BA English Language and Literature
About this course
BA in English Language and Linguistics and English Language and Literature, examining both language systems and literary texts in English. Core topics include Language & Translation, Research Methods, Data Analysis, and Statistics. Students study equal numbers of English literature and English language modules across the programme. Optional language modules are available from a choice of ten languages.
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: BBB, including grade B in A level English Literature or related subject. Related subjects: English Language, English Language and Literature, Drama and Theatre Studies and Creative Writing. IB: 30 points overall including 5 in English at higher level.
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What students say
Based on about 7 final-year students who answered (a small group: a rough guide only)
- Teaching on my course: 95%
- Learning opportunities: 96%
- Assessment and feedback: 78%
- Academic support: 75%
- Organisation and management: 85%
- Learning resources: 87%
- Student voice: 83%
Do students stay on the course?
Based on about 20 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- Continued on course: 90%
- Left higher education: 10%
What graduates do next
Based on about 36 graduates who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Working: 56%
- Working and studying: 22%
- Further study: 14%
- Unemployed: 2%
Most common jobs
- Teaching Professionals: 35%
- Administrative occupations: 10%
- Business and public service associate professionals: 10%
- Teaching and Childcare Support Occupation: 10%
- Legal professionals: 5%
- Find their work meaningful: 75%
- Feel on track for their future plans: 50%
- Use what they learnt on the course: 60%
Where graduates work (5 years on)
Based on about 205 graduates, across similar courses at this university
- North West: 1%
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 2%
- East Midlands: 5%
- West Midlands: 4%
- East of England: 11%
- London: 23%
- South East: 38%
- South West: 12%
- Wales: 4%
Who gets in
Based on about 15 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- A levels: 100%
Accreditation & quality ratings
TEF 2023 (whole university): Silver overall, Silver for student experience, Silver for student outcomes.
Modules
- Poetry in English
- Theory and Practice of Writing
- Sounds, Grammar and Meaning
- Globalisation and Language
- English Language and Society
- Introduction to Drama
- Modern American Culture and Counterculture
- Shelf Life
- Optional Language Modules
- What is Comparative Literature?
- Thinking Translation: History and Theory
- English Grammar and Phonology
- Sociolinguistics
- Myth, Legend and Romance: Medieval Storytelling
- Shakespeare
- Early Modern Literature
- Enlightenment Revolution and Romanticism
- Victorian Literature
- Contemporary Fiction
- Language and Gender
- Analysing Speech
- Language and Digital Media
- Language and the Mind
- Modernism in Poetry and Fiction
- Writing in the Public Sphere
- Optional Language Modules
- The Business of Books
- Introduction to English Language Teaching
- Critical Thinking
- Writing America: Perspectives on the Nation
- Language in Professional Communication
- Dissertation in English Language and Linguistics
- Dissertation in English Literature
- British Black and Asian Voices: 1948 to the Present
- Literature and Mental Health
- Child Language Development
- Issues in Bilingualism
- Introduction to Corpus Linguistics
- Teaching the Language Skills
- Optional Language Modules
- From Romance to Fantasy
- Language and Migration
- Introduction to Speech and Language Pathology
- Language and Power
- Writing Women: Nineteenth-Century Poetry
- Placing Jane Austen
- Decadence and Degeneration: Literature of the 1890s
- Children's Literature
- Utopia and Dystopia in English and American Literature
- The Bloody Stage: Revenge and Death in Renaissance Drama
- Shakespeare on Film
Questions about this course
How much do graduates of BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading earn?
The median salary is £26,000 after 15 months, £23,000 after 3 years, £29,000 after 5 years. After five years the middle half of graduates earn between £25,000 and £35,500. The £29,000 median after five years is £1,000 more than the UK median for English language.
What do graduates of BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading do next?
92% were in work or further study 15 months after finishing (Graduate Outcomes 2023-24).
Are students happy with the teaching on BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading?
95% of final-year students were positive about the teaching in the National Student Survey 2025-26.
What grades do I need for BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading?
The typical offer is BBB at A level, or 30 points in the IB. The average entrant had 104 UCAS points.
Does BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading include a placement year or year abroad?
The course has an optional placement year and an optional year abroad.
How many students continue on BA English Language and Literature at University of Reading?
90% of students continued into their second year, and 10% left higher education.