American Studies, PhD

COURSE OVERVIEW

A PhD or MPhil in American Studies at Swansea enables you to undertake a substantial project led by your own passions and interests.

It represents a highly respected qualification which can present a pathway to a career in academia, or widen your scope for employment in fields such as education, government or the private sector.

The PhD takes three years full-time or six years part-time, and the MPhil takes two years full-time or four years part-time.

You will submit a thesis of up to 100,000 words for PhD assessment and 60,000 words for MPhil assessment, demonstrating original research with a substantive contribution to the subject area. This is followed by an oral examination of the thesis (a viva voce examination, or viva).

Our dynamic research environment is driven by committed staff who are all active researchers with a diverse range of interests and expertise through our Research Groups:

The Conflict, Reconstruction and Memory Research Group (CRAM)
Global Drug Policy Observatory (GDPO)
International Studies, Conflict and Security (ISCAS)
Political Analysis and Government (PAG)

This expertise includes:

• the American civil war
• US foreign policy
• the US ‘war on drugs’
• US politics and government
• surveillance and urban America
• American conservatism
• American military history
• 20th century American literature, film and popular culture

Programme Summary

This PhD in American Studies at Swansea will enable you to undertake a substantial project led by your own interests. It is a highly respected qualification which can present a career in academia or a wider scope for employment in fields such as education, government or the private sector. A thesis of 100,000 words will be submitted for assessment demonstrating original research with a substantive contribution to the subject area. The PhD is examined following an oral examination of the thesis (a viva voce examination or viva voce). You will acquire research skills for high-level work and skills and training programmes are available on campus for further support. There will be an opportunity to deliver presentations to research students and staff at departmental seminars and conferences. There may also be opportunities to develop your teaching skills through undergraduate tutorials, demonstrations and seminars.

Programme Aims

This PhD programme will provide doctoral researchers with:

1. The opportunity to conduct high quality postgraduate research in a world leading research environment.
2. Key skills needed to undertake advanced academic and non-academic research including qualitative and quantitative data analysis.
3. Advanced critical thinking, intellectual curiosity and independent judgement.

Assessment

Doctoral researchers for the PhD in American Studies are examined in two parts.

The first part is a thesis which is an original body of work representing the methods and results of the research project. The maximum word limit is 100,000 for the main text. The word limit does not include appendices (if any), essential footnotes, introductory parts and statements or the bibliography and index.