Program Overview

BA English Literature and Politics

The BA English Literature and Politics degree combines two complementary disciplines, providing students with a thorough understanding of how society works. This program offers a unique blend of English literature and politics, enabling students to explore the complex relationships between literary works, political ideologies, and societal structures.

Overview

On this program, students will gain a thorough understanding of the theoretical foundations of modern politics and the methods for studying political assent and conflict, both domestically and internationally. They will have the opportunity to choose from a wide range of specialist core and optional modules, covering topical issues such as the politics of the welfare state, European political integration, and political thinking.

Learning Structure

The program places a strong emphasis on small-group learning within a friendly and supportive environment. In the first and second years, students will have a mix of lectures and seminars, which involve smaller groups of students working interactively with a member of teaching staff. The study of English literature and politics is a discursive process, and the program is designed to encourage students to share their ideas and develop their critical thinking skills.

Placement Opportunities

Throughout the degree, students will have the opportunity to undertake a Professional Placement Year in the third year of the program. They can also undertake a two-week placement as part of the module on British government and politics, gaining first-hand experience of working with an MP, charity, pressure group, local councillor, or media organization.

Study Abroad

In the second year, students may have the opportunity to spend a semester studying abroad at one of the university's partner institutions in the USA, Canada, Australia, or countries across Europe.

Entry Requirements

• A Level: BBB, including grade B in English Literature or a related subject
• International Baccalaureate: 30 points overall, including 5 in higher-level English or a related subject
• BTEC Extended Diploma: DDM (modules taken must be comparable to subject-specific requirements)
• English language requirements: IELTS 6.5, with no component below 5.0

Structure

The program is divided into three years, with a range of compulsory and optional modules available each year.

Year 1

• Compulsory modules:
  • Theory and Practice of Writing
  • Poetry in English
  • Politics of Climate Change
  • Introduction to Contemporary Democracy
  • Introduction to Political Ideas
• Optional modules:
  • Introduction to Drama
  • Shelf Life
  • Modern American Culture and Counterculture
  • Thinking Translation: History and Theory
  • What is Comparative Literature?

Year 2

• Compulsory modules:
  • The Study of Politics
  • Students take at least one of up to four modules covering historical periods before 1900, as specified by the Department
• Optional modules:
  • Shakespeare
  • Victorian Literature
  • Contemporary Fiction
  • Modernism in Poetry and Fiction
  • Writing in the Public Sphere
  • Comparative Government and Politics
  • Global Order
  • British Government and Politics
  • Political Thinking
  • Work Placement and Project
  • War, Peace and International Ethics

Year 3

• Compulsory modules:
  • Dissertation in English Literature
  • Dissertation in Politics
• Optional modules:
  • British Black and Asian Voices: 1948 to the Present
  • Literature and Mental Health
  • Placing Jane Austen
  • Decadence and Degeneration: Literature of the 1890s
  • International Terrorism
  • British Foreign and Defence Policy since 1945
  • Global Justice
  • Politics and Governance in the Global South
  • Politics and International Relations of the Middle East
  • Karl Marx
  • American Foreign Policy since The Vietnam War
  • The Politics of Nuclear Weapons
  • International Political Economy
  • Gender and Politics
  • Feminism and Political Theory
  • Risk
  • Shakespeare on Film
  • From Romance to Fantasy
  • Children's Literature
  • Utopia and Dystopia in English and American Literature
  • Writing Women: Nineteenth-Century Poetry
  • The Bloody Stage: Revenge and Death in Renaissance Drama

Fees

• New UK/Republic of Ireland students: ｣9,790 (home tuition fee for 2026 entry, subject to annual increases)
• New international students: ｣25,850 (for 2026/27, subject to annual increases)

Careers

Graduates from this program will leave with a developed sense of the complex and inter-connected nature of society, and with confidence in their ability to express themselves clearly in written and oral communication. They will know how to evaluate evidence and arguments and how to access reliable information quickly. These skills are valuable in today's economy, where information and communication skills are vital. Past graduates have gone on to successful careers in fields such as law, business administration, web design, teaching, and journalism, with some putting their skills in political analysis to direct use in the British and European civil services, political research units, think tanks, and non-governmental organizations.