This module is designed to enhance students’ knowledge of services marketing in a variety of service markets, both in the UK and globally. Hence, it sets out to develop an understanding of the nature of the marketing of services, key underpinning concepts, and the issues associated with its application in practice.
This marketing module is designed to build upon the understanding of marketing principles gained in introductory marketing classes. It examines how to manage aspects of services marketing and value within the context of digital marketing activities. Hence, it aims to provide practical and analytical guidance for increasing value for both customers and the organisation in a digital landscape.
The 1960s were a time of rapid social, political and cultural change in Britain. The decade saw Britain – and especially London – finally steal the crown of cool from the United States. British pop culture exploded and was exported around the world. With National Service abolished in 1960, the first teenagers free from conscription drove this rapid social change: whether by turning on, tuning in or dropping out. Social reforms led by the pioneering Home Secretary Roy Jenkins made British society more tolerant, diverse and modern. The 1950s, a drab and grey decade still struggling to rebuild after the Second World War, had been replaced by the brilliant technicolour of the “swinging sixties”. But the history of the 1960s in Britain isn’t all tie-dye, mini-skirts and mop-topped pop stars. Many people were deeply uncomfortable with the rapid social change that they felt was being imposed upon them. Although many individuals experienced the decade as one of comfortable prosperity, this masked a decline in the relative competitiveness of the British economy against its European rivals. Strikes were increasingly common as workers tried to fight for better conditions. The end of the British empire led to anxiety about Britain’s place in the world, and increasing levels of immigration led to a rise in racist politics and bitterly divided communities. Women enjoyed more freedoms than before, but still felt ignored and oppressed by male-dominated politics and society. In Northern Ireland, the divided sectarian politics erupted into the Troubles by the end of the decade. And British young people were anxious about the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and their future in a turbulent and uncertain world. This course will explore some of the themes, tensions and contradictions in the history of Britain in the 1960s. We will work with an interesting and varied historiography, as well as a rich collection of archival material including pamphlets, speeches, audio/visual materials, memoirs and autobiographies, and legal and government documents.
Fuelled by the sexual revolution, the women’s movement and gay activism, the late twentieth century saw a flourishing of critical interest in questions of sex, gender and desire and their relation to literature and culture. This module will develop your understanding of feminist critical approaches as well as introducing you to psychoanalytic and queer criticism. By reading a selection of critical writings alongside literary texts, you will explore questions such as: How do the stories we tell shape our understanding of gender roles? From whose perspective are these stories told and what do they exclude or repress? How have writers reinvented these stories? What is the relationship between gender and the acts of reading and writing? What is role of reading and writing in processes of social change? And how are representations of gender inflected by age, class, sexual orientation and ethnicity? All students will have some opinions on what it means to be a ‘woman’ or a ‘man’. This module will encourage you to examine these opinions in the light of contemporary thinking about gender and sexuality and via the study of a range of thought-provoking and sometimes troubling texts.
Contemporary African literature is about pleasure and beauty, as much as it is about the continent’s struggle for social justice and decolonisation. In the past two decades, African novels have won critical acclaim by telling stories about modern lives that challenge conventional understandings of gendered, embodied and sexual freedom. Such novels have expanded the global repertoire of literary forms and contributed to literary debates about modern selfhood and self-making. The module introduces you to 21st-century African texts in the forefront of these debates (and to their historical forebears), equips you with vocabularies for intersectional critical thought, and expands your ability to analyse form and genre.
This course will introduce you to a range of examples of Spanish American (e.g. may include Puerto Rican, Argentinean, and Mexican [American]) and Iberian cultural production from the period of the 1980s to the 21st century, in order to provide a sense of the variety of production in this period. The module will examine various examples of cultural production by/on women in order to explore representations of female sexuality, gender and the body. Debates surrounding identity, race and gender within a political and historical context will be examined, and the ways in which these have influenced female writers, film directors and artists. Some of these writers and artists seek to give voice to silenced experiences of women and to explore alternative articulations of identity in response to a climate of terror, oppression or violence. In order to determine their usefulness as instruments of cultural and political resistance, various texts will be placed within a broader theoretical context, particularly within the framework of the contemporary Postmodern/Postcolonial/Western/ (Post)feminist / Intersectional and Latin American feminist (literary) debate and within a broader Gender/Cultural Studies context.
How does gender shape our lives? How does gender shape history? This course explores British from the Edwardian period to second wave feminism, through the lens of gender and sex. We will be thinking about how ordinary people’s lives were shaped by gender, and how men and women experienced Britain differently, across the twentieth century. We will take an intersectional approach to this study, exploring how gender, race and ethnicity, class, sexual identity, and other identities interacted with one another. We will also examine how ways that masculinity and femininity were constructed and reimagined in this period. There is a focus across the course on social and cultural history, and we will use a variety of primary sources including media, pop culture, fiction, material culture, and government documents to examine this complex and rewarding history.
This module explores the fascinating, interrelated areas of human sexuality and intimacy. We draw on sociological, criminological, anthropological approaches, amongst others. You'll be asked to critically draw on your own experience and knowledge as we consider how people across the world understand and enact intimacy and sexuality. We will take a firmly international perspective, locating key theories of sexuality and intimacy in their cultural and historical perspective, and unpicking the limitations of such foundations by close, critical examination of global trends, meanings and experiences.
Has Shakespeare aged well? From the boys in wigs on the Elizabethan stage to the digital wizardry of the twenty-first century, the technology as well as the ideology that informs Shakespearean performance keeps evolving—sometimes in unexpected ways. This module gives you an opportunity to find out more about the theatrical culture of Shakespeare’s day, learn how to read Shakespeare’s plays with an eye for poetic detail as well as for staging possibilities, and tap into the rich history of Shakespearean performance and criticism. Our attitudes to Shakespeare might change with the times, but if we take a better look at where Shakespeare started and what his plays have meant to the generations of poets, actors, directors, and scholars that followed, we have a better chance of figuring out where we want to take him next.
Biologists are often required to provide quantitative analyses of field data typically collected under imperfectly controlled conditions and across heterogeneous habitats. This module will develop generic skills in (1) the design of data collection protocols, particularly for shallow water marine environments and (2) the testing of hypotheses with appropriate statistical techniques. The course will develop an understanding of the core principles of survey design and data analysis that underpin all quantitative sampling methods. The fieldwork component will develop the student's skills in shallow water biological survey using a range of methods best suited to the environment being surveyed, including benthic grabs, seafloor imagery techniques, and environmental sensors. Data developed from the survey will be analysed with appropriate visualisation and statistical software.
A module in which students will learn the basis of sustainable ship design whilst considering the economic and safety implications. In parallel the students will undertake a preliminary ship design which will enhance their understanding of some design implications and result in a general arrangement drawing.
This module provides the fundamental concepts associated with the principles of manoeuvring and control theory, with a focus on vehicles operating on or below the air water interface. There is one assignment which integrates manoeuvring hydrodynamic data into the control of a marine vehicle.
This module identifies the fundamental aspects and describes practical approaches for ship resistance and associated propulsion including propeller design and engine selection. Students will estimate the ship resistance and design propeller to fulfil the propulsion requirement. There are two laboratories and one assignment as well as a number of tutorials in this module to enable the students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts and the applications.
This module aims to examine aspects of design relevant to the longitudinal and transverse strength of a ship. This is conducted through both first principles design and the use of classification society rules. In addition the production technology applicable to the shipbuilding industry is examined from the perspective of the shipyard and its management but also from a design for production viewpoint. The complementary management module will also provide production planning and scheduling relevant to ship production.
This module provides an in-depth exploration of the economic principles that drive the global shipping industry, equipping students with critical analytical skills for effective decision making. The module covers the structure of the international shipping market, the major global trade routes, the commodities transported and the intricacies of various freight contracts. Students will explore the role of shipbroking and chartering, the dynamics of the four main shipping markets - cargo, newbuilding, second-hand and scrapping - and the operational differences between liner and bulk shipping. With a focus on sustainability, the course also examines the impact of environmental regulations and green technologies on maritime operations. Through theoretical study and practical case studies, students will be prepared to navigate and influence the evolving challenges of the shipping industry, with a particular emphasis on sustainable practices.
Each student undertakes an investigation which includes both practical and theoretical components. The theory component will consist of a critical review of the literature relating to the proposed experimental component of the project. The fieldwork is related to the appropriate degree programme. Each student is assigned to an appropriate supervisor who will advise on and direct the project and the preparation of a written report. The aim of this module is to allow students to carry out a short field-based project on a special topic related to his/her main area of study, and to complete a literature survey on a topic related to this area of research
As part of year one of the Integrated PhD (iPhD) programme, all students will undertake three short research projects (10-12 weeks each) in different laboratories. This offers students the opportunity to develop a broad range of laboratory skills and to develop a well-rounded understanding of their chosen field of study. Students will be offered as much choice as possible for each of the three projects, with information on project availability being provided by the module leads. Students will be encouraged to develop a wide range of skills that will support them for their research in years 2-4 of the programme. Each student will have a clearly identified supervisor who will provide guidance and support in both the practical and theoretical elements of the project. Students will need to utilise appropriate research techniques to address a clear research question. In addition, students will be expected to develop a good understanding of the published literature within their field of study. Assessment of the project will be through a written research report of approximately 5000 words.
