English Literature - BA (Hons)

University of Kent

Canterbury campus, Canterbury, United Kingdom

QS World University Rankings

=383

Degree BA
Study Level Bachelors
Study Mode On Campus
Course Intensity Full Time
Scholarships Yes
Start date Sep

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Literature at Kent is cutting edge: creative, interactive, and vibrant. Enjoy Canterbury’s rich literary heritage, explore how books empower you to tell your own story, and discover how literature helps us understand and transform our world.

Overview

“Kent gave me a chance to change my mindset” - Sian, English Literature graduate

From Chaucer to the contemporary, English Literature at Kent is truly global. It covers American and Indigenous, British and Irish, Postcolonial and World literatures. You will explore how literature helps us imagine other people’s lives and takes us on journeys of self-discovery.

Kent is home to published poets and novelists, world-renowned scholars and innovative digital practitioners. Whether you’re making a documentary film, writing a learning journal, publishing your own book, or conducting original archival research, they will support you to develop outstanding presentation, language, and analytical skills. Whether your ambition is to write creatively or in a professional context, you will graduate with the confidence and skill to say exactly what you mean.

An English Literature graduate’s creativity, passion, and ability to adapt are what employers look for. Join us at Kent and start your story.

Your course

In your first year, you take core modules covering the major forms of literature (poetry, drama and fiction), core concepts in critical theory, and writing and research skills. A range of option modules will allow you to explore how literature addresses crucial issues such as the environment, power and protest, the social impacts of technology or contemporary feminism.

Instead of exams, your first year will conclude with a program of short courses, workshops and exhibitions during the summer term, where you can pick up essential job skills, intern on research projects, or taste areas of literature you missed in your main modules.

In second year, you will select from a range of core modules covering all the major areas of literary history from the 1300s to the present. This year, you will also decide what you would like to do as your project in your final year, which may take any form: from a dissertation or critical edition to an online exhibition, mobile application, performance, or a piece of creative writing - and more. You will receive additional assistance to refine your proposal during the summer.

In third year, as well as completing your project, you will take a number of specialist modules that take you deep into cutting-edge areas of literary research. Your degree will culminate in an Arts Festival and Summer School, where you may have the opportunity to exhibit your work to the public and potential employers.

About University

Kent is one of the UK’s leading universities, we offer you outstanding teaching, world-leading research, safe and welcoming study locations, and a superb student experience. We offer a wide range of foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, exciting study abroad and year in industry opportunities, summer schools, and a generous scholarship fund including awards for academic, musical and sporting excellence and dedicated scholarships for international students. The UK’s European university, Kent has beautiful UK campuses close to London, and specialist postgraduate centres in Paris and Brussels.

With a student body representing over 157 nationalities you can have fun on a global scale. Take part in Worldfest, Europe Day and celebrate events such as Holi, Thanksgiving, Chinese New year and more. Your international student experience will be completely unique and will equip you for every aspect of your life and career.

Apply now to join our world and start building your future.

The University of Kent' Statement of Findings can be found at www.kent.ac.uk/tef-statement

Safe, Study, Social

At Kent, we’re working hard to keep our students and our staff safe. Our Safe, Study, Social ethos outlines our approach to ensuring that everyone is able to live and work on campus safely. Visit Safe, Study, Social to find out about the safety measures that we have in place, in study areas, our accommodation and other shared spaces; we update these regularly in line with current guidance.

We know that university is about more than just studying, which is why we are also encouraging people to safely socialise. Both of our campuses offer expansive outdoor spaces – we have spacious greens throughout Canterbury and open waterfronts in Medway. We have a sports centre, a cinema, a number of cafés and restaurants and are championing socially distanced outdoor activities such as outdoor cinema.

A successful future

We are committed to enhancing the employability of all our students. We do this through employability-focused degrees, internship opportunities, our award-winning careers advisory service, and a range of extra-curricular opportunities to boost your CV and develop your employability skills.

Step up and stand out

From our wide range of industry placements to our Hub for Innovation and Enterprise, you have lots of opportunities to develop real-world skills so that you can stand out from the competition and secure your dream job

Award-winning careers service

The university’s award-winning Careers and Employability Service and students’ unions help students enhance their transferable skills, gain relevant work experience, get first-hand insight into graduate careers and, through curricular and co-curricular activities, develop key graduate attributes that top employers are looking for.

Services offered by Careers and Employability include visits from graduates and employers, an annual Employability Festival, one-to-one careers advice and jobs fairs

Academic support

Our dedicated colleagues in all academic schools can provide you with individual advice and guidance on a wide range of careers

Join our successful graduates

Our alumni form part of a global network of more than 180,000 former students from 189 countries.

Academic excellence

All of our academic schools produce world-class research. In the most recent Research Excellence Framework, Kent was ranked in the top 20 for research intensity in the Times Higher Education, outperforming 11 of the 24 elite Russell Group universities. Because our academics are engaged in high level research as well as teaching, you study with some of the most influential thinkers in your field. If you don’t yet have the required qualifications or level of English language, we offer flexible pre-sessional courses and the International Foundation Programme to enable you to progress to your chosen degree. Free English lessons are also available during your studies.

English language test