Master's Programme in Digital Humanities
Academic year 2023/2024
- 120 credits
- Autumn 2023, Uppsala, 100%, Campus
- Programme syllabus
Do you have a background in the humanities or social sciences and want to learn about digital media? Do you want to know how to improve your skills using digital tools? Have you thought about how digital technologies impact culture, society, research and our everyday life? The Master's Programme in Digital Humanities offers you the opportunity to complement your humanities studies with highly sought-after technical skills and knowledge about the digital era.
Why this programme?
Over the past few decades, new digital tools have emerged that are now used within a range of humanities and social science disciplines. The Master's Programme in Digital Humanities provides a solid grasp of how powerful digital tools can be used to analyse, visualise and research digital media and digitised materials. You will also learn to digitise and process different types of texts and images and how these can be made available at cultural heritage institutions and in other contexts.
The programme is multidisciplinary and driven by humanistic inquiry and curiosity. Key themes are the critical evaluation of digital technologies and their use in a number of areas, including knowledge production and cultural heritage.
There is a great demand from the cultural sector for professionals with knowledge of digital humanities. This programme offers opportunities for national or international careers in a variety of professions. You will be able to work with, for example, cultural heritage, digitisation and cultural and information services. Another option is the development and investigative work requiring a background in humanities or social science, and technical skills. The programme also provides a good foundation for doctoral studies in several disciplines if you want to pursue a career in research.
As a student at the Master's Programme in Digital Humanities you will acquire useful skills in and knowledge of the following areas:
- how digital media and digital tools and methods can be used to support humanities and social-science work and competencies and broaden their applicability in professional and scholarly settings,
- how computer-driven methods can be used to analyse, visualise and enact humanities and social-science inquiries into digital source materials,
- key areas of research in the field of digital humanities and the history of the digital humanities, and
- the state of affairs of important cultural-heritage challenges including matters of accessibility and the infrastructural, organisational, economic, political, and ethical complexities of the present-day cultural-heritage field.
The programme includes compulsory courses in digital humanities, but you are also able to deepen or broaden your knowledge in another field of study by choosing from a range of elective courses to include in your degree.
Degree
The programme leads to a Master of Arts (120 credits) with Digital Humanities as the main field of study.
Name: Elisa Serrano Ausejo
From: Spain
How did you choose your programme?
I always wanted to apprehend the digital technologies used within my field, which is history. In previous academic works, I felt I lacked tools that could be useful and enable different paths of analysis and communication. I would say I approached the program from an interest in the technological part. Still, I encountered a more significant scope and a lot of critical approaches to technology.
What was it like to be an international student?
I was already living in Sweden when I started the program. Still, I was an international student with a new living in Uppsala, and it felt good. I met colleagues from other countries who were in a comparable situation to mine and had similar interests. I liked the diversity of students with different backgrounds, a very inviting environment to meet new people, speak English, and enjoy.
Do you remember your first impression of Uppsala? Please tell!
I have only nice words towards Uppsala. My first memory is a city walk in the centre on a weekend. I remember an old book market by the river, where I bought some books at such a good price. It is a city that invites you to be outdoors, full of life and opportunities.
What is your best memory?
As a student, my life was studying a lot. I studied the courses in the master and my Swedish courses at the same time. It meant not a lot of free time but still some that allowed me to visit many wonderful places. Among my best memories, some of the visits we did together with our professors. I loved the one we did at the National Museum. It was great.
What were your reason for studying and your ultimate goal?
When I started my Master's, I was working in a school as a Spanish teacher. I wanted to return to my Bachelor's field. This master was an excellent opportunity to get skills that are not very common among historians. I saw it as a chance to open new job opportunities in a world that demands digital skills. At the same time, it could help with my wish to participate in research projects.
What do you do today?
Today I am working as a PhD student at Umeå University. I want to investigate how the pedagogy of history and new technologies interact and communicate. It is a fascinating topic where my previous studies and interests intersect.
Do you have any tips for future students?
I would say it is valuable to engage with projects and opportunities. Swedish university provides opportunities to students, such as elaborating publications, participating in internships, or introducing professional projects and those who promote them. It is essential to take advantage of them.
Two quick questions
What was your favourite place in Uppsala?
Second-hand book store Röda Rummet.
What is your favourite student tradition at Uppsala University?
As a student, I could eat and drink at much better prices. Apart from that, I was never very enthusiastic about students' traditions but I know that Uppsala is very rich in them.
Autumn 2021.
Programme
The programme is made up of courses, usually 7.5 credits each, and a Master's thesis. The compulsory part of the programme consists of ten courses comprising a total of 97.5 credits, including a project course with the possibility of a work placement (7.5 credits) and a Master's thesis (30 credits).
The first year's compulsory courses provide a broad range of knowledge in the theoretical, practical and technical aspects of digital humanities. Digitisation, visualisation of different types of data, such as images and artefacts, and methods for how digitised material can be analysed and conveyed are central focuses of the first year.
In the second year, you can choose 22.5 credits of elective courses from Uppsala University's course catalogue, which allows you the freedom to personalise and specialise in your Master's degree. Depending on when the elective courses you choose are offered, you can decide when to begin your Master's thesis and the compulsory project course with the possibility of a work placement. The programme's teachers offer support in planning your personal study plan for year two.
Courses within the programme
Semester 1
Introduction to Digital Humanities, 7.5 credits
Tools and Methods: Critical Encounters, 7.5 credits
Digital Cultural Heritage, 7.5 credits
Digital Implementations in Heritage, 7.5 credits
Semester 2
Distant Reading, 7.5 credits
Theory and Methods in Digital Humanities, 7.5 credits
Information Mediation and User Perspectives in the Digital Era, 7.5 credits
Visual Analysis: Materiality and Digital Humanities, 7.5 credits
Semesters 3 and 4
Electives, 22.5 credits
Project design course with the possibility of work placement, 7.5 credits
Master's thesis, 30 credits
Please note that the order of courses and the courses themselves can be subject to change as the programme is constantly being tuned to maintain the highest international standard and to reflect developments within the field of digital humanities.
Learning experience
Teaching primarily takes the form of lectures, practical exercises with digital methods and tools, supervision and seminars. Exercises, seminars and supervision are usually compulsory unless otherwise stated in the course syllabus. You will also be expected to participate in group work, which requires collaboration and communication skills.
The main formats for examination are individual or group-based written assignments, individual exams, seminar assignments and the Master's thesis.
In addition to the scheduled teaching, you are expected to study and prepare, on your own or in groups, that which is required to achieve the learning objectives of the programme's courses. The programme is both theoretical and practical; it is application-oriented and takes an experimental approach. During the second year, within the framework of the project course, there is the opportunity for a placement at a workplace or other type of organisation.
Teaching for the programme's compulsory courses takes place on campus in Uppsala.
The language of instruction and course literature is English.
Career
With a Master's degree in Digital Humanities, you will be attractive in many sectors of the labour market, both in Sweden and abroad. You will be able to work within cultural heritage and digitisation and with cultural and information services. The major archives, libraries and museums are examples of potential future employers. At these institutions, there is a great demand for humanities-based skills in digitisation, digital communication and digital knowledge production. These are skills that you will have mastered upon completing the programme.
Your humanities background and technical skills can also open up opportunities in development and investigative work, as well as in multidisciplinary projects. Through your expertise in conducting research with a humanities approach using digital source materials and tools, this degree will make you an attractive candidate for doctoral studies in the disciplines associated with the Master's Programme in Digital Humanities. The programme currently collaborates with the PhD programmes in the fields of library and information science, archaeology and ancient history, art history, and textile studies. You can therefore gain eligibility for a PhD position in one of these disciplines by focusing your elective courses and your two-year Master's thesis topic in your chosen discipline.
Career support
During your time as a student, UU Careers offers support and guidance. You have the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities and events that will prepare you for your future career. Learn more about UU Careers.
Admissions
Below you will find details about eligibility requirements, selection criteria and tuition fees. For information on how to apply and what general documents you need to submit, check the application guide. Besides the general supporting documents, you also need to submit one programme-specific document: an Application Summary Sheet (including your statement of purpose).
Please note that you must fill in every section of the Application Summary Sheet if your programme application is to be considered complete.
Master's Programme in Digital Humanities
120 credits
Autumn 2023, 100%, Campus
Location: Uppsala
Application deadline: 16 January 2023
Application code: UU-M5280 Application
Language of instruction: English
Requirements:
Academic requirements
A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university. The main field of study must be within the humanities or the social sciences.
Language requirements
Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries. Detailed instructions on how to provide evidence of your English proficiency are available at universityadmissions.se.
Selection: Students are selected based on a statement of purpose including a summary of their Bachelor's thesis (or equivalent project work).
Tuition fee-paying students and non-paying students are admitted on the same grounds but in different selection groups.
Fees:
If you are not a citizen of a European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) country, or Switzerland, you are required to pay application and tuition fees. Fees cover application and tuition only and do not cover accommodation, academic literature or the general cost of living. Read more about fees.
Application fee: SEK 900
Tuition fee, first semester: SEK 50,000
Tuition fee, total: SEK 200,000
Contact and further resources
Is this programme right for you?
If you are interested in getting an insider's view of the Master's Programme in Digital Humanities, take a look at the programme blog. The blog offers course snapshots, teacher portraits, and more!
Contact
For programme specific information, contact: Olle Sköld
+46 18 471 15 89
For admissions-related or general information, please contact our applicant support team:
Engelska parken Thunbergsvägen 3H 752 38 Uppsala
Box 625, 751 26 UPPSALA
018-471 2292
www.uu.se/education