Archaeology and Heritage MA
School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities,
Faculty of Arts and Humanities
-
Start date
September 2026 -
Duration
1 year -
Attendance
Full-time
Explore this course:
Apply now for 2026 entry or register your interest to find out about postgraduate study and events at the University of Sheffield.
Course description
Our MA Archaeology and Heritage programme provides a route into advanced study where you can build a strong foundation in archaeology and the heritage sector.
This programme offers a clear, coherent structure that allows you to engage with contemporary issues such as climate change, sustainability and migration. You will develop a broad range of professional and transferable skills needed to progress to a successful career.
The programme has a clear focus on professional practice, with a summer work placement with a professional heritage organisation. You will be supported in taking an active role in developing this opportunity, building a professional network and gaining skills that will enhance your career prospects.
Modules
The content of our courses is reviewed annually to make sure it's up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn. This is in response to discoveries through our world-leading research; funding changes; professional accreditation requirements; student or employer feedback; outcomes of reviews; and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change we will inform students and take reasonable steps to minimise disruption.
Open days
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Duration
1 year full-time
Teaching
Teaching will include a mix of classroom, individual and field-based methods and through the collection and management of varied data sets.
Lectures will introduce core concepts, principles and sources. This will provide a base of knowledge which will be developed through other learning opportunities.
Small group seminars will encourage exploration and discussion of ideas covered in lectures, methods used in workshops and questions arising from reading.
Field trips and site visits are an important part of the development of all archaeologists and other heritage professionals. We are surrounded by the historic environment at all times: landscapes, buildings and streetscapes and on field trips students will practice key skills including observation and description, as well as applying ideas learnt in lectures and discussions.
Assessment
We use a range of assessment types to support learning and to develop skills relevant to the sector, building skills in writing for different audiences - including academics, professionals and the wider public.
Core modules are assessed with a mix of project proposals, professional standard reports, essays and digital outputs.
The work placement is assessed by the production of a report and a short reflection on the learning process and outcomes.
Optional modules will extend these forms further, with digital presentations, blog-style writing and creative work, as well as essays and formal writing.
After every assignment, you will receive formal structured, written feedback which is designed to help you to improve your work through the course of the programme.
You'll also receive informal feedback on ongoing work, oral presentations and in-class activities from module coordinators and from your academic tutor. Throughout the MA programme you will have an opportunity to reflect on feedback and progress with a dedicated academic tutor.
Your career
Archaeology and heritage graduates are valued by employers from many different sectors. These include charities, finance, retail and administration, teaching, environmental work, and of course the heritage sector, in universities, museums, archaeological units, heritage parks, national or local government.
While there is a strong emphasis on the commercial archaeological sector, this programme also prepares you for roles in local and national government, museums, archives, community engagement, and within educational and charitable sectors.
Archaeology and the historic environment are a wide-ranging and flexible vehicle to deliver social, economic, and cultural benefits, and this programme will introduce you to the potential contribution the profession can make across a range of sectors.
Students from this programme have gone on to work in a wide range of roles within the heritage industry across all sectors of the economy. Recent graduate destinations include:
- Assistant project officer
- Historic buildings project officer
- Post-doctoral researcher
- Commercial field archaeologist
- Museum staff
- Deputy business manager
- Researcher and lecturer
- PhD research
School
School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities
In the School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities, we interrogate some of the most significant and pressing aspects of human life, offering new perspectives and tackling globally significant issues.
As a postgraduate history student at Sheffield you’ll be taught by historians who are engaged in cutting-edge research in a huge variety of fields which range from 1000 BCE right up to the twenty-first century and encompasses traditional historians and expert archaeologists. This diversity feeds into a vibrant and varied curriculum which allows students to pursue their interests across both space and time, from the ancient Middle East to modern day Europe, and from fifteenth-century human sacrifice to twentieth-century genocide.
You'll join a thriving and supportive postgraduate community which organises a wide variety of social and research events to help you feel fully immersed in our community and allow you to share your ideas, challenge your thinking and broaden your understanding.
Entry requirements
Minimum 2:1 undergraduate honours degree in a relevant subject.
Subject requirements
Your degree should be in an Arts and Humanities or Social Sciences subject.
View an indicative list of degree titles we would consider
English language requirements
IELTS 6.5 (with 6 in each component) or University equivalent
Other requirements
If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the school.
Fees and funding
Alumni discount
Save up to £2,500 on your course fees
Are you a Sheffield graduate? You could save up to £2,500 on your postgraduate taught course fees, subject to eligibility.
Apply
You can apply now using our Postgraduate Online Application Form. It's a quick and easy process.
Contact
Any supervisors and research areas listed are indicative and may change before the start of the course.
Recognition of professional qualifications: from 1 January 2021, in order to have any UK professional qualifications recognised for work in an EU country across a number of regulated and other professions you need to apply to the host country for recognition. Read information from the UK government and the EU Regulated Professions Database.