MA students' quotes

MA Landscape Archaeology

"The work placement part of the program was amazing. I applied for a number of jobs around the UK and landed a job with Gahan and Long which were situated in Belfast. The company was great in helping me find accommodation and supplying me with equipment. The team was made up of young people who were fun and friendly-I felt at home from the very beginning. Over the course of the summer I worked on a number of sites getting to see the North Ireland countryside and gained a tremendous amount of useful experience in consulting archaeology that can only be learned in the work place situation. I finished with the company in July to return to write my dissertation but before leaving was offered a permanent position with the company starting in September!"
Erin Glavine, MA Landscape Archaeology

“I'm a mature student who decided that forty years of working in computing was quite enough. I had always been interested in why and how the landscape about me had evolved and wanted develop my understanding. So, I'm taking the Landscape Archaeology MA course part-time over two years and I've really enjoyed it; not just because of the excellent lectures and the weekly field trips led by specialists in the particular subject areas, but also the wide range of experience bought to the course by the other students. In particular, those from outside the UK were able to enrich the archaeological picture from their home country -- not to mention enhance the discussion at the pub after the field trips. I've had two placements this year. The first was performing an earthwork survey as part of the department's annual dig at Berkley Castle. This was a great learning exercise, particularly as I was asked to teach the sixty of so undergraduates on the dig the fundamentals of earthwork surveying. The second placement has been with a local council using their GIS and Historical Environment Record and working with various officers of the council to see how they use the information in their various roles. As so much archaeology is centred round the local council planning activities this has given me a useful insight into the roles archaeologists take today. I'm really looking forward to the coming year and can't wait for the term to start.”
Jim Pimpernell, MA Landscape Archaeology

"I selected the University of Bristol’s MA Landscape Archaeology program because I could not find another degree that was more complementary to my ideology and perspective of landscapes. My BA was in Landscape Architecture, where one learns to analyze, absorb, evaluate, and design for an extensive range of spaces with the necessary knowledge of a landscape’s significant interconnectedness to the past, environment and the people that use it today. Having specialized in historical and cultural landscapes, it was not long before I began to adore and appreciate the palimpsest that a landscape offers for us to interpret. As a designer I am working to find ways to merge the disciplines of archaeology and landscape architecture so that the information from layered landscapes can be filtered into appropriate design, documentation, and advocacy for education. The Landscape Archaeology program at Bristol gave me new skills, from an archaeological perspective, to be more appropriate as a designer and a person. History teaches you to be humble, and landscape archaeology teaches you how interconnected that humility is over time. The landscape of the earth has been manipulated and transformed over time, and I enjoy learning and telling the story of that relationship. Immediately after finishing school at Bristol, I was hired in the South Eastern United States to work for an excellent culture resource management firm, Brockington and Associates. I plan on using and learning from the landscape to preserve, strengthen, initiate and heal culture identity, history and public space. I am happy and proud to say that the program at Bristol helped me to solidify my own personal perspective, but more importantly, I met great professors, advisors and friends that contributed in more ways than I could write. I am a lucky person that was part of a great program. I recommend this program for people that are passionate about the past, advocates for education, and that want to learn how to holistically read the landscape, to make this world a better place."
Heather Morgan, MA Landscape Archaeology

Update from a graduate now working:

"I'm just about to do my first week in Southampton on an Urban site, then I'll be trundling off to the office in Oxford to finish digitising the site; I've just got a promotion to supervisor, which I'm quite chuffed about.  I'm also waiting for security clearance of the Time Team dig at Buckingham Palace."....and a later update... "I did get clearance for Buck House this weekend, and somehow seemed to have ended up as finds manager for the Buckingham Palace site!"
Anne Kilgour, MA Landscape Archaeology

MA Mediterranean Archaeology

“With a previous BA in Archaeological Studies and Anthropology, I was attracted to the MA in Mediterranean Archaeology course as it would provide me with the opportunity to specialise in the area of archaeology that interests me the most. The highlight of the course was the Mediterranean Study Tour, for which I was able to travel to Egypt in order to do my dissertation research. All in all it was an excellent experience, for which I had the opportunity to both visit the sites central to my dissertation as well as meet some of the leading experts in the field.”
Amy M. Wilson, MA in Mediterranean Archaeology

“In 2005 I was in the final year of my history degree, and I was looking for a new challenge for the future. Although I had enjoyed studying history very much, I wanted to develop my interest and skills in interpreting the past. I decided that an MA in archaeology would help me achieve this. I looked at a wide range of archaeology departments and programmes all over the country, and I eventually decided on the Mediterranean Archaeology programme at the University of Bristol. During the course I was able to choose from a variety of electives, so I could tailor the course to my own specific interests. I particularly enjoyed debating methodology, theory and controversies in archaeology during the Professional Seminar mandatory unit. Many of the issues that we discussed in Professional Seminar contributed to my understanding of other units, and my own first-hand interpretation of material. For the Study Tour unit I chose to spend a month in Malta. Whilst on the island I was lucky enough to participate in an underwater archaeological survey. I found the Study Tour incredibly useful, and a wonderful experience as it enabled me to interact directly with the archaeological material I was using for my dissertation. In some cases I was allowed to handle and photograph material Overall, I have had a fantastic time on the MA at Bristol. After graduation I hope to gain practical experience in archaeology for at least a year in the UK and the Mediterranean. My ultimate wish is to expand and develop some elements of my dissertation research to pursue a PhD. Whilst in Malta I made many contacts in the academic and heritage fields. These people will consider me for employment on future research projects and excavations. I would strongly recommend the programme to future students with backgrounds in humanities and sciences as well as archaeological.”
Claire Cogar, MA in Mediterranean Archaeology

MA Archaeology for Screen Media

“For me, the MA in Archaeology for Screen Media was a great foundation for working in the television industry. The course struck a perfect balance between teaching the basics of hands on, practical production work and the theory of factual television.  With the help of the excellent teaching staff, I quickly acquired crucial skills and secured my first job in TV shortly before the end of the course.”
Stuart Rose, MA in Archaeology for Screen Media

“The Archaeology for Screen Media course opened my eyes to new ways of thinking about the presentation of heritage, and provided me with the opportunity to explore innovative and exciting forms of media. The projects I pursued on the programme have led to the invaluable experience of presenting a paper at a conference, as well as shaping my current PhD research. As an international student, I found the University of Bristol to be home to a vibrant and welcoming community of students and scholars, with class lectures by leaders in the television industry. Having the archaeological wonders of the Roman Baths, Stonehenge and Avebury on my doorstep further confirmed that I made the right decision in seeking an MA at Bristol.”
Elaine Massung, MA in Archaeology for Screen Media (currently undertaking a PhD in the department)

MA Maritime Archaeology and History

“Following the completion of my undergraduate degree in anthropology from the University of Georgia, I made the wonderful decision to study maritime archaeology at the University of Bristol. I have enjoyed the course, and feel as though I am now ready to begin my career in maritime archaeology. My master’s thesis is focused on the wreck of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company's ship, the Wye. During the summer of 2006 I was able to conduct a survey of the wreck site, which is located just off of St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. Following the completion of the course I plan on continuing my research in the Caribbean, and eventually getting my PhD. “
Ryan Duggins, MA Maritime Archaeology and History

MA Social Anthropology

“After finishing my first degree at Berkeley, I was drawn to Bristol's Anthropology program for its small class size and renowned academic staff. I was most impressed by the breadth and depth of the department’s interests- faculty are engaged in ongoing research in Africa, India, Latin America, and the Balkans.  The tutors are extremely supportive and the classes are fascinating. I never imagined I would be studying identity and representation in the Somali diaspora for my dissertation! Next year, I will leave Bristol for China to work as a lecturer teaching Sociology to international university students.”
Jennifer Huynh, MA Social Anthropology 2006-7

Beth Cullen, an MA student in the department went on a fieldtrip to Ethiopia in the summer. The photo taken shows local people watering seedlings in a tree nursery in the Ethiopian highlands. Much of the countryside surrounding the capital, Addis Ababa, is badly affected by deforestation, but local people are working with the non-governmental organisation SuNaRMA (Sustainable Natural Resources Management Association) to develop ways of combating such ecological degradation. The emphasis of SuNaRMA’s work is on natural resource management, looking at ways local people can generate income to relieve their poverty as well as encouraging and teaching them how to manage their natural resources. In nurseries such as the one shown here, tree seedlings are grown for planting on to degraded areas of land that have been donated by the local community to landless youth. As a result of the trip, Beth is considering further postgraduate study to look at how indigenous people use their local knowledge to help make development projects more effective.

"What really struck me about the trip was the difference between what I had seen in Ethiopia, and its portrayal in the newspapers at home. There is so much more to Ethiopia than poverty and famine. Although it has its problems, don’t for one minute be fooled into thinking that Ethiopians are not able to help themselves. They know the problems they face, and have solutions. Just as development workers can learn a lot from the people they are trying to help – people who are often portrayed as helpless victims – we too would be wise to move away from the preconceptions we may have about countries like Ethiopia."
Beth Cullen, MA Social Anthropology