Objectives and competences

The Master's Degree in Medieval Cultures, which is currently coordinated by the Faculty of Philology and Communication, is an inter-faculty course, involving the faculties of Philology and Communication, Philosophy, Geography and History. It is taught by medieval specialists from disciplines such as archeology, Latin, Romance languages, Semitics, philosophy, history, history of art and paleography.

The Master's Degree in Medieval Cultures trains future specialists in the Middle Ages. It provides an overview of the European area, and of the tools required to understand European identity, the historical roots that are the basis of Europe's unity, and the plurality of cultural and linguistic expression in Europe. For a comprehensive approach to the Middle Ages, the master's degree establishes strong interrelation between the different fields that focus on this historical period. This interdisciplinarity is the basis of the master's degree and of the Institute for Research on Medieval Cultures (IRCUM): a centre that is associated with the master's degree and dedicated to research, knowledge transfer and dissemination on the medieval world. One of the main, differentiating characteristics of the master's degree is the fact that it is associated with a research centre, the Institute for Research on Medieval Cultures (IRCUM), and with the doctoral degree in Medieval Cultures. Other entities in this area are the Association of Interdisciplinary Research and Dissemination in Medieval Cultures (ARDIT), the association of third-cycle students linked to the Institute for Research on Medieval Cultures (IRCUM), and the Master's Degree in Medieval Culture at the University of Barcelona. The objectives of ARDIT are research and dissemination of the cultural legacy of the Middle Ages, from an interdisciplinary perspective.

Basic information

TypeMaster's degree
Faculty or schoolFaculty of Philology and Communication
Branch of knowledge
  • Interdisciplinary
  • Philology, classical studies, translation and linguistics
  • History, archaeology, geography, philosophy and humanities
Mode of delivery
  • Face-to-face
Credits90
Number of places available20
Length of course2 academic years
Language(s) of instruction80 % Catalan - 20 % Spanish
Approximate price per credit27.67 euros per credit (82 euros for students who are not EU nationals and do not currently reside in Spain). Fees for the academic year 2023-2024
CoordinationMARTA SANCHO PLANAS
Course detailsIndicators
Open pre-enrolmentYes
Open enrolmentNo
Lead to doctoral studiesYes
Admission for applicants not holding a degree qualificationNo
Bridging coursesNo

Objectives and competences

Objectives

The objective of this master's degree is to train researchers specializing in the Middle Ages. The interest and scientific relevance of the course lie in its interdisciplinarity, as the aim is to approach the complexity of the medieval era from traditional disciplines to give a complete, integrated picture.

Therefore, the general learning objectives are:

  • to learn in an interdisciplinary context about the historical, geographic, linguistic, literary, artistic and cultural influences on the medieval era;
  • to acquire the skills to work effectively in the field of archiving, museums and libraries specializing in the medieval era;
  • to learn to write scientific papers;
  • to develop an understanding of scientific life.

Competences

Basic competences

  • Knowledge forming the basis of original thinking in the development and/or application of ideas, typically in a research context.
  • Capacity to apply the acquired knowledge to problem-solving in new or relatively unknown environments within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts related to the field of studies.
  • Capacity to integrate knowledge and tackle the complexity of formulating judgements based on incomplete or limited information, taking due consideration of the social and ethical responsibilities involved in applying knowledge and making judgements.
  • Capacity to communicate knowledge and conclusions and the grounds on which they have been reached to specialist and non-specialist audiences in a clear and unambiguous manner.
  • Capacity for ongoing self-directed and independent learning.


General competences

  • Capacity to display the sensibilities to read medieval texts, to assess the information they carry and to interpret their meaning.
  • Capacity to respect intellectual ethics and integrity and learn to present and discuss their own opinions with good will and independence, showing clarity and rigour in the assessment of their own arguments and those of others.
  • Capacity to master the basic procedures of intellectual work, that is, to use the tools required to acquire knowledge (sources, bibliography, related disciplines) and to use techniques for presenting and disseminating results effectively (writing abstracts and research projects, preparing conferences and participating in debates).
  • Capacity to work in teams involved in multidisciplinary research that integrates common elements of diverse traditional cultures.
  • Ability to recognize the bearing of their own studies on contemporary debates outside the academic sphere and learn to use them adequately in the interpretation of reality.


Specific competences

  • Capacity to display an in-depth knowledge of basic theoretical and practical concepts in historical and literary areas of medieval studies.
  • Capacity to master the fundamental concepts of medieval writing, including the linguistic structures of Medieval Latin and the different graphic forms developed during the Middle Ages, and to transcribe and understand original medieval texts and documents.
  • Capacity to assess the historical aspect of documentary and textual sources to understand historical periods and actors involved in medieval cultures.
  • Capacity to establish relationships between the historical, cultural, ideological and aesthetic aspects of medieval culture, to understand common cultural elements across Europe.
  • Capacity to situate different written texts and art in the appropriate historical, literary, ideological and aesthetic contexts, in order to assess them as part of the tradition.
  • Capacity to critically access medieval texts and documents from various perspectives, such as history, literature, philosophy and art.
  • Capacity to display an understanding of the areas of research developed in medieval studies, their most problematic issues and general methodologies and to stay updated with the international scientific production in the field.
  • Capacity to carry out original research, founded on critical and scientific rigour by applying the knowledge and skills acquired during the master's degree.

Access and admission

Applicant profile and access requirements

Recommended applicant profile

The course is primarily intended for graduates in philology, philosophy, history, history of art, anthropology and the humanities who are interested in developing specialist knowledge of the Middle Ages. Prospective students must have a keen interest in acquiring a cross-disciplinary understanding of the period, as this is one of the underlying aims of the degree.

Access requirements and conditions

General requirements
In accordance with Article 16 of Royal Decree 1393/2007, of 29 October, students wishing to be admitted to a university master's degree must hold one of the following qualifications:

  • Official Spanish university degree.

  • A degree issued by a higher education institution within the European Higher Education Area framework that authorizes the holder to access university master's degree courses in the country of issue.

  • A qualification issued by an institution outside the framework of the European Higher Education Area. In this case, applicants must request homologation of the degree to its equivalent official Spanish university qualification or obtain express approval from the University of Barcelona, which will conduct a study of equivalence to ensure that the degree is of a comparable level to an official Spanish university qualification and that it grants access to university master's degree study in the country of issue. Admission shall not, in any case, imply that prior qualifications have been recognized as equivalent to a Spanish master's degree and does not confer recognition for any purposes other than that of admission to the master's degree course.

Specific requirements
  • Bachelor's degree or pre-EHEA degree in History, History of Art, Philosophy, Romance Languages, Classics, Catalan Philology, Hispanic Studies, Literary Studies, Linguistics, Humanities, Archeology or Anthropology.

  • Pre-EHEA degree in English, French, Galician, Portuguese, Hebrew Studies, Semitic Languages, or Literary Theory, Comparative Literature, Archeology or Anthropology.

  • Bachelor's degree in English Studies, Modern Languages and Literature, or Arabic and Hebrew Studies.

  • Undergraduate degree not listed above but with similar content and objectives to the master's degree course.

Pre-enrolment

Calendar

1 March - 15 September 2024.

Notes:

  • Pre-enrolment fee: A pre-enrolment fee of 30,21 euros is charged. Students who apply to more than one master's degree must pay the fee for each pre-enrolment request. Pre-enrolment requests cannot be processed until this fee has been paid.Fees will only be refunded if the master's degree in question is suspended.
  • Reserved places: A maximum of 5% of the new places of the master's degree are reserved for students who meet the general and specific access requirements and accredit the recognition of a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33%.

Required documentation

Selection criteria

The following criteria will be taken into account for admission to the master's degree:
1. Bachelor's degree or pre-EHEA degree in history, archaeology, history of art, languages, philosophy, theology and humanities (50%).
2. Strength of academic record and curriculum vitae (20%).
3. Knowledge of Latin and paleography (10%).
4. Language skills: English, French, Italian or German (10%).
5. Other training and experience, motivation for studying the master's degree. This must be included in the application documents (10%).

Notification

The Admissions Committee, which is formed by the coordinator and members of the Master's Degree Committee, will make all decisions on admission during the pre-enrolment period, which is the same for all the master's degree courses at the Faculty of Philology.

The period for submission of pre-enrolment applications opens in February and closes on 15 September each year. The Committee will meet monthly to assess the applications and documents received and will announce its decisions at the ending of each month.

Enrolment

As a general rule, at the UB you will be required to enrol online. Remember that you can lose your place if you do not enrol on the day you have been assigned

Course curriculum

Placements

Placements in a company or another type of organization are an integral part of university studies, providing first-hand experience of working methodologies in students' chosen professional fields. They offer invaluable practical experience for the transition into work after graduation.



Placements are supervised by tutors and subject to assessment. They are therefore included in the academic record.  There is also an option to complete non-curricular placements of up to 500 hours, which can be extended to 900 hours. For both curricular and non-curricular placements, an educational cooperation agreement is signed between the UB and the company, institution or other organization at which the placement will be carried out.



Institutional information


Career opportunities

What can you work on ?

Holders of the Master's Degree in Medieval Cultures will have the skills to:
- Become professional researchers in scientific areas of the humanities and social sciences (particularly in philology, philosophy, history and history of art).
- Become teachers at all levels of the education system in the same or related areas.
- Work as agents and promoters of cultural activities related to the objectives of the master's degree, for example, as journalists or exhibition organisers, and carry out tasks related with the conservation and use of the medieval art legacy, archiving and museum science.

Access to the labour market

Data from the university system in Catalonia

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