Archaeo-and palaeobotanical research requires knowledge of collecting, extracting, determining and curating Pleistocene and/or Holocene plant fossils and, in addition, presentation of fossil botanical data and data analysis, interpretation and dissemination.

All these aspects will be addressed in detail based on the study of fossiliferous sediments from a Quaternary site that contains archaeology (either lithic artefacts, cut-marked bone of both). The site for study will depend on what is available at the time. The sediment characteristics from the site studied will determine if a palynological or plant macrofossil investigation is undertaken.

This is an advanced exercise which will lead to the production of data, if handled correctly, that can be published in a refereed, international journal.

This is a follow-up Archaeozoology course where the study of birds, fishes, molluscs and small mammals will be used to expand the knowledge and skills gained during the 2nd and 3rd years of the Bachelor Archaeology programme.

New data generation and research methods will be addressed alongside more advanced aspects of the methods taught during the foundation courses of the bachelor. This will allow you to gain a more complete and specialised training in order to investigate a broad spectrum of faunal remains from archaeological sites and assemblages.

This class is for students who already have comprehensive training in the identification and basic analysis of human skeletal remains. It will be necessary for students who are developing research topics for their Master’s theses in osteoarchaeology, and of value to students who want to acquire the knowledge necessary to undertake doctoral research that involves human osteology.

The course emphasises how the application of scientific methods and the integration of biological and archaeological evidence to research hypotheses can aid in enhancing our reconstructions of human history. Methods covered include biomechanics, joint disease, dental disease, and infectious disease.

The focus of this specialisation course lies on current methods related to Material Culture Studies and Materials Science, offering the conceptual background to formulate relevant research questions and approaches in the domain.

You will be familiarised with the advantages, pitfalls and practical implementation of advanced methods and techniques from the exact sciences (such as Optical Microscopy, XRF, SEM-EDS, etc.) used to study the life cycle of inorganic artefacts. The course aim is to provide the necessary analytical tools and framework to characterise and provenance various archaeological materials, and to determine their past function and use.

Computational archaeology involves the application of mathematics, statistics, and various other computerised techniques to solve archaeological problems. In this regard, good data analysis and computer scripting practices become necessary. In order to respond to the emerging needs of the discipline and build over the objectives of the "Quantitative Methods in Archaeology" course, the "Archaeological Science Specialisation Course: Computational Archaeology" further introduces essential statistical methods, such as regression analysis, principle component analysis, and correspondence analysis. We use Python to analyse real archaeological data.

Python is a high-level, general-purpose programming language. It is suitable for many applications, ranging from digital humanities to engineering. For instance, most common database structures can be connected to and managed by Python. The language is powerful in GIS applications; users can drastically enhance the capacity of their spatial data projects. Finally, using Python to develop machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to archaeological problems is common. The specialisation course introduces building blocks of programming, such as conditions and loops. Finally, we learn how to write Python functions assisting in archaeological data analysis.

Tests are taken in the form of written examinations, presentations, assignments or papers. For each subject you pass you will be awarded a number of credits. One credit (ec) stands for 28 hours of study. One year of fulltime study equals 60 credits.

Instruction consists of lectures, seminars and tutorials. In the lecture the lecturer talks about his or her field. You prepare by studying articles and books at home.

However, most of the teaching in the master programme consists of seminars and tutorials, where you examine the material in more depth and discuss it with your fellow students and the lecturer.

You also carry out assignments, give presentations and write papers. An active contribution to the meetings is highly appreciated.

You are required to spend about 40 hours per week on your studies. These study activities include: lectures/seminars, practical sessions, tutorials, fieldwork, excursions (e.g. to a museum or excavation), exams, literature study, preparing presentations, and writing papers and reports.