MA Applied Anthropology & Community Development

at Goldsmiths University of London

The MA consists of an academic programme of lectures, seminars and tutorial assignments, and practical experience.

Modules are taken over one academic year if you are studying full-time, and two years if you are studying part-time (part-time study only available to home/EU students).

Full-time students attend on Tuesdays and Thursdays and spend the rest of the week on fieldwork placements and library studies.

Part-time students attend on Thursdays in one year and Tuesdays in the other.

Anthropology components
 The Department of Anthropology teaches two of the core components of your degree: Contemporary Social Issues and Anthropological Research Methods.

Module title    

• Contemporary Social Issues    
• Anthropological Research Methods    
• Dissertation    

In addition, we strongly encourage all students, particularly those without a background in anthropology, to sit in on other MA option courses offered by the anthropology department, such as Anthropological Theory, Anthropology of Development, Anthropology of Violence, Anthropology of Art and Anthropology and the Environment.

You'll need:

• an undergraduate degree of at least second class standard in the social sciences or another appropriate subject, with some experience of community and youth work.
• at least four months of full-time, or part-time equivalent, work experience prior to starting the MA. We also offer the MA in Applied Anthropology & Community and Youth Work (professionally validated by the National Youth Agency) for applicants with more work experience. Experience can include paid or unpaid work; voluntary, community and youth work in organisations; and relevant informal work. 
• an Enhanced Disclosure Certificate from the DBS. Please note there will be a fee of £56 for all DBS applications; we will send you further information about payment with your offer. You can find more information about this on our fitness to train pages
• You might also be considered for some programmes if you aren’t a graduate or your degree is in an unrelated field, but have relevant experience and can show that you have the ability to work at postgraduate level.

These are the fees for students starting their programme in the 2022/2023 academic year.

• Home - full-time: £9260
• International - full-time: £17460

If your fees are not listed here, please check our postgraduate fees guidance or contact the Fees Office, who can also advise you about how to pay your fees.

It’s not currently possible for international students to study part-time if you require a Student Visa, however this is currently being reviewed and will be confirmed in the new year. Please read our visa guidance in the interim for more information. If you think you might be eligible to study part-time while being on another visa type, please contact our Admissions Team for more information.

Increasing employment prospects are central to this programme.

Our graduates find work directly or indirectly related to the disciplines relatively quickly after graduating, or even while on the programme. The majority of our students gain work in youth work or community work. Examples of recent graduate employment include:

• Full-time health youth worker for a London Borough, leading on LGBTQ awareness and homophobic bullying
• Community Centre based youth worker
• Mentoring and Befriending Co-ordinator at a civil society equalities organisation
• Community Development Worker in a social work team in Hong Kong

Some seek and gain work in a wide range of other settings, often shaped by the particular interests that they develop during their time with us, such as working with refugees or with disability groups. Others join social enterprises to bid for contracts, join newly developing cooperatives or established NGOs in the UK and abroad.