BA English Literature and History
About this course
BA Hons in English Literature and History, an English Literature and History degree spanning centuries of cultural and societal development. Core topics include Research Methods and Historical Research. The course culminates in an independent research project focusing on a self-selected literary or historical topic. In the first year, students build a foundation through core modules such as Literature in Time, Handling Historical Evidence, and Controversy in History, while also selecting from optional modules covering medieval and early modern worlds or modern worlds. The second year delves deeper through compulsory study in Critical Theory and Who Makes History, alongside optional pathways exploring topics like postcolonial literature, war and transformation, and British history. The final year centres on applied historical study through The Use and Abuse of History, supported by an array of optional modules ranging from contemporary literature and Shakespeare to the Cold War and a dedicated English Literature Dissertation.
Written by AI from the university's course page and module list. It can get details wrong, so check the official course page before you rely on it.
Entry requirements
A level: AAB IB: 35 points overall with 16 points from the best 3 HL subjects
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Admissions (2022 entry, home applicants)
Offer rate 98%: 41 offers from 42 applications, from the university's Freedom of Information return.
What students say
Based on about 60 final-year students who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Teaching on my course: 93%
- Learning opportunities: 85%
- Assessment and feedback: 78%
- Academic support: 90%
- Organisation and management: 70%
- Learning resources: 96%
- Student voice: 66%
Do students stay on the course?
Based on about 15 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- Continued on course: 90%
- Moved to a lower qualification: 10%
What graduates do next
Based on about 59 graduates who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Working: 58%
- Working and studying: 10%
- Further study: 20%
- Unemployed: 6%
Most common jobs
- Teaching Professionals: 15%
- Elementary occupations: 10%
- Artistic, literary and media occupations: 10%
- Teaching and Childcare Support Occupation: 10%
- Customer service occupations: 10%
- Find their work meaningful: 80%
- Feel on track for their future plans: 45%
- Use what they learnt on the course: 40%
Where graduates work (5 years on)
Based on about 120 graduates, across similar courses at this university
- North East: 2%
- North West: 48%
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 16%
- East Midlands: 3%
- West Midlands: 4%
- East of England: 3%
- London: 14%
- South East: 3%
- South West: 2%
- Wales: 2%
- Scotland: 1%
Who gets in
Based on about 15 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- A levels: 95%
- Other HE qualification: 5%
Accreditation & quality ratings
TEF 2023 (whole university): Gold overall, Silver for student experience, Gold for student outcomes.
Modules
- Literature in Time
- Handling Historical Evidence
- Controversy in History
- Medieval and Early Modern Worlds
- Parties, Populism and Protest
- Global Governance and International Institutions
- The Arts and Identity (Discovery module)
- Thinking Globally (Discovery module)
- World Literatures
- Modern Worlds
- Critical Theory
- Who Makes History?
- Medieval to Early Modern Literature
- Literary Adaptation
- Postcolonial Literature
- War and Transformation
- Human and Environment
- American Literature
- Victorian Literature
- Body, Mind and Society
- Death
- Critical Practice
- Britain in the 20th Century
- Global Challenges and Collaborative Solutions (Discovery module)
- Taking an Idea and Making it Happen (Discovery module)
- The Use and Abuse of History
- Contemporary Literature
- Romanticism
- Literature and Environment
- Special Topics in Theory
- Participation, Splendour and Violence: The Italian City-States, c.1100-1350
- Paradise Lost: Colonisation and the Jamaican Environment, 1655-1838
- Victorian Bodies: Sex, Gender, Race and Power in Global Britain
- Forging India: South Asia from Empire to Nation, 1829-1964
- Advertising and Consumerism in Britain, 1853-1960
- Fascism, Revolution and War in Spain: The Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939
- A Global History of the Cold War
- English Literature Dissertation
- Austen and the Brontës
- Gothic and Science Fiction
- Shakespeare
- Modernism
Questions about this course
How much do graduates of BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University earn?
The median salary is £26,000 after 15 months, £23,500 after 3 years, £29,500 after 5 years. After five years the middle half of graduates earn between £25,500 and £35,500. The £29,500 median after five years is £1,500 more than the UK median for Literature in English.
What do graduates of BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University do next?
88% were in work or further study 15 months after finishing (Graduate Outcomes 2023-24).
Are students happy with the teaching on BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University?
93% of final-year students were positive about the teaching in the National Student Survey 2025-26.
What grades do I need for BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University?
The typical offer is AAB at A level, or 35 points in the IB. The average entrant had 157 UCAS points.
What is the offer rate for BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University?
98% of home applicants received an offer for 2022 entry: 41 offers from 42 applications, according to the university's Freedom of Information return.
How many students continue on BA English Literature and History at Lancaster University?
90% of students continued into their second year, and 0% left higher education.