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Aims of the programme
Admission requirements and procedures
Course description and outline
Summarised plan of study
Evaluation and examination
The Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Tromsø is offering a two-year master programme in indigenous studies. The Faculty is responsible for the programme, extensively supported by the Centre for Sámi Studies. The programme is offered as a joint venture between the Faculties of Social Sciences, Humanities and Law, Tromsø University Museum and the Centre for Sámi Studies. All units are located at the University of Tromsø. Admission is limited to 20 seats. This plan of study is valid from August 2005.
I Aims of the programme
The Master Programme in Indigenous Studies is a multi-disciplinary graduate two-year programme in comparative indigenous issues, taught in English and based on the particular research-based knowledge of issues regarding the Sámi and other indigenous peoples at the University of Tromsø. The Master programme is a part of the general focus on internationalisation at the University of Tromsø, and the goal is to attract international students to Tromsø as well as offering new opportunities for students in the region.
The different courses of the Master programme aim to give the students broad knowledge of interdisciplinary perspectives and issues in the study of indigenous peoples. This will be the basis of the in-depth study of the Master thesis, in a relevant topic within research on indigenous peoples of special interest to the individual student.
The Master programme qualifies students for work in various educational institutions, for work within information as well as other areas of public administration, in international non-governmental organisations and in business, and for further research and studies within indigenous issues.
II Admission requirements and procedures
Applicants must document three years of study at university level beyond the basic entrance requirements, equivalent to a Bachelor degree. The Master Programme in Indigenous Studies is primarily directed at students with former basic training in the social sciences, law studies and humanities. A special interest in indigenous issues is a precondition.
All applicants must enclose a description of the background for their desire to apply for the Master Programme, and of what they expect from the programme (1 page). Experience from work related to indigenous peoples and/or studies must be documented. Applicants from universities other than the University of Tromsø should enclose a short description of all relevant courses mentioned in applications and certificates.
The programme will be taught in English and applicants must document adequate proficiency in English. For more information about general admission requirements: http://www.adm.uit.no/studie/foreign/english/Basic.htm
The programme aims to recruit Sami and Norwegian students as well as students from other countries. A mixed group of students will strengthen the comparative aspects of the programme, and will contribute to international network building. The programme furthermore aims at recruiting students through financial programmes such as the Quota Scholarship Programme. A certain amount of seats will be reserved for students with such funding. Admission of students from different countries and regions will be emphasized in order to ensure a varied student group. Ethnic background will also be relevant in this respect.
III Supervision
All students will be appointed an academic supervisor
IV Course description and outline
During two years of studies, students will take courses totalling 120 study points (credits). Most courses are obligatory, with some additional courses that can be chosen on the basis of the interests of the individual student as a preparation for the Master thesis. Courses are designed to give a broad base from which the individual student may choose a relevant topic for the Master thesis. The thesis work is to be supervised by academic staff from the cooperating units at the University of Tromsø, and topics are chosen in cooperation with appointed advisors. The Master thesis gives 60 credits.
Teaching and exams
In addition to lectures and seminars there will be seminars with the programme coordinator and guest lecturers. After each course, exams will be given. The organisation of the teaching will depend on the character and the content of each course. Marks will be given from A to F, or pass/fail. The different responsible units decide on requirements for the individual courses, which will be used as a basis for the grading of exams and papers. Some courses will have home exams (written paper/essay) with a following oral exam. Other courses will have regular exams lasting from 4 to 8 hours. Folder evaluation may also be used for some of the courses as well as for the field work/ Master thesis. A preliminary report (10 to 15 pages) on the work with the thesis has to be presented before October 15th in the third semester. The final Master thesis should be between 50 and 70 pages long (depending on the topic), and must be submitted within a given deadline. The programme concludes with a final oral exam. More information about the exams can be found in the descriptions for each individual course. The deadline for thesis submission is May 15 in the fourth semester. After individual application to the Programme Board, alternative exam forms can be approved.
IV Summarised plan of study
First year of study:
HIS-3005:Introduction to the history of indigenous peoples: Colonization and revival
Department of History, Faculty of Social Sciences
The course will give a basic introduction to the history of indigenous peoples, which is also relevant to the study of indigenous peoples today. The course will deal with both theoretical and empirical aspects. The empirical focus will be on the history of colonialism from the time of conquest to the indigenous peoples` political revival around the world during the latest part of the 20-century. The course will compare the history of colonialism and revival in some aboriginal societies in the New World with some selected themes from the history of the Sami. In the last section we will use theories and methods to analyse historical sources.
SOA-3006: Indigenous culture and ethnicity
Department of Social Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences
The concepts of culture, ethnicity and identity are discussed, with a focus on the specific contents of the terms and their inter-relationships. The culture concept will be related to processes of social and cultural change, viewed in the perspectives of tradition and modernity. Finally, globalisation processes will be related to the current living conditions, political and legal status, and cognitive outlook of indigenous peoples. Ethnographical presentations will be used to illustrate the themes.
JUR-3650: Indigenous Peoples Rights
Faculty of Law
The course intends to give the students an overview over the current scholarship and discussion on indigenous peoples’ rights, cover subjects from international law, domestic law specially in Sami areas and indigenous peoples law, focusing on indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination and land rights.
The point of departure of the course is that the rights of indigenous peoples depend both on legal principles and rules within international and domestic law, and also on indigenous peoples’ own perception of the law, including their customary law.
In addition to giving an overview of different structures and legal principles of significance for the rights of indigenous peoples within international law, some different perspectives will be emphasised during the course. Within domestic law, focus will be on the Sami peoples’ rights in Norway, Sweden and Finland, with an emphasis on the right to self-determination and land rights, including recognition of the Sami people’s own legal system within domestic law. The content of the course will partly be covered by the curriculum, partly take the form of lectures and seminars.
HIF-3620: Representations and self-representations
Faculty of Humanities
The course takes as its point of departure the ways in which indigenous peoples have represented themselves through myths, stories, songs, religious beliefs, handicraft and art. Further the course will focus on oral history and storytelling as a source for contemporary indigenous peoples’ literature.
Sami literature and literature of other indigenous peoples will be introduced in the historical and comparative perspectives, and in connection with indigenous identity. Presentation of the indigenous peoples’ literature will focus on Sami and Native American writing. Traditional Sami handicrafts and modern art will be discussed in the framework of the Sami and indigenous visual culture from the point of view of the history of arts and Sami Studies. Further the course will focus on the ways in which others have represented indigenous peoples in museums, media and other forms of popular mediation. Special attention will be put on the politics of representation in different countries where the indigenous peoples live.
SVF-3026: Methodologies and methods in indigenous studies
The course will enable MIS students to choose a disciplinary anchorage for the project description for their thesis, and subsequently for the data collection required. The course presents the major methodological approaches related to the disciplinary profiles of the courses that make up the MIS: History, anthropology, law, and literature studies. Their varying epistemological concerns are related to practical and pragmatic challenges in the data collection typical of the disciplines. Accordingly, the teaching in the fall term is subdivided in four parts corresponding to the disciplinary courses. The spring term will present a series of illustrating cases where subjects for investigation will be drafted in such a manner that the diverse disciplinary approaches of the MIS will enrich each other. Ethical considerations are particularly emphasized.
The teaching has a combined lecture and seminar form. Student participation is strongly encouraged. Lectures/seminars are offered fortnightly. The course starts in the beginning of September the 1st year of the MIS-programme. It is continued in the spring, also every second week, parallel to individual tutoring. The students are required to present drafts of their project descriptions for comments at the spring seminars.
An approved project description is required for the ensuing fieldwork/data collection for the Master thesis.
Elective
One 10-credit course can be chosen among other courses given at the University. The chosen course has to be approved by the Programme Board.
SVF-3904: Master thesis
The Master thesis provides an opportunity for in-depth studies of a chosen field. The topic of the thesis is chosen on the basis of the interests of the student and of relevant issues in the student's home country or chosen region.
The collection of data can be carried out through field work lasting up to three months, or through the collection of secondary data /literature studies (optionally in combination with limited interviews).
After the main data collection period, the students are going to write a preliminary report on the work done so far (10 to 15 pages). The report is expected to give an outline of the setting studied and a discussion of the methodological challenges met. The student will together with the written work give an oral presentation of the report in plenum with co-students. The deadline for the preliminary report is October 15 in the third semester. The deadline for submitting the final Master thesis is May 15. The writing of the thesis is supported by seminars and individual supervision.
V Curriculum
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IV Evaluation and examination
The type of examination is specified in each course description (see table above).
Evaluation is based on
a) the grading system A-E, F = fail, or
b) Pass/Failed
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