Program Overview

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English and Philosophy BA

Overview

English and Philosophy both explore and explain human existence. The great themes of literature and debates about language run together with the big issues of philosophy, asking questions such as:

• what are the struggles, conflicts and challenges of human life?
• how should we navigate the social, moral and personal struggles that make up our everyday lives?

You’ll explore a diverse range of themes in both disciplines, and develop highly transferable and sought after skills that can be applied to a wide range of professions.

Course Structure

You'll study each subject separately, but equally.

In philosophy, you'll explore traditional topics such as ethics and philosophy of mind alongside emerging areas like environmental and social philosophy. In English, you’ll study the full range of English, including language, literature, linguistics and drama from Old English to the present day.

The range of modules in both subjects will ensure you'll be able to follow your interests wherever they take you.

Engaged Arts

All students within the Faculty of Arts can select ‘Engaged Arts’ modules where you’ll approach real world challenges across contemporary themes such as sustainability or equity and justice. These modules have been newly designed to help you gain the skills and analytical abilities that employers are looking for.

Why Choose This Course?

• Tailor your degree to your interests – our wide range of optional modules lets you study the topics which interest you most
• Research driven learning – engage with cutting-edge research and teachings from experts in their fields
• Career-ready skills - develop your presentation, organisation, teamwork and leadership skills and how to apply them to a wide range of professions
• Volunteering opportunities – gain valuable experience and share your passion for your subject through the School of English and Department of Philosophy volunteering opportunities
• Unleash your creativity - live in a UNESCO City of Literature. Put your skills into practice and get involved with Impact Magazine, the Creative Writing Society, or the Words on Words blog
• Work experience -Work with our dedicated Faculty of Arts Placements Team to assist with your employability skills development via a range of placements, internships and volunteering opportunities.

Key Statistics

• Top 100 in the world for Philosophy (QS World University Rankings 2024)
• Top 20 for English in the UK (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 and Complete University Guide 2024)
• Making the difficult easy – 97% of our students said we are good at explaining things (NSS 2024)

Your Departments

This course is a collaboration between two departments. Find out more about what it’s like to study in the School of English and Department of Philosophy.

Course Information

Year One

• Introduction to Theoretical Philosophy
• Introduction to Practical Philosophy
• Metaphysics, Science, and Language
• Philosophy of Religions
• Gender, Justice, and Society
• Drama, Theatre, Performance
• Studying Language
• Studying Literature
• Beginnings of English
• Being Human A
• Being Human B
• Introduction to Philosophical Traditions
• Professional Communication
• Writing and Place
• The Viking World
• Arts Engaged in Health (Engaged Arts)
• Data, Culture and Society (Engaged Arts)
• Digital Projects: Data and Text (Engaged Arts)
• Digital Projects: Sound and Vision (Engaged Arts)
• Disease and Society (Engaged Arts)
• Exploring Digital Arts (Engaged Arts)
• Exploring Sustainability (Engaged Arts)
• Sustainability Action (Engaged Arts)
• The Critical Citizen: Modes of Thinking in Contemporary Society (Engaged Arts)
• Writing and Being: Academic, Activist, Professional, Creative and Personal (Engaged Arts)

Year Two

• Applying Contemporary Philosophical Research A
• Applying Contemporary Philosophical Research B
• Mind and Consciousness
• Knowledge and Justification
• Being, Becoming and Reality
• Topics in Asian Philosophy
• Social Philosophy
• Philosophy of Art
• Buddhism and the World
• Space, Time and Motion
• From Talking Horses to Romantic Revolutionaries: Literature
• Modern and Contemporary Literature
• Victorian and Fin de Siècle Literature:
• Language in Society
• Language Development
• Literary Linguistics
• The Psychology of Bilingualism and Language Learning
• Chaucer and his Contemporaries
• Ice and Fire: Myths and Heroes of the North
• Names and Identities
• From Stanislavski to Contemporary Performance: Practice and Theory
• Twentieth-Century Plays
• Employing the Arts
• Arts Work Placement Module
• Science and Society
• Applied Ethics
• Meaning, Truth and Existence
• Formal and Philosophical Logic
• Moral Philosophy
• Africana Philosophies and Religions
• Exploring European Philosophy, Ancient and Modern
• Freedom and Obligation A
• Freedom and Obligation B
• Aesthetics
• Shakespeare and His Contemporaries: Page and Stage
• Dreaming the Middle Ages: Visionary Poetry in Scotland and England
• Contemporary British Fiction
• Applying the Digital Humanities (Engaged Arts)
• Arts Work Placement Module (Engaged Arts)
• Community Engagement and Social Impact (Engaged Arts)
• Decolonisation and Justice (Engaged Arts)
• Employing the Arts (Engaged Arts)
• Issues in the Health Humanities (Engaged Arts)
• Living and Working in a Multi-Lingual World (Engaged Arts)
• Made in Nottingham (Engaged Arts)

Year Three

• Communicating Philosophy
• Environmental Ethics
• Philosophy and Mortality
• Knowledge, Ignorance and Democracy
• Dirty Talk
• Buddhist Philosophy
• Buddhism in the world
• Mind, Psychology and Mental Health
• Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
• Authenticity and Existentialism
• Songs and Sonnets: Lyric poetry from Medieval Manuscript to Shakespeare and Donne
• Modern Irish Literature and Drama
• Making Something Happen: Poetry and Politics
• One and Unequal: World Literatures in English
• The Gothic Tradition
• Advanced Stylistics
• Teaching English as a Foreign Language
• Language and Feminism
• Language and the Mind
• Discourse and Power: Health and Business Communication
• English Place-Names
• The Viking Mind
• Changing Stages: Theatre Industry and Theatre Art
• Theatre Making
• Dissertation in English Studies (Full year)
• Philosophy Independent Project Module
• Philosophy of Criminal Law
• Advanced Topics in Moral Philosophy
• Advanced Topics in Modern Philosophy
• Mind, World, and Knowledge in Ancient Greek Philosophy
• Topics in Metaethics
• Advanced Topics in Political Philosophy
• Philosophy of Life and Living
• Old English: Inventing a Nation
• Creatures and Myths
• Renaissance Women
• Modernist Genius

Fees

• £23,000 per year
• £9,535* (for full details including fees for part-time students and reduced fees during your time studying abroad or on placement, see our fees page)

Additional Costs

• All students will need at least one device to approve security access requests via Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). We also recommend students have a suitable laptop to work both on and off-campus.
• Essential course materials are supplied.
• Books: You'll be able to access most of the books you’ll need through our libraries, though you may wish to buy your own copies of core texts. A limited number of modules have compulsory texts which you are required to buy. We recommend that you budget £100 per year for books, but this figure will vary according to which modules you take.
• Volunteering and placements: For volunteering and placements, such as work experience and teaching in schools, you will need to pay for transport and refreshments.
• Optional field trips: Field trips allow you to engage with source materials on a personal level and to develop different perspectives. They are optional and costs to you vary according to the trip; some require you to arrange your own travel, refreshments and entry fees, while some are some are wholly subsidised.

Scholarships and Bursaries

• Faculty of Arts Alumni Scholarships
• University of Nottingham bursaries and scholarships
• International students: We offer a range of international undergraduate scholarships for high-achieving international scholars who can put their Nottingham degree to great use in their careers.

Study Abroad

• On this course, you can apply to study abroad at one of our partner institutions or at University of Nottingham China or University of Nottingham Malaysia.
• If you are successful in applying to study abroad, you will get the opportunity to broaden your horizons and enhance your CV by experiencing another culture. Teaching is typically in English, but there may be opportunities to study in another language if you are sufficiently fluent.

Optional Placement Year

• If your course does not have a compulsory placement, integrated year in industry or compulsory year abroad where there is already an opportunity to undertake a work placement as part of that experience, you may be able to apply to undertake an optional placement year.
• While it is the student’s responsibility to find and secure a placement, our Careers and Employability Service will support you throughout this process.

Key Information

• Study abroad, compulsory year abroad, optional placements/internships and integrated year in industry opportunities may change at any time for a number of reasons, including curriculum developments, changes to arrangements with partner universities or placement/industry hosts, travel restrictions or other circumstances outside of the university’s control. Every effort will be made to update this information as quickly as possible should a change occur.

About Modules

• The above is a sample of the typical modules we offer, but is not intended to be construed or relied on as a definitive list of what might be available in any given year.
• This content was last updated on Tuesday 22 April 2025. Due to timetabling availability, there may be restrictions on some module combinations.

How You Will Learn

• Lectures – provide an overview of what you are studying, using a variety of audio and visual materials to support your learning.
• Seminars and workshops – give you the chance to explore and interact with the material presented in lectures in a friendly and informal environment.
• Workshops are more practical, perhaps through exploring dramatic texts, working with digital materials, or developing presentations.
• Tutorials – individual and small-group tutorials let you explore your work with your module tutor, perhaps discussing plans for an essay or presentation, or following up on an area of a module which has interested you.
• eLearning – our virtual-learning system, Moodle, offers 24-hour access to teaching materials and resources.

Peer Mentoring

• All new undergraduate students can opt into our peer mentoring scheme. Your peer mentor will help you settle into life at Nottingham, provide advice on the transition to university-level study and help you access support if needed.

Teaching Quality

• Over 95% of our class of 2020 graduated with a 1st or 2:1 degree classification. Source: UoN student outcomes data, Annual Monitoring (QDS) Analyses 2020.
• Tutor's contributions to high quality teaching and learning are recognised through our annual Lord Dearing Awards. View the full list of recipients.

Teaching Methods

• Field trips
• Lectures
• Seminars
• Tutorials
• Placements
• Workshops

How You Will Be Assessed

• A combination of essays and exams are the norm for most modules. Weekly reading summaries, oral and performance presentations, performances and online quizzes may also be used by individual lecturers depending on the module.

Assessment Methods

• Commentary
• Dissertation
• Essay
• In-class test
• Portfolio (written/digital)
• Presentation
• Reflective review
• Written exam

Contact Time and Study Hours

• We provide a structure of lectures, seminars and tutorials around which you organise other study and commitments. Our minimum expected contact time with you is:
  • Year one - at least 10 hours
  • Year two - at least 9 hours
  • Year three - at least 9 hours
• Your lecturers will also be available outside of these times to discuss issues and develop your understanding. This can be in person and online. Weekly tutorial support and the accredited Nottingham Advantage Award provide further optional learning activities, on top of these class contact hours.

Careers Overview

• This joint honours degree will help you develop a wide range of skills that employers are looking for:
  • an eye for detail and close analysis
  • analytical reasoning
  • articulating complex arguments and lines of reasoning
  • constructive criticism and discussion
  • presenting and persuading
  • excellent communication ability
• The skills you develop will make you:
  • resilient - as the nature of work changes you can adapt
  • flexible - you can choose across different sectors as you develop and grow and opportunities arise

Typical Careers

• Advertising and marketing
• Business, consultancy and management
• Journalism
• Law
• Education
• Publishing

Graduate Profiles

• "I left Nottingham with ways of thinking which have enabled me to thrive on a sought-after graduate scheme, and to secure an exciting job thereafter." Luke Gallimore, BA Philosophy 2015. Now Head of Product Management, Monstarlab

Key Fact

• Only 14% of employers state that specific degree subjects are a selection criterion. (Institute of Student Employers recruitment survey 2019)

Job Prospects

• 78.8% of undergraduates from the Faculty of Arts secured graduate level employment or further study within 15 months of graduation. The average annual starting salary for these graduates was £23,974.
• HESA Graduate Outcomes (2017 to 2021 cohorts). The Graduate Outcomes % is calculated using The Guardian University Guide methodology. The average annual salary is based on graduates working full-time within the UK.

Careers Advice

• Studying for a degree at the University of Nottingham will provide you with the type of skills and experiences that will prove invaluable in any career, whichever direction you decide to take.
• Throughout your time with us, our Careers and Employability Service can work with you to improve your employability skills even further; assisting with job or course applications, searching for appropriate work experience placements and hosting events to bring you closer to a wide range of prospective employers.

Your Campus - University Park

• University Park Campus covers 300 acres, with green spaces, wildlife, period buildings and modern facilities. It is one of the UK's most beautiful and sustainable campuses, winning a national Green Flag award every year since 2003.

Related Courses

• Philosophy BA Hons
• English BA Hons
• Liberal Arts BA Hons
• Arts and Humanities with Foundation Year

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