The new Master in Digital and Public History (MADiPH) at the University of Luxembourg is now open for applications for a first intake of students starting in September 2024.
The Master programme extends the academic offer for history at the University with the existing Master in European Contemporary History.
The MADiPH offers a unique opportunity to combine international perspectives in digital and public history, equipping students with methods, skills, and practical experiences to research, communicate, and make history more engaging.
Public history aims to make history more accessible, collaborative, and interactive to the public. Through collaboration with cultural and media institutions, public historians strive to involve communities as much as possible in the production of history. Public history deals with and embraces the many ways in which people engage with history, not only at school and through books but also within families, museums, and historic buildings, through TV and radio, and increasingly also via online media. Understanding and mastering digital technologies has become a crucial component of history training. Digital history integrates modern technologies in the historian's craft, creating new ways for public participation and for producing and communicating historical research. Digital tools and resources offer multiple ways to innovate and enrich how historians, institutions, and the general public research, interpret and engage with the past.
The Master will be coordinated by Prof. Thomas Cauvin, Study Director, and Prof. Sandra Camarda, Co-Study Director. It will be offered by the Faculty of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences and will benefit from its association with the University’s Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C²DH).
Learning by doing
The Master in Digital and Public History combines theoretical and hands-on approaches. In addition to receiving solid historical training, students will practice and apply their research skills in collaborative projects with local and international partners. The programme includes courses on oral history, archiving, outreach and history communication, audiovisual production, storytelling, artificial intelligence, and video games, among others. The Master draws on an extensive network of local and regional partnerships, and students can benefit from internship opportunities in many cultural and historical institutions in Luxembourg and the Greater Region.
Preparing for a variety of careers
Graduates can prepare for careers in the GLAM (galleries, libraries, archives, and museums) industries, cultural heritage, historic preservation and valorisation, tourism, media production and public administration. The C²DH’s expertise in doctoral research in digital and public history also offers graduates opportunities to pursue a PhD at the University.
A Master with links to international networks
As the headquarters of the International Federation for Public History, the University of Luxembourg provides a unique international environment for digital and public history. The Master is associated with the C²DH and takes benefits from the multiple international collaborations that the interdisciplinary centre has developed over the years. For instance, students can apply for an exchange semester with our partner Ca’Foscari University of Venice, in Italy, to further develop specific skills in digital public humanities.
“The new Master perfectly illustrates the interdisciplinary approach of the University and its innovative programme offer”, explains Prof. Catherine Léglu, Academic Vice-rector. “Graduates will be able to have direct impact on the public understanding of Luxembourgish and international history.”
“It is one of the very few Master courses in the world to offer such a curriculum,” explains Prof. Thomas Cauvin. “Students will acquire and apply new skills in collaborative projects in various public environments, while having access to the expertise and equipment of the C²DH in public and digital history.”
The programme accepts a maximum of 15 students, each of whom receives dedicated support through comprehensive tutoring combined with tailored guidance to assist them in selecting optional courses and securing internship placements in line with their individual career aspirations and aptitudes.
