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SOAS University of London

MA Anthropology of Global Futures and Sustainability

DURATION

1 Years

LANGUAGES

English

PACE

Full time, Part time

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Request application deadline

EARLIEST START DATE

Sep 2024

TUITION FEES

GBP 25,320 / per year *

STUDY FORMAT

On-Campus

* for overseas student fees | home student fees: GBP 12,220 per year

Introduction

In the MA Anthropology of Global Futures and Sustainability we tackle the most urgent challenges of our times, offering students the opportunity to explore, communicate and address them as engaged global citizens.

We ask fundamental questions about what it is to be human in a complex and ever-changing world, critically questioning existing assumptions and knowledge, and productively thinking about how to create a more just and sustainable world. The programme equips students with the theoretical and methodological tools to understand crises of climate change, sustainability, and global inequalities, as well as the experience, skills, and hands-on opportunities to influence policy and practice and to live prosperously in an unprecedented future.

Why study MA Global Futures and Sustainability at SOAS?

We are ranked 5th in the UK and 12th in the world for Anthropology (QS World University Rankings 2023)
We are ranked 6th in the UK for employability (QS World University Rankings 2023).

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Admissions

Curriculum

The programme consists of 180 credits in total: 120 credits of modules and a dissertation of 10,000 words at 60 credits.

This programme is designed to give students practical knowledge and tools for tackling climate change and helping to create a sustainable future. A mix of seminars, lectures, workshops and practical sessions will form the teaching of the programme. Assessment will be conducted through a combination of essays, reflective pieces, practical exercises (such as methodological experiments), presentations in writing and other media and reports.

There are five core elements

Sustainability

The big challenges in development and future thinking (environmental movements, humanitarianism, economic alternatives, refugees, racism, pandemics).

Climate Change

A focused examination of theory, institutions and knowledge.

Ethnographic Research Methods

The theory and practice of excellent anthropological research.

How to Change Things

How to present and target research in the world. You will also receive direct instruction from experts, including engaged anthropologists, activists and artists, on our flagship engaged anthropology module. This includes practical training in how to lobby governments for change, how to produce media for a range of audiences, how to engage with and advocate for communities, and how to effect positive change towards the ends of social justice.

Dissertation

Opportunity to research, produce and present an original project based on the themes of the programme.

Modules

Along with the programme’s core modules, students will also be able to choose other modules offered in the department, such as Anthropology of Food and Migration and Diaspora, among many others. In addition, module options from departments across SOAS, including a range of languages and other disciplines, will be available, allowing students to tailor their MA to their skills and interests.

Compulsory Modules

Ethnographic Research Methods
Anthropology and Climate Change
Anthropology of Sustainability: Global Challenges and Alternative Futures
How to Change Things
Contemporary Anthropological Theory

Guided options

Directed Practical Study: Placements in the Field
Ethnographic Locations: East Asia
Ethnographic Locations: Sub-Saharan Africa
Migration, Borders and Space: Decolonial Approaches
Medical Anthropology: Global Perspectives
Diet, Society and Environment
Cities and Development