English Literature and Politics
Entry requirements
A level
A level English Literature or a related subject at grade B. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
Access to HE Diploma
Must include at least 12 level 3 credits in English Literature or a related subject. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal
Principal subjects must include English Literature or a related subject. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
Extended Project
In recognition of the excellent preparation that the Extended Project Qualification provides to students for University study, we now include achievement in the EPQ as part of a formal offer. Eligible applicants would receive two offers, our usual offer plus an alternative offer of a B in the EPQ and one grade lower in their A level subjects
GCSE/National 4/National 5
GCSE Maths C (or 4), English Language or English Literature C (or 4).
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Higher Level English Literature or a related subject at 5. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Modules taken must be comparable to A level English Literature or a related subject. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
Scottish Higher
Higher English Literature or a related subject at grade B. Related subjects: English Language & Literature, English Language, Drama & Theatre Studies, Creative Writing.
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
Our BA English Literature and Politics joint degree programme allows study of the art of the possible and persuasion to provide a thorough understanding of the ways in which our society works.
On this programme you will gain a thorough understanding of the theoretical foundations of modern politics and the methods for studying political assent and conflict, at home and abroad. You will have the opportunity to choose from a wide range of specialist core and optional modules, which cover topical issues such as the politics of the welfare state, European political integration, and political thinking. In certain modules, you will have the opportunity to take part in United Nations and Middle East simulations and gain an insight into the political process. You can also take part in other activities that are related to the subject. For example, you can contribute to the Department of Politics and International Relations' weekly politics radio show and learn other useful skills such as presenting and audio editing.
Your study of English literature will give you the chance to study many similar issues from a different perspective: we have experts in contemporary literature from America and across the British Isles, with research expertise in the study of minority identities and the literature of global justice. You will also have the chance to study more of the authors and genres that you may already know (from tragedy to Gothic, from Shakespeare and Dickens to Plath and Beckett). But it will also introduce you to aspects of literary studies that may be less familiar to you, from children’s literature to publishing studies and the history of the book. Everyone in our department, from new lecturers to professors, teaches at every level of the degree: this gives you the benefit of our expertise and makes you part of the conversation about our research and its impact outside the classroom.
We place a strong emphasis on small-group learning within a friendly and supportive environment. In your first and second years, you will have a mix of lectures (which can be quite large) and seminars, which involve smaller groups of students working interactively with a member of teaching staff. We believe that the study of English literature and politics is a discursive process in which we learn by sharing our ideas, and so we are determined to keep class sizes small enough so that everyone feels able to contribute. We provide detailed and thorough feedback on your written work within 15 working days: this is crucial to your development as someone whose career will involve the writing of clear and persuasive documents.
**Placement**
Throughout your degree you will be thinking about the career choices that will enable you to thrive after graduation: we will help you put in place the skills and experience that you need to launch that career. In English Literature, our innovative placement scheme gives you the chance to undertake an academic placement in commerce, industry or the arts. You can also take a placement module on languages and literature in heritage, in education, and in the media. In politics, you can undertake a two-week placement as part of our module on British government and politics. This is an opportunity for you to gain first-hand experience of working with an MP, charity, pressure group, local councillor or media organisation. You can also carry out longer placements during summer vacations.
**Study abroad**
In your second year, it may be possible for you to spend a semester studying abroad at one of our partner institutions in the USA, Canada, Australia and countries across Europe.
Modules
We will be updating this page with module information over the coming weeks.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
University of Reading
English Literature
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Literature in english
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Politics
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Literature in english
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Politics
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
The numbers of people taking politics degrees fell sharply last year and we'll keep an eye on this one - it can't really be because of graduates getting poor outcomes as politics grads do about as well as graduates on average. Most politics or international relations graduates don't actually go into politics - although many do, as activists, fundraisers and researchers. Jobs in local and central government are also important. Other popular jobs include marketing and PR, youth and community work, finance roles, HR and academic research (you usually need a postgraduate degree to get into research). Because so many graduates get jobs in the civil service, a lot of graduates find themselves in London after graduating. Politics is a very popular postgraduate subject, and so about one in five politics graduates go on to take another course - usually a one-year Masters - after they finish their degrees.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Literature in english
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£18k
£25k
£29k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Politics
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£21k
£30k
£33k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Explore these similar courses...
This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Course location and department:
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
Have a question about this info? Learn more here