To receive copies of papers or to make loans of books, students access the Birkbeck Electronic Library and other UK library on-line resources and are eligible to use the library services for distance learners provided by Birkbeck College. Full support for students on the course is given through a course tutor system. The course runs from October to September each year and consists of 3 course modules. Supervised dissertation on a subject chosen by the student. A virtual conference is held during this time.
Students present and discuss dissertation material with tutors and fellow students on-line.
If studied 'part-time', only one topic is studied weekly in each of the 12 week sessions. If studied 'full-time', each 12 week session requires the study of two course topics per week. There are four exam papers, one for each stream of each module. After the examination, students may be asked to give times when they can be contacted for short telephone viva voce examinations. External examiners appointed by the university oversee the coursework and examinations.