Classics BA

Program Overview

Classics BA

Overview

Build your love for, and understanding of, the ancient world to new levels.

Classics is a language-based course. You will investigate the culture and history of ancient Greece and Rome by examining texts in their original language. Immerse yourself in ancient speeches, drama, epic, and satire in the original Greek or Latin, and explore how language and culture inform one another.

Course Details

• Qualification: BA Hons
• Entry Requirements: ABB
• UCAS Code: Q800
• Duration: 3 years full-time
• Start Date: September 2025
• Fees: £9,535

Course Overview

This course will give you a wide-ranging interdisciplinary introduction to the history, literature, and culture of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds. Covering from c. 1600 BC to AD 400, you will explore the major topics in Greek and Roman history, examine primary evidence from literary and material culture, and consider the relationship between ancient Greece and Rome and the modern world.

Modules

• Year One:
  • Studying the Greek World
  • Studying the Roman World
  • Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6
  • Beginners' Latin or Greek: 1
  • Beginners' Latin or Greek: 2
  • Interpreting Ancient Art and Archaeology
  • Interpreting Ancient History
  • Interpreting Ancient Literature
  • Comparative World Prehistory
  • Greek and Roman Mythology
  • Rome to Revolution: Historical Archaeology of Britain
  • Great Discoveries in Archaeology
• Year Two:
  • Beginners' Latin or Greek: 1
  • Beginners' Latin or Greek: 2
  • Intermediate Latin or Greek: 1 and 2
  • Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6
  • Communicating the Past
  • Extended Source Study
  • Studying Classical Scholarship
  • The Silk Road: Cultural Interactions and Perceptions
  • The Archaeology of Mycenaean Greece
  • Conquerors, Caliphs, and Converts: The Making of the Islamic World, c.600-800
  • Pompeii: Art and Culture in a Roman Town
  • Christian Empire
  • Virgil and the Epic Tradition
  • Oedipus through the Ages
  • Animals in the Ancient World
  • Greece in the Archaic Age, c. 800-500 BC
  • Greeks and Persians
  • Classics and Film
  • Coins, Cults and Cities: Coinage in the Eastern Roman Provinces (30 BC to AD 270)
  • Employing the Arts
  • Arts Work Placement Module
• Year Three:
  • Advanced Latin or Greek: 1 and 2
  • Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6
  • Intermediate Latin or Greek: 1 and 2
  • Dissertation in Classics and Archaeology
  • The Silk Road: Cultural Interactions and Perceptions
  • The Archaeology of Mycenaean Greece
  • Sparta
  • Mapping the Humanities
  • Heritage and the Media
  • Pompeii: Art and Culture in a Roman Town
  • Christian Empire
  • Virgil and the Epic Tradition
  • Oedipus through the Ages
  • Animals in the Ancient World
  • Greece in the Archaic Age, c. 800-500 BC
  • Greeks and Persians
  • Classics and Film
  • Coins, Cults and Cities: Coinage in the Eastern Roman Provinces (30 BC to AD 270)
  • Greek Tragedy
  • Masculinity and Citizenship in Greece and Rome
  • "Otherness" in Classical Art

Assessment

• Assessment is based on a combination of coursework, including essays, close- reading exercises, research projects, and the dissertation, oral presentations, and formal examinations.
• The precise assessments vary between modules and across the years of your degree.

Careers

• A degree in classics gives you a wide range of transferable skills, including:
  • Ability to process and critically evaluate data
  • Applying theoretical and scientific principles to problems
  • Critical analysis and argument
  • Experience of fieldwork, post-excavation and laboratory techniques
  • Ability to interpret spatial data numerical, statistical, IT and analytical skills
  • Strong team working
  • Written, oral and visual communication
  • Awareness of other linguistic cultures

Contact

• For more information, please head to our help and support hub, where you can find frequently asked questions or details of how to make an enquiry.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

Build your love for, and understanding of, the ancient world to new levels. Classics is a language-based course. You will investigate the culture and history of ancient Greece and Rome by examining texts in their original language. Immerse yourself in ancient speeches, drama, epic, and satire in the original Greek or Latin, and explore how language and culture inform one another. Reading ancient texts in their original Latin or Greek is one of the greatest pleasures of studying Greek and Roman culture. You can learn either language from scratch, or build on your existing knowledge. Studying Latin and ancient Greek will give you greater insight into the texts you’re reading in translation. You can combine modules on the history, art, and culture of the ancient Mediterranean with detailed study of both Latin and Greek. Learning an ancient language also builds skills in linguistic analysis and literacy that are valued by employers.

Outline:

All modules Mandatory Optional Year 1 Studying the Greek World Learn More Mandatory Year 1 Studying the Roman World Learn More Optional Year 1 Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6 Learn More Optional Year 1 Beginners' Latin or Greek: 1 Learn More Optional Year 1 Beginners' Latin or Greek: 2 Learn More Optional Year 1 Interpreting Ancient Art and Archaeology Learn More Optional Year 1 Interpreting Ancient History Learn More Optional Year 1 Interpreting Ancient Literature Learn More Optional Year 1 Comparative World Prehistory Learn More Optional Year 1 Greek and Roman Mythology Learn More Optional Year 1 Rome to Revolution: Historical Archaeology of Britain Learn More Optional Year 1 Great Discoveries in Archaeology Learn More Optional Year 1 Understanding the Past I – Introduction to Archaeology Learn More Optional Year 1 Understanding the Past II – Landscapes and Surveying Learn More Load more modules Optional Year 2 Beginners' Latin or Greek: 1 Learn More Optional Year 2 Beginners' Latin or Greek: 2 Learn More Optional Year 2 Intermediate Latin or Greek: 1 and 2 Learn More Optional Year 2 Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6 Learn More Optional Year 2 Communicating the Past Learn More Optional Year 2 Extended Source Study Learn More Optional Year 2 Studying Classical Scholarship Learn More Optional Year 2 The Silk Road: Cultural Interactions and Perceptions Learn More Optional Year 2 The Archaeology of Mycenaean Greece Learn More Optional Year 2 Conquerors, Caliphs, and Converts: The Making of the Islamic World, c.600-800 Learn More Optional Year 2 Pompeii: Art and Culture in a Roman Town Learn More Optional Year 2 Christian Empire Learn More Optional Year 2 Virgil and the Epic Tradition Learn More Optional Year 2 Oedipus through the Ages Learn More Optional Year 2 Animals in the Ancient World Learn More Optional Year 2 Greece in the Archaic Age, c. 800-500 BC Learn More Optional Year 2 Greeks and Persians Learn More Optional Year 2 Classics and Film Learn More Optional Year 2 Coins, Cults and Cities: Coinage in the Eastern Roman Provinces (30 BC to AD 270) Learn More Optional Year 2 Employing the Arts Learn More Optional Year 2 Learn More Load more modules Optional Year 3 Advanced Latin or Greek: 1 and 2 Learn More Optional Year 3 Latin or Greek Texts: 1-6 Learn More Optional Year 3 Intermediate Latin or Greek: 1 and 2 Learn More Optional Year 3 Dissertation in Classics and Archaeology Learn More Optional Year 3 The Silk Road: Cultural Interactions and Perceptions Learn More Optional Year 3 The Archaeology of Mycenaean Greece Learn More Optional Year 3 Sparta Learn More Optional Year 3 Mapping the Humanities Learn More Optional Year 3 Heritage and the Media Learn More Optional Year 3 Pompeii: Art and Culture in a Roman Town Learn More Optional Year 3 Christian Empire Learn More Optional Year 3 Virgil and the Epic Tradition Learn More Optional Year 3 Oedipus through the Ages Learn More Optional Year 3 Animals in the Ancient World Learn More Optional Year 3 Greece in the Archaic Age, c. 800-500 BC Learn More Optional Year 3 Greeks and Persians Learn More Optional Year 3 Classics and Film Learn More Optional Year 3 Coins, Cults and Cities: Coinage in the Eastern Roman Provinces (30 BC to AD 270) Learn More Optional Year 3 Greek Tragedy Learn More Optional Year 3 Masculinity and Citizenship in Greece and Rome Learn More Optional Year 3 "Otherness" in Classical Art Learn More Load more modules

Assessment:

Assessment is based on a combination of coursework, including essays, close-reading exercises, research projects, and the dissertation, oral presentations, and formal examinations. The precise assessments vary between modules and across the years of your degree. Some of our modules (such as 'Communicating the Past', or 'Classics and Comics') include the option of producing more artistic or creative coursework projects.

Teaching:

You will be taught via a mixture of large-group lectures and smaller, interactive seminars. You might also be taught through tutorials and supervisions. These are one-to-one meetings or discussions with an academic tutor. All students are assigned a personal tutor at the start of each academic year. Your personal tutor oversees your academic development and personal welfare. Peer mentoring All new undergraduate students are allocated a peer mentor, to help you settle into life at Nottingham.

Careers:

A degree in classics gives you a wide range of transferable skills, including: ability to process and critically evaluate data applying theoretical and scientific principles to problems critical analysis and argument experience of fieldwork, post-excavation and laboratory techniques ability to interpret spatial data numerical, statistical, IT and analytical skills strong team working written, oral and visual communication