MSt Late Antique & Byzantine Studies - Course Handbook

2024-25

Disclaimer

The information in this handbook is accurate as at October 1st 2024. Although it may be necessary for changes to be made in certain circumstances, as explained at www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/coursechanges, it is hoped to keep such changes to a minimum. If changes are made the faculty will publish a new version of this handbook together with a list of the changes and students will be informed.

The Examination Regulations relating to this course are available at https://examregs.admin.ox.ac.uk/ or Appendix 2 below.

If you have any concerns or queries please contact the Graduate Office at graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk.

This handbook has been prepared this for students starting the Master of Studies (MSt) in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies in Michaelmas Term 2024. We hope that it will be particularly useful to you when you first arrive in Oxford, but you are advised to refer to it throughout your course, as it will be of considerable help throughout the period of your study.

It contains information about the structure of the course, teaching and assessment deadlines, how to format and submit your work, and the exam conventions that set out how your work is marked. It also acts as a signpost to more general information, including useful contacts and locations around the Faculty and university.

To note that you are required to complete an online course on plagiarism and how to avoid it. On successfully completing this course you will receive a certificate, which you should email to graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk by the end of Week 1 Michaelmas term.

Introductory events often take place during Week 0 of Michaelmas Term.

Term dates can be found here: Dates of Term | University of Oxford 

As well as this handbook, you will also find these other sources of information useful:

The Late Antique and Byzantine Studies Canvas pages: https://canvas.ox.ac.uk/courses/13970

 To find information about your course, such as reading lists and available options.
The Oxford Historians Hub: https://ohh.web.ox.ac.uk/ To find information on studying history at Oxford, the termly lecture list, details of the Oxford History Graduate Network, how to present your work when submitting it, and other general information relating to your studies.
Examination regulations: https://examregs.admin.ox.ac.uk/. The definitive rules that govern the course.
Marking criteria and conventions in this handbook The rules by which your work is marked.

Your supervisor will review, monitor and comment on your academic progress using Graduate Supervision Reporting (GSR), which is accessible via Student Self Service (https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/selfservice). You are also encouraged to submit comments on this system.

An introduction to Oxford for new students is available on the university website: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/new.

This programme is convened and administered by the Faculty of History. If you need help or advice relating to your course, and can’t find the answer in this handbook or on Canvas, you should contact one of the following:

Details of the administrative staff that support the Master’s courses can be found on the Academic Administration page of the History Faculty website: https://www.history.ox.ac.uk/administrative-staff.

If you have any comments or suggestions about the content of this handbook, please email them to graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk.

Welcome to your Master's course in History at Oxford. I look forward to meeting you in person at some point in the coming year and wish you every success in the months to come. Above all, I hope that you enjoy postgraduate study here and find it rewarding.

Our Faculty is one of the largest history departments in the world. It brings together an extraordinary array of scholars pursuing an unparalleled range of research. This is reflected in the abundance of research seminars, regular graduate workshops, special lectures and discussion panels that take place throughout the academic year. As a postgraduate student, you will probably be spending more time in independent study than you did as an undergraduate, and the live, in-person discussion available at a regular research seminar can be important for both social support and intellectual stimulation. You will find events listed on the Faculty website; while you will need to prioritise attendance at lectures and seminars in your own specialist area, you are welcome to attend anything that interests you. In this respect, I also encourage you to explore Oxford's intellectual life beyond the Faculty, in the Colleges, the lecture lists and seminar series of other faculties and departments, and at TORCH (the Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities).

The Graduate Joint Consultative Committee (GJCC), made up of academic staff and student representatives, meets every term. It works in conjunction with the Oxford History Graduate Network (OHGN), a student-led forum that organises social and academic events and raises matters of concern to students with the Faculty's graduate office. You can find more details of both these organisations at the links above and I would encourage you to think about getting involved

The MSt and MPhil in History bring together nine "strands", or different areas of historical research. You therefore belong to two cohorts: a smaller one focused around your strand and a larger one encompassing all students on the master's program. In your first term, the Sources and Historiography seminar will be your introduction to your specific strand, and your Theories and Methods class will bring you together with other students on the larger degree course. We hope that you will benefit from both the stimulus of working with historians of other periods and places, and the specialist expertise of the tutors on your strand.

Like any large institution, the collegiate University of Oxford is a complex place to navigate and it is entirely normal to find it difficult to get around both the place and its processes. Whenever you have questions that aren't answered in this handbook or elsewhere on the Faculty or University websites, you should contact your thesis supervisor or (for College or welfare issues) your College advisor, Tutor for Graduates, or College welfare team; your course tutors; or the convenor of your strand. You are also welcome to contact the Graduate Office, whether in person, by phone (01865 [6115011) or by email (graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk). If you still don't have an answer to your question, or if you have concerns you don't wish to share with your supervisor, tutors, or the office, please do contact either Richard Reid, the Convenor of the MSt/MPhil in History, or me.

While graduate study can be very exciting, it can (and should) also be challenging. We hope most of the challenges you face at Oxford will be intellectual ones, but other challenges – whether financial, personal, or related to physical and/or mental health – are not uncommon. If you feel you’re struggling for any reason, don’t go it alone: we may be able to help. So do reach out to one of the people mentioned or the Faculty’s welfare lead, Maya Blackwell (maya.blackwell@history.ox.ac.uk).

 

This handbook is intended to be a comprehensive guide to the teaching, assessment and administrative arrangements of the course (but please note that the formal rules governing the programme are set out separately in the University's Examination Regulations); it also contains useful information on other aspects of life in Oxford as a postgraduate historian. You can find further information about graduate matters on our Canvas pages.

Once again, welcome to graduate work in history at Oxford.

Dr Katherine Lebow

Director of Graduate Studies in History

1| Course Content and Structure

All course information can be found on Canvas.

The Master of Studies in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies has been devised as a multi-purpose introduction to the Roman world in Late Antiquity, to Byzantium, the medieval successor of the East Roman Empire, and to neighbouring peoples and their cultures.

It can be taken as a free-standing degree, or as the first step towards doctoral research. Students have the option of selecting a focus of study dependent on their knowledge of languages or on their primary interests in the field.

All students take the core paper on History and Art & Archaeology, or History and Literature, with an emphasis on either Late Antiquity (covering the Later Roman Empire and adjoining regions) or Byzantium (covering the Byzantine Empire and adjoining regions).

Two basic pathways lead into each field of study, and graduate students are expected, in consultation with their supervisor or the programme convenor, to choose between them at the beginning of the course:

Language pathway: This is the standard option for those new to this field of specialist study and offers intensive training in any one of the following ancient and medieval languages and their literatures: Greek, Latin, Slavonic, Armenian, Syriac, Coptic, Arabic.

The course extends over nine months and consists of three units:

  • A core paper on History, Art and Archaeology, or History and Byzantine Literature
  • A language paper
  • A literature paper

Research skills pathway: This option is designed for those who already have considerable competence in their chosen language and are able to read the primary sources in the original. Students receive instruction in one or two Auxiliary Disciplines and engage with a Special Subject of their own choice.

The course extends over nine months and consists of three units:

  • A core paper on History, Art and Archaeology, or History and Byzantine Literature
  • One special subject
  • Auxiliary discipline(s)

You MUST check all deadlines against the Examination Regulations for your course. If there are any discrepancies with what is published here, the official Examination Regulations take precedence.

Extensions to deadlines for the submission of assessed work can be requested ONLY from the Proctors, where there is good cause, i.e. circumstances beyond your control preventing you from completing assessed work on time. Details of policy and procedure can be found here  lease note that you are responsible for the timely submission of your assessed work: submitting work, especially your thesis, after the original deadline may mean that your work will not be marked according to the usual timetable, and you must not make plans for graduation without first checking with the Graduate Office that your marks will have been ratified by the relevant Board of Examiners in time.  

Michaelmas Term

Week 6, Monday Selection of Papers Confirm which papers you have selected, by email to the Graduate Office (graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk)

Week 8, Thursday (11:59pm)

Online Exam Entry

Exam Schools will contact you with details of how to do this.

PLEASE NOTE that this is compulsory, and that Exam Schools charge a fee for late entries and modifications to exam entries.

Hilary Term

Week 2, Friday (5pm) Core Essay 1 title Submit your essay title for your first core essay to the Graduate Office by email (graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk)*
Week 6, Monday (noon) Core Essay submission (essay 1) Submit your first core essay (see Section 2 [Submission & Assessment guidance] on how to submit)

Trinity Term

Week 2, Friday (5pm) Core Essay 2 and Special Subject Paper titles Submit your essay titles for your second core essay and your special subject paper to the Graduate Office by email (graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk)*
Week 6, Monday (noon) Core Essay submission (essay 2) Submit your second core essay and your special subject paper(s) (see Section 2 [Submission & Assessment guidance] on how to submit)
Special Subject Paper Submission
Week 9 Examinations Attend examination for languages and auxiliary disciplines (excluding Papyrology). Exam timetables will be made available earlier in Trinity Term by Exam Schools

*Modification of your essay and dissertation titles is only possible up to five days before the submission deadline, and requires the permission of the course/option tutor or (for your dissertation) your supervisor. Once permission has been obtained, the new title should be sent to the Graduate Office by email (graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk).

Please note that most title changes that are approved are small adjustments to the title and/or focus of an essay or dissertation. Proposed title changes that radically alter the topic of a piece of work are unlikely to be granted approval at a late stage

Teaching

This module comprises two sets of weekly classes, taught during the first two terms of the academic year. Students select one of the following options:

  • Core Paper on History, Art and Archaeology, and Literature: Late Antiquity
  • Core Paper on History, Art and Archaeology, and Literature: Byzantium

Assessment

This module is assessed through the submission of two 5,000-word essays on topics of your choosing (subject to the approval of your supervisor).

These must be submitted by the deadlines in the table above. See Section 2 for guidance on submission and presentation of work.

Teaching

There is a broad range of relevant language and literature and special subject papers available; please consult your supervisor or the programme convenor for advice on the choices which would be most suitable to your academic development.

There are no detailed descriptions for these papers, as much of the teaching will be tailored to the individual training needs and interests of students on the programme. The programme convenor and a candidate's individual supervisor will agree with the student a suitable programme of work at the start of the academic year.

Assessment

This module is assessed through the submission of either two 5,000 word essays or a 10,000 word dissertation.

These must be submitted by the deadline in the table above. See Section 2 for guidance on submission and presentation of work.

Teaching

The following auxiliary disciplines are on offer:

Half papers

The half papers are taken in pairs and count together as one Advanced Option.

  • epigraphy
  • palaeography
  • numismatics 
  • sigillography 

Full papers

  • papyrology 
  • artefact studies (ceramics, mosaics, ivories, or carved marbles) 

 

Assessment

Half Papers

These papers are usually examined by an unseen 90-minute examination.

Full Papers

Papyrology which is examined by two 5,000-word essays.

Artefact Studies is examined by an unseen 180-minute examination.

Formative feedback

This is offered through:

  • small classes or tutorial groups, which allow constant monitoring of development
  • submission of written work on a regular basis
  • meetings with supervisors, which occur several times a term. The dissertation is guided and monitored on a regular basis by a specialist supervisor. As mentioned earlier, your supervisor should also submit termly reports on the Graduate Supervision Reporting (GSR) system.

Summative feedback

The examiners will provide summative feedback on your assessed essays and your dissertation. This will be sent to you via email, by the Graduate Office. Please note that we are not able to release any marks until after the final exam board at the end of the course. The procedures for summative assessment are outlined in the Examination conventions.

Please note that marking is inherently subjective, and it is not uncommon to receive two separate pieces of feedback that may differ in tone or perspective.

During the admissions process you are assigned a supervisor to direct your intended individual research. In the course of the first term, your research focus may change – and in some this may lead to a change in your supervision arrangements. If this happens, you should complete a GSO.25 form (change of supervisor or appointment of joint supervisor) and submit it to the Academic Office so that the student record system can be updated: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/graduate/progression.

Your supervisor’s primary responsibility is to advise you on the programme of work necessary to complete your dissertation or thesis. To this end, they should maintain a general overview over your course work and academic development. They should help you to identify and acquire the knowledge and skills needed to complete your dissertation or thesis, and to further your aims for study or employment, insofar as these build upon the programme of graduate study.

The programme of teaching is supported by regular graduate seminars, which run throughout the academic year and will be attended by graduate students and staff.

Details can be found in the Lecture List on the Oxford Historian Hub, but note that a weekly email alert will tell you about all the seminars, lectures and visiting speaker presentations organised by the Faculty of History.

 

It may be possible to change programme from the MSt to the MPhil, but this requires the approval of your supervisor, of the convenor of the MPhil progamme, of the Faculty’s Director of Graduate Studies, and of your College - the decision is also subject to space and teaching capacity on the MPhil course, and will be made with consideration of your progress on the MSt. The MPhil is a separate programme, with a separate admissions quota, and admission to the MSt does not confer a right of admission to the MPhil (or to any other graduate course in the University). Please note that if you do change programme, this may have an effect on your funding and/or visa status. Applications to change programme must be made during Hilary term and if you are considering this, you should make inquiries as early as possible. It will not  be possible to consider such applications after Friday of 8th Week of Hilary Term.

The Change of Programme of Study form for this process (GSO.28) can be found here.

Appendix

The History Faculty is able to provide some support for student research through its trust funds, but you are expected to explore also other sources of support such as your college. Details regarding trust funds can be found on the Oxford Historians Hub.

The Faculty also offers annual prizes for the best dissertations. A central list of all University prizes can be found here.

2024-25, Master of Studies in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies (ox.ac.uk)

1. Candidates must satisfy the Committee for Byzantine Studies and the appropriate Faculty Boards that they possess the necessary qualifications in Greek (ancient or modern) and/or Latin to profit by the course.

2. Every candidate must follow for at least three terms a course of instruction in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies. Candidates will, when they enter for the examination, be required to produce from their society a certificate that they are following such a course.

3. Candidates must take three of the following five papers. All candidates take the core paper on History, Art and Archaeology, or, if they already have the required linguistic competence, History and Byzantine Literature. For the remainder of their course they choose either the two Language and Literature papers, or, Auxiliary Disciplines and one Special Subject.

I. Core paper on History, Art and Archaeology , or History and Byzantine Literature:

Either

(a) Late Antiquity (covering the Roman Empire and adjoining regions)

or

(b) Byzantium

The core paper will be taught in classes in Michaelmas and Hilary Terms. Examination will be by two 5,000 word essays, to be uploaded to the University approved online assessment platform by Monday of sixth week of Hilary Term (essay 1) and Monday of sixth week of Trinity Term (essay 2). Each submission will require the candidate to make a declaration indicating that it is their own work.

II. and III. Language and Literature (teaching in Greek, Latin, Slavonic, Armenian, Syriac, and Arabic will normally be available).

These papers are taught over three terms in classes, with reference to a selection of texts and/or extracts from texts which may vary from year to year according to the interests of candidates. Examination is by two three-hour papers (candidates are permitted the use of relevant bilingual dictionaries, which will be provided by the faculty):

(a) translation, and

(b) set texts (with passages for translation and comment).

Candidates who are embarking on the study of one of the above languages will normally be expected to take both examinations in that language, but the Committee for Byzantine Studies may in special circumstances permit them to substitute another paper for one of these examination papers. Candidates cannot normally offer an examination in the language which qualified them for admission to the degree programme in the first instance.

IV. Auxiliary Discipline(s):

Either

(a) any two of the following: epigraphy, palaeography, numismatics, sigillography

or

(b) papyrology: Greek or Coptic or Arabic

or

(c) artefact studies: one of ceramics or mosaics or ivories or carved marbles.

Paper IV will be taught by lectures/classes/tutorials. Examination will be by a three-hour paper, except for papyrology which is assessed by two 5,000 word essays on distinct aspects of the subject. The essays for papyrology are to be submitted by Monday of Week 9 of Trinity Term.

V. A Special Subject selected from the subject areas listed under 4. below.

Special Subjects will be taught by lectures/classes/tutorials. Examination will be either by two 5,000 word essays or by a 10,000 word dissertation (to be uploaded to the University approved online assessment platform by Monday of sixth week of Trinity Term). Each submission will require the candidate to make a declaration indicating that it is their own work.

4. Overview of Special Subject (for details please consult the Course Handbook)

(a) History: Special Subjects on offer deal either with specific periods or with certain aspects of late Roman and Byzantine history (including military, diplomatic, political, social economic and religious history) between the fourth and fifteenth centuries, as well as important developments in neighbouring regions.

(b) Art and Archaeology: Special Subjects on offer cover sculpture, portraiture, minor arts, monumental art and architecture of the late Roman, Byzantine and Islamic spheres of influence, as well as the archaeology of town and country throughout the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds.

(c) Literature (texts prescribed in translation): Special Subjects on offer range through historiography, hagiography, poetry, popular literature and scholarship in the languages available for the degree programme.

(d) Religion: Special Subjects on offer cover theological debates and practical spirituality in the fields of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

(e) Such other subjects as may be approved on application to the Committee for Byzantine Studies.

Candidates wishing to take an option paper/advanced paper (language varying by programme) from another programme offered by the History Faculty, and exceptionally, by other Faculties, may do so with the permission of the Programme Convenor, the person responsible for the delivery of the requested option/advanced paper, the candidate’s supervisor, and the Director of Graduate Studies. Such candidates will be assessed according to the regulations with respect to the form of assessment and deadlines governing that option (ie the regulations of the programme under which the option/advanced paper is offered), but the modes of assessment and deadlines for the other course elements of the programme for which the candidate is registered will remain in force.

Note. The list of Special Subjects detailed in the Course Handbook reflects the expertise and interests of current postholders. The list may be altered from time to time with development of expertise and changes of interest on the part of the postholders.

5. Teaching in all the options may not be available each year, and applicants for admission will be advised whether teaching will be available in the options of their choice.

Contacts

Director of Graduate Studies: 

  • Dr Simon Skinner

Programme Convenors: Dr Ida Toth and Professor Marc Lauxtermann

The main office contact for all graduate matters is: graduate.office@history.ox.ac.uk

Graduate Officer: Joe Shepherd

Assistant Graduate Officer: Maya Blackwell

Teaching Officer: Callum Kelly

Admissions Officer: Liz Owen

Useful Links

History Faculty Website

Lecture List

History Faculty Canvas

History Faculty Library

Examination Regulations

Oxford Students Website

Student Self Service

Guidance for using Self Service