MA student & tutor responsibilities

Students taking an MA are responsible for:

  • Attending classes and seminars, which are compulsory, and arriving punctually, at the times arranged, for the individual tutorials organised with their supervisors.

  • Ensuring that they have understood the tasks set for each successive class, that they have obtained – or know how to obtain – the preliminary reading list or prescribed reading and that they have completed any tasks set before each class or arranged tutorial.

  • Preparing appropriately, following tutorial guidance, for any formal presentations that they may have to give to the rest of the seminar group.

  • Completing assessment tasks in good time; providing dissertation draft excerpts for consultation with their supervisor early enough to be able to benefit from any advice about improvement before the submission date.

  • Informing the Department of any changes in circumstances, including change of address (address details can be updated via MyRecord).

Those teaching on a MA are responsible for:

  • Clarifying the student's responsibilities for their own progress.

  • Assisting students in the location of necessary primary and secondary sources (including, where necessary, writing letters of introduction to permit them to obtain access to libraries and archives outside Sheffield).

  • Guiding students' work and providing a suitable programme of directed reading.

  • Guiding students through the completion of the various tasks for taught modules, offering advice on outlines and drafts where appropriate.

  • Returning assessed work after marking, offering guidance and constructive criticism and reporting the mark provisionally awarded to each exercise. Written work for the MA will normally be returned within three term-time weeks of submission.

  • Attending the MA presentation day.

Those supervising MA dissertations are responsible for:

  • Offering students appropriate guidance in the choice of a dissertation topic and adequate supervision for its completion. Such supervision should include guidance about the nature of research and the standards expected at this level; about the planning and due scope of the research programme; about the secondary literature and primary sources required to support the project.

  • Being available to read and comment on up to a third (5,000 words) of the dissertation in draft form.