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SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY 
REGISTERED QUALIFICATION THAT HAS PASSED THE END DATE: 

Master of Philosophy: African Studies 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
15717  Master of Philosophy: African Studies 
ORIGINATOR
University of Cape Town 
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education  HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework 
QUALIFICATION TYPE FIELD SUBFIELD
Master's Degree  Field 07 - Human and Social Studies  Religious and Ethical Foundations of Society 
ABET BAND MINIMUM CREDITS PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL NQF LEVEL QUAL CLASS
Undefined  192  Level 8 and above  Level N/A:Pre-2009 was L8+  Regular-Provider-ELOAC 
REGISTRATION STATUS SAQA DECISION NUMBER REGISTRATION START DATE REGISTRATION END DATE
Passed the End Date -
Status was "Reregistered" 		 SAQA 06120/18  2018-07-01  2018-12-31 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2019-12-31   2022-12-31  

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.  

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification. 

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION 
The purpose of the MPhil programme in African Studies is, firstly to engage in the comparative study of the continent, secondly, the multidisciplinary site of research, thirdly the relationship between knowledge and power within the history of the African continent.

The comparative study of the continent is premised on the imperative of South African students being exposed to the history, politics and cultures of our continent. It is our brief to confront the parochialism that prevents such students from seeing South Africa as part of Africa.

The multidisciplinary site of work is at the creative cutting edge between the disciplines. The idea is that students benefit from the creative zone of multidisciplinary work, while retaining the strength derived from the theoretical language and tools of a particular field of study

Questions of the nature of knowledge, within the fraught history of colonial struggles and their aftermath, cuts across the disciplines and forms the core of our compulsory coursework 

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
In order to qualify for entry into the programme, students must have successfully completed an Honours degree or its equivalent from UCT or another university, in a field relating to the study of Africa. They should have achieved a minimum of high lower seconds in their taught components and also in their dissertations and have a multi-disciplinary research project.

Senior Certificate with Matriculation Exemption or equivalent university admission qualification.

First degree:
BA / BSocSc

Honours degree:
BA(Hons) / BSocSc(Hons)


Recognition of prior learning:

Non-Honours graduates who have shown by examination or publication or a record of appropriate training that they have reached a level in the subject or a cognate subject equivalent to an Honours Bachelor's degree, may be permitted to register for the degree. 

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
Y 

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
a). Critical cross-field outcomes (generic to all teaching and learning)

1. Students will develop the ability to deal with a range of sources - primary and secondary, web based, media such as film, television and newspapers.
2. They will deal with these sources critically
3. They will be able to generate bibliographies and use a wide range of material, all properly referenced

b). General outcomes (contextually demonstrated general knowledge, skills and values of the programme)

1. Students will develop the skills to contest boundaries, read sceptically and debate definitions, old and new. This is essential, given that the relationship between privilege and scholarship, between the local and the global, between the past and the present, is complex, dynamic and contestable.
2. They will develop their capacity to work at the site of the cutting edge between the disciplines that study Africa, as they identify similarities and differences in their theory, method and purpose. We will facilitate this outcome in our choice of readings that will be dictated by the points of intersection between Africanist scholars from a range of disciplines.

c). Specific outcomes, including professional outcomes (contextually demonstrated)
  • A critical appreciation of some key words in the field of African Studies.
  • A critical, comparative understanding of South Africa within the continent.
  • A critical understanding of the uses of information and communication technology in a research and educational context.
  • A critical engagement with Internet theory from an African or developing world context.
  • A knowledge of the intellectual basis of the origins of African Studies disciplines within a history of colonialism and post-colonialism.
  • A foundation for further postgraduate study in the field of African Studies.
  • Our qualifications will produce teachers, academics, provide training for in-service workers, in fields such as teaching or journalism, policy development, public administration and business management 
    		•

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    a). The achievement of these outcomes is assessed in the integrated assessment of the programme

    b). The achievement of these outcomes is assessed in the integrated assessment of the programme

    c). The outcomes are assessed as follows:
  • The completion of term papers in all competence areas listed;
  • The compilation of a research project that includes the components listed under the integrated assessment.


    INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT

    At the end of each of the two years of the postgraduate programme in African Studies, students will produce a research project in which they will have to demonstrate that they have learnt the skills and the material required by the programme.

    The integration of skills learnt in the MPhil degree in African Studies is assessed by means of a research project of a word length stipulated by the faculty. The research project must demonstrate competence in the following areas, all of which are assessed in the examination of the research project:
  • Precise research problem formulation
  • Familiarity with and integration of the specialised literature that informs the research question
  • Appropriate design and execution of the research
  • Use of appropriate methods of data collection and analysis
  • Integration of findings
  • Ability to address the ethical problems that might attend the research
  • Appreciation of the methodological limitations of the study
  • Use of the publication and style conventions of the discipline 
    		•

    ARTICULATION OPTIONS 
    This qualification serves as an entry point to the related qualification

    PhD

    Entry to this qualification in mid-stream is not possible.

    Exit from this qualification in mid-stream:
    The coursework components completed may be recognised by another institution

    Other higher education programmes that articulate with this qualification without "going back to square one":

    The Masters degree articulates with the Ph.D in the Faculty of Humanities. When the dissertation progress is reviewed at the end of each academic year, the Faculty Board, on the recommendation of the supervisor and the Head of the Department, may recommend that the candidate's registration be upgraded to a Ph.D and that the period of Masters registration beyond the minimum period of one year be recognised towards the two year minimum period of study for the Ph.D. 

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    The University of Cape Town has a system of external peer review and evaluation of each course. One of the aspects of the system is an evaluation of the standards and assessment practices of the Department 

    CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS 
    The academic staff of the University of Cape Town will be used in a manner that is consistent with the quality assurance system of the University 

    REREGISTRATION HISTORY 
    As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2006; 2009; 2012; 2015. 

    LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: 
     
    NONE 


    PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION: 
    This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.
     
    1. University of Cape Town 


    All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.