthropology and Sociology develop an in-depth understanding of the world. Employers value our graduates’ cultural awareness and global perspective, as well as their skills in analysis, data interpretation and problem-solving.

Recent Department of Anthropology and Sociology graduates have been hired by:

• Allen & Overy
• BBC
• British Council
• Deloitte
• Hackney Migrant Centre
• IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development)
• IOM- UN Migration
• Media 52
• New York Times
• Social Mobility Foundation
• The Week
• UNICEF
• United Nations Development Programme
• World Bank Group

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