APG4618 Researching histories
Faculty of Arts
APG4618 Researching histories is a level 4, 12-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Arts. It isn't offered in 2026. It has no prerequisites.
- Credit points
- 12
- Offered in 2026
- Not offered
- Assessment
- No exam
- 3 tasks
- Workload
- 288 hours
- per semester
This is the 2026 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Requisites
Before APG4618
No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.
After APG4618
No unit lists APG4618 as a prerequisite in the 2026 handbook.
Enrolment rules
Prohibition: APG5618
Overview
This unit functions as an advanced introduction into the world of historical research. It introduces you to some of the common problems and issues as well as key debates that confront all historians working with different types of primary sources. It explores the many ways in which the past is constructed through the production of history by challenging you to think about what history is, how different lenses inform our reading and making of histories, how and where different genres of primary sources can be found for a resourceful historian of the 21st century, and how these sources can best be used in shaping an intellectually rigorous dissertation.
Offerings in 2026
The 2026 handbook lists no offerings for APG4618.
Assessment
- Analytical exerciseExercise25%
- Presentation30%
- Research projectWritten45%
Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
Have a deep understanding of the key debates that have taken place on the nature of history as a practice up until the present day
- 2
Recognise the different theoretical approaches or lenses (such as Marxist or Feminist) through which historians make history, and reconcile that with their own approaches to writing history
- 3
Develop the capacity to identify and access various repositories (such as digital libraries) to locate primary sources for their research
- 4
Become familiar with good practice in organising their primary sources, such as note-taking strategies, and reading and using different types of primary sources effectively in their work
- 5
Develop an understanding of how to use quantitative sources effectively in history-writing, as well as how to effectively make quantitative judgements in their research
- 6
Have an appreciation of how archival sources, material culture, autobiographical sources, and audio-visual sources can be used effectively in research
- 7
Have further developed their oral and written communication skills
Workload and teaching
- Lectures12 hours
- Tutorials24 hours
- Teaching approachActive learning
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 288 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.
Contacts
- Chief Examiners
- Associate Professor Seamus O'Hanlon
- Unit Coordinators
- Associate Professor Seamus O'Hanlon
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for APG4618?
APG4618 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.
When is APG4618 offered?
APG4618 has no offerings listed in the 2026 handbook.
How much work is APG4618?
The handbook expects about 288 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does APG4618 have an exam?
No. APG4618 has 3 assessment tasks and no exam.