BA History
About this course
BA in History, a history degree focused on the study of past societies across various chronological periods and geographical regions. Core topics include Research Methods. Students complete three academic years of study, culminating in a mandatory independent research project. The first year introduces foundational disciplinary skills through compulsory modules such as Approaching History, Writing History, and Making History, alongside a wide variety of optional historical periods. The second year advances investigative techniques with the Second-Year Research Seminar, paired with optional study areas ranging from Roman Democracy: Myth or Reality? to The Cultural Cold War. The final year centres on the History Undergraduate Dissertation, supported by specialist optional modules like Cultures of War in Ancient Greece and Slavery in the Classical World.
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: AAA (History required.) IB: 38 points (A total of 18 points in three higher level subjects including grade 6 in History, with no higher level score below 5.)
See the highest paying History, Philosophy & Religion degrees in the UK →
Admissions (2022 entry, home applicants)
Offer rate 54%: 371 offers from 690 applications, from the university's Freedom of Information return.
What students say
Based on about 90 final-year students who answered
- Teaching on my course: 94%
- Learning opportunities: 84%
- Assessment and feedback: 82%
- Academic support: 93%
- Organisation and management: 84%
- Learning resources: 94%
- Student voice: 75%
Do students stay on the course?
Based on about 185 students who started
- Continued on course: 95%
- Left higher education: 5%
- Moved to a lower qualification: 1%
What graduates do next
Based on about 125 graduates who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Working: 60%
- Working and studying: 12%
- Further study: 15%
- Unemployed: 2%
Most common jobs
- Business and public service associate professionals: 19%
- Administrative occupations: 11%
- Finance Professionals: 8%
- Media Professionals: 8%
- Business, Research and Administrative Professionals: 6%
- Find their work meaningful: 78%
- Feel on track for their future plans: 67%
- Use what they learnt on the course: 50%
Where graduates work (5 years on)
Based on about 335 graduates, across similar courses at this university
- North West: 2%
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 2%
- East Midlands: 3%
- West Midlands: 4%
- East of England: 10%
- London: 60%
- South East: 13%
- South West: 4%
- Scotland: 1%
Who gets in
Based on about 225 students who started
- A levels: 91%
- Baccalaureate: 7%
- Other qualifications: 1%
Accreditation & quality ratings
TEF 2023 (whole university): Silver overall, Silver for student experience, Gold for student outcomes.
Modules
- Approaching History
- Writing History
- Making History
- Making Medieval Europe 1150 - 1350
- History of the Modern Middle East
- The History of Political Thought in the West
- The Mediterranean World c.800-c.500 BC
- The Roman Republic, c.350 BC - 44 BC
- Bronze Age States in the Ancient Middle East
- British History c.1850-1997
- Age of Revolution: European History 1815-1870
- History of Latin America c.1830-c.1930
- The Global Economy since 1700
- Second-Year Research Seminar
- Roman Democracy: Myth or Reality?
- Asia and Europe: Imagining the world in ancient Greece
- Rome AD 300-1000. Portraits of a City, Reflections of a Changing World
- Making Medieval Europe 1150 - 1350
- Religious Reformation and Popular Piety, 1450-1650
- War, Rebellion, and Social Discontent in Modern China
- Superpower: A Global History of the United States, 1898-1989
- The Cultural Cold War
- The Disunited States: Contested Visions of America, 1775-1860
- History of the Modern Middle East
- History Undergraduate Dissertation
- Between Politics and Culture: German Ideas 1890 - 1970
- Broadcasting Modernity: A Global History of Radio and Television in the Twentieth Century
- Cultures of War in Ancient Greece
- Between Order and Disorder: Cities in the Late Medieval Mediterranean World
- Great Britain and the American Colonies 1760-1776 (1)
- The Crisis of the Union: The United States in the Civil War era, 1850-1865
- Antipodean Encounters: Aborigines, Convicts and Settlers in New South Wales, c.1770-1850
- Soul and Body in Renaissance Thought
- Untold Stories: Constructing Lives, Narratives and Experiences in Wartime East Asia
- Slavery in the Classical World
Questions about this course
How much do graduates of BA History at University College London earn?
The median salary is £29,000 after 15 months, £28,500 after 3 years, £39,000 after 5 years. After five years the middle half of graduates earn between £29,500 and £53,500. The £39,000 median after five years is £8,500 more than the UK median for History.
What do graduates of BA History at University College London do next?
87% were in work or further study 15 months after finishing (Graduate Outcomes 2023-24).
Are students happy with the teaching on BA History at University College London?
94% of final-year students were positive about the teaching in the National Student Survey 2025-26.
What grades do I need for BA History at University College London?
The typical offer is AAA at A level, or 38 points in the IB. The average entrant had 162 UCAS points.
What is the offer rate for BA History at University College London?
54% of home applicants received an offer for 2022 entry: 371 offers from 690 applications, according to the university's Freedom of Information return.
How many students continue on BA History at University College London?
95% of students continued into their second year, and 5% left higher education.