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, including a relevant language as part of the specialisation.

The degree prepares you to proceed to advanced postgraduate research or to work as practitioners in fields related to migration, refugees and humanitarian relief.

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.

This MA Migration and Diaspora Studies is designed for students who:

• wish to know more of the transnational nature of the modern world
• wish to engage with critical theories to understand the management of mobility and the impact of humanitarian relief
• wish to understand the role of migration in the major political and cultural processes of the contemporary world
• come from other disciplines, such as Law or Politics, and now wish to incorporate an anthropological perspective on issues of migration and diaspora

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

Start of programme: September

Mode of Attendance: Full-time or Part-time

May be combined with:

The following Intensive Language pathways are available with the MA Migration and Diaspora Studies

• Arabic
• Japanese
• Korean
• Persian
• South East Asian Languages: Burmese, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese
• Swahili
• Turkish (available from 2019/20)

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.

In their first year, 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. In the second year, they 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, i.e. 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

Please see the relevant web pages in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and in the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics for information on the Intensive Language part of the programme.

Year 1 (two years full time)

Discipline Component

Compulsory Modules

* NOTE: Students are required to audit the lectures for Ethnographic Research Methods, but it will not count towards the required 180 credits. Students who wish to take this module for credit may do so as part of their guided options.

AND

Guided Module(s) from any of the lists below, OR modules from the Postgraduate Open Options List, to the value of 30 credits.

AND

Language Component

Students take 60 credits in the selected language.

Summer Abroad

Students participate in a Summer School abroad for the selected language.

Year 2 (two years full time)

Discipline Component

Guided Module(s) from any of the lists below, OR modules from the Postgraduate Open Options List, to the value of 60 credits.

Language Component

Students take 30 credits in the selected language.

Dissertation

All students are required to take the compulsory dissertation module worth 60 credits.

List of Modules (subject to availability)

Anthropology and Sociology

Modules in Other Department

Programme Specification

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

Important notice

Year abroad

Yes (summer)

Teaching & Learning

SOAS also 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: https://www.soas.ac.uk/anthropology/ 

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

Modules

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.

The 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.

Aims and Outcomes

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

Tuition Fees

Full details of postgraduate tuition fees can be found on the Registry's Postgraduate Tuition Fees page.

This is a Band 1 tuition fee.

Fees for 2020/21 entrants. The fees below are per academic year. Please note that fees go up each year. 2 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 below is for the first year only).

Scholarships

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

A Masters in Migration and Diaspora Studies helps you to understand the world, other peoples’ ways of life and how society is organised.

Postgraduate students leave SOAS with a portfolio of widely transferable skills which employers seek, including analytical and critical skills; ability to gather, assess and interpret data; high level of cultural awareness; and problem-solving.  

A postgraduate degree is a valuable experience that provides students with a body of work and a diverse range of skills that they can use to market themselves with when they graduate.

For more information about Graduate Destinations from this department, please visit the Careers Service website.

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