English

Description

As an English undergraduate on our prestigious BA course, you will develop expertise in analysing literary texts across the whole range of English literature, from medieval to modern. You will learn about manuscripts and book history, supported by the superb Special Collections in the University library, and you will explore a wide range of theoretical approaches; from historicism to psychoanalysis and postcolonialism.

The Department of English at Birmingham has a strong and innovative research culture. As a student you will benefit from the wide range of specialisms within the Department, which span from the literature of the Anglo-Saxon period to literature in the digital age. There is also a unique provision for Shakespeare study with the privilege of a final year module overseen by our colleagues at the world-renowned Shakespeare Institute in nearby Stratford-upon-Avon. This will give you access to unparalleled resources and thinking on the Bard and his times.

From your first to your final year, we will support you to become a confident and accomplished reader, researcher and writer with excellent career prospects, whatever field you choose to go into.

Career opportunities

In English you have an unparalleled opportunity not only to engage with the materials of a broad and diverse cultural, textual and linguistic discipline, but also to develop skills in intellectual analysis, critical thinking and articulate expression skills that last a lifetime and qualify you for many possible careers. You are also encouraged to acquire practical skills, of equally wide usefulness and application, in oral presentation, professional documentation, group work, and the uses of information technology.
English graduates go on to work in commerce, the public services, journalism and other media, teaching at every level, publishing, advertising, the law, and a very wide range of other professions.

Detailed Course Facts

• English

Course Content

First-year modules cover a broad span and are designed to introduce you to ways of studying literature at university. By the third year, your modules will focus on specific writers or themes and reflect the research expertise of the Department’s academic staff. The structure of the course ensures that you study a well-rounded programme, with good coverage of different periods and genres, whilst also allowing you to pick from a wide range of optional modules. The BA English focuses mainly on English Literature with a small component of English Language. Our aim throughout your degree course is to guide and support you in your progress, helping you to gain confidence as a reader, researcher and writer, and assisting you to prepare for life beyond your undergraduate studies.

First year

In your first year, the emphasis is on acquiring the foundational skills and knowledge which will form the basis of your studies throughout the rest of your degree. In your core modules you will work on a wide variety of authors and genres, including texts from the medieval period through to the present day, and will spend a small proportion of your time studying English Language. You will be encouraged to develop your skills in literary analysis and essay-writing, and will also be introduced to the major library and electronic resources relevant to the university-level study of English literature. In your optional modules there is the opportunity either to explore writing from the local region or to study landmark texts from other parts of Europe. There is also the opportunity to take a module from outside your main discipline (MOMD) or to take a module from a different area within your discipline (for example a Creative Writing module such as ‘Story-telling for Page and Screen’)

Second year

In your second year you will continue your studies in all major literary periods, choosing optional modules within these periods, thereby having the opportunity to tailor your studies to your interests and to work more closely on the key literary issues and genres of your choice. You will be expected to take one module from each of four periods: Medieval, Early Modern, Romantic and Victorian, and post-1900. There is also a choice of different options for your second-year language module and for your sixth module you may choose to take either another Module Outside Main Discipline (MOMD) or take a Transhistorical Literature Option. Options may include: From Plato to Postmodernism, Shakespeare’s Sisters and Writing the Region.

Third year

A distinctive feature of the third year of the course at Birmingham is the Shakespeare module, for which you will have the advantage of being taught by our world-leading colleagues from the prestigious Shakespeare Institute in Stratford. Apart from this, you will have a free choice of modules from a wide range of Literature Options, having opportunities to focus upon your main areas of interest within the discipline. These modules are research-led, meaning that you will be taught by a leading specialist in the field. You may also choose to continue your language studies with a Language Option module.

There is a compulsory independent research element to your final year, allowing you to engage with your particular interests as well as developing your research skills to a high standard. This may either be in the form of a short dissertation of approximately 5,000 words or a 10,000 word research project; whichever option you choose you will have one-to-one supervision to support you in your research and writing. If you opt for the short dissertation, you may take either a Module Outside Main Discipline or another Literature Option.

English Language Requirements

CAE score : 80(Grade A)

To study at this university, you have to speak English. We advice you to

Requirements

Number of A levels required: 3

Typical offer: AAB

Required subjects and grades: A level English Literature or A level English Language and Literature grade A

Additional information:

International Baccalaureate: 35 points to include English at higher level with a minimum of 6 points

Other qualifications are considered

International students:

Standard English language requirements apply: IELTS 6.5 with no less than 6.0 in any band; TOEFL IBT 93

Work Experience

No work experience is required.

Related Scholarships*

• Academic Excellence Scholarship

  "The Academic Excellence Scholarship can provide up to a 50 % reduction in tuition per semester. These scholarships will be renewed if the student maintains superior academic performance during each semester of their 3-year Bachelor programme. The scholarship will be directly applied to the student’s tuition fees."

• Access Bursary

  Bursary for UK students all subjects where the variable tuition fee rate is payable.

• Alumni Bursary

  Alumni Bursary for UK Undergraduate students

* The scholarships shown on this page are suggestions first and foremost. They could be offered by other organisations than University of Birmingham.