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ENG-40057 - Module Specification
School of Humanities and Social Sciences
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

For academic year: 2025/26 Last Updated: 15 December 2025

ENG-40057 - Work Placement for Humanities Postgraduates
Coordinator: Rachel Adcock Tel: +44 1782 7 33144
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 7
Credits: 30
Study Hours: 300
School Office:

Programme/Approved Electives for 2025/26

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

No

Barred Combinations

No

Description for 2025/26

This module is designed to give postgraduate students studying the Humanities the opportunity to contribute to the world beyond the University, in any workplace where the research, analytical, and communication skills developed as part of a postgraduate Humanities degree can be used. The chosen workplace may be, for example, a local museum, theatre, library, school or education provider, marketing company, local newspaper, local radio, or another suitable opportunity identified by the student and approved by the module leader. While on the placement, students will produce a theoretically-informed portfolio critically reflecting on and giving evidence of the activities/outputs completed at their chosen workplace. These may include, for example, researching and producing materials advertising or supporting current or proposed exhibits or performances, researching and producing written or audio pieces, and/or planning small-group educational activities on Humanities-related topics. Advice will be given on identifying and contacting placements and composing a CV in semester 1, and support will be provided throughout the placement, which will usually take place in semester 2. Through this module students will obtain crucial first-hand experience of applying for a position and working in an environment where they can utilise the skills developed on their postgraduate degree, developing their employability for when they leave Keele. They should also enjoy sharing their skills and knowledge with people outside of the University and making a personal contribution to their chosen workplace.

Aims
This module aims to
- enhance the career knowledge and employability of students studying Humanities subjects at postgraduate level;
- assist students in locating and effectively applying for a placement;
- provide students with first-hand experience of the day-to-day operations of a relevant working environment, including developing their ability to work co-operatively and productively with others;
- encourage Humanities postgraduate students to apply and reflect on their analytical and communication skills in a broader work context;
- develop students’ capacity to construct and carry through sustained independent tasks/projects at postgraduate level;
- increase postgraduate students’ knowledge of and familiarity with the Careers and Employability service.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Reflect upon and convey their experiences and (subject-specific) skills developed through their education and additional experiences in order to be effective in securing additional work experience and employment or further study: 1,2,3
Understand the variety of ways in which skills developed during the study of Humanities subjects can be deployed in non-academic contexts: 1,2,3
Understand the aims and priorities, and possible limitations, of an external organisation and design and complete substantial activities/projects/materials that support these: 2,3
Utilise relevant contextual and/or theoretical materials to produce outputs in an employment context and critically reflect on their effectiveness: 1,2,3
Critically reflect upon placement opportunities and challenges and what they learnt from these experiences: 2,3
Articulate their placement experiences effectively and reflect on their enhanced skill set in front of an audience, utilising visual aids: 2

Study hours

Active Learning 22 hours:
Semester 1: 7 x 2hr workshops + 2 x 1hr tutorials
Semester 2: 2 x 1hr workshops + 2 x 2hr workshops = 6
100 hours of placement
Independent Study 178 hours:
Applying for placement (including assessment 1): 38 hours
Researching/writing for Presentation (Assessment 2): 60 hours
Researching/writing for Portfolio (Assessment 3): 80 hours

School Rules

No

Description of Module Assessment

1: Assignment weighted 20%
Placement Plan
Students will complete a Placement Plan by the end of Semester 1 and before they begin their placement. This will comprise: 1) An Intended Learning Outcomes form to be completed following a discussion with their placement provider (200 words); 2) A reflective paragraph describing what they gained from the process of revising their CV and cover letter in response to feedback from the module tutors (200 words); 3) A 1,000-word essay demonstrating that they have begun to think critically about their placement/project(s): this will highlight (as appropriate) individual, institutional, methodological, and/or theoretical challenges that are likely to affect their placement/project, and will provide the foundations for Assessment 3's focus. Students must pass this assignment to progress to Semester 2. The ILO form includes questions about workplace expectations, GDPR/data handling, DBS checking, and any ethical considerations.

2: Presentation weighted 30%
Individual Presentation
Students will deliver a 15-minute individual presentation followed by a short Q&A (5 minutes) which will be delivered to the cohort using visual aids. This will take place at the end or towards the end of their placement, in the Semester 2 assessment period. Students will summarise their activities and critically reflect on the challenges they faced.

3: Portfolio weighted 50%
Portfolio
Students will complete a portfolio submitted at the end of the module comprising: 1) Evidence of tasks/outputs completed on placement with explanatory captions. These might be promotional materials, research, lesson plans, exhibitions, and so on. [Permission should be sought by the student regarding what is appropriate to include and no images of people should be present.] 2) A chronological reflective diary of 1,000 words comprising 5 entries. Each entry should be completed after 20 hours of placement work (placements are 100 hours in total) but can be revised before they are submitted at the end of the module. Each entry must be a minimum of 100 words, but otherwise the proportion of the diary given to each entry is the student’s choice to determine. 3) A 2,000-word critical reflection focusing on the student's approach to a particular workplace challenge (a task, project, situation etc). This work should be underpinned by theoretical and/or disciplinary reading, and should also focus on the importance of Humanities knowledge and skills in an employment context.

The University undertakes a continuous review of its teaching and research provision to ensure programmes are of a high quality and changes may be made to modules where it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Please be aware that minor changes to modules, such as a change to an individual assessment, can occur up until enrolment, although we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes. Details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/legalgovernancecompliance/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/studenttermsconditions/

Last Updated: 15 December 2025