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Award
MA Environmental Humanities
School/s
School of Writing, Publishing and the Humanities
Campus or location
Newton Park
Course length
One year full time or two years part time.

Entry requirements

The course is potentially suitable for graduates of any discipline. Exceptional candidates without a degree but with relevant professional or creative practice experience are also welcome to apply.

This course will not be taking new entrants in 2024-25.


You are welcome to contact the course leader, Dr Mike Hannis, to register an advance interest in enrolling for 2025-26. For more information, please contact admissions@bathspa.ac.uk.

Build creative responses to environmental challenges.

  • This is an innovative interdisciplinary MA led by world-class environmental humanities scholars.
  • We bring arts, humanities, and social science into critical conversation with ecology and conservation.
  • You’ll develop key skills for environmental scholarship, creativity, communication, and activism.

This MA is taught within the School of Writing, Publishing and the Humanities, in collaboration with the Research Centre for Environmental Humanities.

On this pioneering course you’ll acquire new research skills, as well as a more holistic understanding of environmental issues. You’ll address specific issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss, alongside broader ideas about human relationships with place, technology, and the more-than-human world, drawing insights from across a wide range of disciplines and cultures.

What you'll learn

Overview

This transformative course is very much yours to mould to your own needs.

Core modules offer intensive introductions to new disciplinary perspectives, through critical focus on key concepts such as "the Anthropocene", the idea that Earth has now entered a new geological era, indelibly shaped by human activities. Multi-disciplinary research methods training will equip you to proceed to doctoral study in either humanities or social sciences, should you wish to do so.

Optional modules enable you to learn new approaches while also consolidating existing expertise in subjects such as geography, ecocriticism and literary studies, philosophy, ethics, environmental studies, or conservation. In addition, there are elective modules in creative writing, and your final project may be either a conventional written dissertation or a creative project. Previous examples of the latter have included projects based around poetry, photography and songwriting.

Your studies will be enriched by guest lectures hosted by our Research Centre for Environmental Humanities, including presentations by professionals from fields such as environmental arts, media, writing, and conservation, as well as by academic researchers in the Environmental Humanities.

This MA in Environmental Humanities will provide a solid basis from which to contribute to the "green" society and economy of the 21st century. It 's also a perfect preparation for doctoral research in this burgeoning field, at Bath Spa University or elsewhere.

Course structure

Environmental Humanities core modules
The first core module introduces the Environmental Humanities by studying key concepts and issues through the complementary lenses of literary studies, cultural geography, anthropology, environmental ethcis and religious studies. A second core module offers training in relevant Interdisciplinary Research Methods.

Optional modules may be drawn from fields including:

  • Environmental Philosophy and Ethics
  • Creative Writing
  • Ecocriticism
  • Heritage Studies
  • Environmental Anthropology

Please note that not all modules will run every year, and that admission to some may require you to show evidence of existing relevant skills.

Course modules

This course includes or offers the following modules. Please check the programme document for more information on which modules are core, required or optional.

  • Environmental Humanities: Issues and Approaches
  • Interdisciplinary Research Methods for the Environmental Humanities
  • Environmental Humanities: Dissertation
  • Environmental Humanities: Creative Project
  • Environmental Ethics and Philosophy
  • Environmental Writing and Ecocriticism
  • Cultural Landscapes
  • Managing Sustainability
  • Perspectives on Play and Creativity
  • Writing and the Environment
  • The Writer and Place
  • Contextualising Heritage
How will I be assessed?

Assessment is primarily based on written assignments, but can also include assessed creative practice where appropriate.

How will I be taught?

Teaching methods vary with the modules chosen, but will primarily take the form of intensive workshops and seminars in small groups, supplemented by lectures and other activities as appropriate. If you choose creative writing or practice modules you will be intensively mentored by established practitioners.

Teaching staff include:

To find out more about how we teach and how you'll learn, please read our Learning and Teaching Delivery Statement.

Opportunities

UK/EU Postgraduate Loans

Postgraduate studies are a significant investment. Bath Spa University has a wide range of funding possibilities to explore for UK/EU students.

Funding for International students

Details of funding opportunities for international students can be found on our postgraduate finance page. 

Further study and more

Your MA in Environmental Humanities will provide a solid basis from which to contribute to the "green" society and economy of the 21st century. It is also a perfect preparation for doctoral research in this burgeoning field, at Bath Spa University or elsewhere.

Adobe Creative Campus

Develop a wealth of indispensable digital skills that you can take into your future career. One of only three Adobe Creative Campuses in the UK, we provide all Bath Spa students with access to the full Adobe Creative Suite, giving you the tools to communicate creatively, whatever your course or chosen professional field.   

Facilities and resources

Where the subject is taught

The course is taught at our Newton Park campus.

Fees

2024 entry
Student Annual tuition fee
UK full time £8,595
UK part time £4,298*
International full time £15,905

Fee notes

*Fees shown are for part time study over two years, although some courses may be available over longer periods.

Interested in applying?

What we look for in potential students

The course is potentially suitable for graduates of any discipline. Exceptional candidates without a degree but with relevant professional or creative practice experience are also welcome to apply. See our Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) web page to learn more.

How do I apply?

Ready to apply? Click the 'apply now' button in the centre of this page. 

Need more guidance? Head to our how to apply webpages.

When to apply

Many of our postgraduate courses have a limited number of student spaces. To avoid the disappointment of the course being full, we recommend that you apply now.

Late applications (generally those made after 31 July) will only be considered if places remain on the course.

Need more information or still have questions? Contact us to discuss your situation.

Course Director: Mike Hannis
Email: m.hannis@bathspa.ac.uk

 

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