I quit after the cert year for this reason. I think it's just a moneymaker for Strathclyde, nothing more nor less. A lot of people were not ready for MSc-level work, which is why the course is three years (part time) when a regular History MSc is two years. 1/

First year is just to get everyone up to speed, which is really disappointing for those of us who were already there (your experience too, I imagine). If I want to learn about record sets I can watch free RootsTech videos. I agree, though, it was good to be forced to do palaeography. 2/