When applying for a masters, does your undergrad dissertation have to be relevant?

I am currently in my second year of a politics degree and starting to think about what i want to do after i finish next year. I am very interested in Chinese/East Asian politics/language and there are many masters degrees that i am interested in that focus on those topics. I was wondering, when applying for a postgraduate place on a programme, would they take the topic of your undergraduate dissertation into account. I am currently writing my dissertation proposal due this week, which is on British politics/voter turnout, thus not really relevant to my postgraduate interests :/

Reply 1

quasa

Entertainment Forum Helper

20

nope. eg. doctors and pharmacists can do MBAs
although it is all subject to individual uni requirements and course requirements

Reply 2

Klix88

17

but it ep

Original post by ~ Aquamarine ~

I am currently in my second year of a politics degree and starting to think about what i want to do after i finish next year. I am very interested in Chinese/East Asian politics/language and there are many masters degrees that i am interested in that focus on those topics. I was wondering, when applying for a postgraduate place on a programme, would they take the topic of your undergraduate dissertation into account. I am currently writing my dissertation proposal due this week, which is on British politics/voter turnout, thus not really relevant to my postgraduate interests :/

It can be relevant but it depends on the Masters. Mine stated that applicants must demonstrate "an active interest" in the topic, which was pretty specialst. I'd written my undergrad diss on a related topic, so I satisfied that requirement.

Reply 3

QHF

11

Original post by ~ Aquamarine ~

I am currently in my second year of a politics degree and starting to think about what i want to do after i finish next year. I am very interested in Chinese/East Asian politics/language and there are many masters degrees that i am interested in that focus on those topics. I was wondering, when applying for a postgraduate place on a programme, would they take the topic of your undergraduate dissertation into account. I am currently writing my dissertation proposal due this week, which is on British politics/voter turnout, thus not really relevant to my postgraduate interests :/

I've known people get onto very good master's courses with dissertations which were irrelevant in topic & period. Certainly if your topic was relevant that's something you can mention in your application but it won't be an automatic bar if it isn't -- remember that you can point out the dissertation's role as training in skills, methods, methodologies too -- 'I have already developed some of my research skills during my undergraduate dissertation, which required me to [visit archives/learn about some specific aspect of a language/process a lot of historical records/think laterally around historiographical problems/whatever is relevant], and I would like to build on this experience during my master's', &c &c. Or move laterally: 'Having studied elections in the UK in my undergraduate dissertation, I would be interested in a project on elections and turnout in [country X]'. If you have other modules which show you're interested in China/East Asia then that will help cover your interest in the topic.