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Best uni for English Literature?
I’ve got my heart set on Durham or York at present but some insight from present/former English Lit students would be fab!
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
Original post by l_ecn
I’ve got my heart set on Durham or York at present but some insight from present/former English Lit students would be fab!
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
Hey @l_ecn
Heres a list of the best universities in the UK based on English literature - https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=english
I did my English Literature degree at Queen Mary which was great! I did not realise it was a 100% coursework degree (I should have checked this before hand because I prefer exams!) but overall it was a great experience. The first year was a bit of a drag as you cannot choose any of the modules and I was stuck with medieval literature which was not my cup of tea, but as you progress to the 2nd and 3rd year you have more freedom in choosing your modules.
Hope this helps!
Habiba
Original post by Habiba Chowdhury
Hey @l_ecn
Heres a list of the best universities in the UK based on English literature - https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=english
I did my English Literature degree at Queen Mary which was great! I did not realise it was a 100% coursework degree (I should have checked this before hand because I prefer exams!) but overall it was a great experience. The first year was a bit of a drag as you cannot choose any of the modules and I was stuck with medieval literature which was not my cup of tea, but as you progress to the 2nd and 3rd year you have more freedom in choosing your modules.
Hope this helps!
Habiba
Heres a list of the best universities in the UK based on English literature - https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=english
I did my English Literature degree at Queen Mary which was great! I did not realise it was a 100% coursework degree (I should have checked this before hand because I prefer exams!) but overall it was a great experience. The first year was a bit of a drag as you cannot choose any of the modules and I was stuck with medieval literature which was not my cup of tea, but as you progress to the 2nd and 3rd year you have more freedom in choosing your modules.
Hope this helps!
Habiba
H[QUOTE="Chowdhury;77128620" Habiba="Habiba"]Hey @l_ecn
Hiya Habiba,
That’s actually so helpful, thank you! Yes I’ve completely neglected considering coursework/exams so I’ll have a look at the list you’ve attached!
I’d be interested to know what you’re doing now you’ve graduated as although I’m keen on English Lit I’m unsure what I’d do after?
Many thanks once again,
Lily ☺️
(edited 6 years ago)
Original post by l_ecn
I’ve got my heart set on Durham or York at present but some insight from present/former English Lit students would be fab!
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
Is there a particular period/aspect of Lit you do (or don't) want to study?
Durham and York are the only names which come to mind in the north of England that are particularly good at English, although Newcastle, Lancaster, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Sheffield all have respectable departments. For English Literature, Oxbridge, Durham and UCL are in a league of their own.
[QUOTE="l_ecn;77128756"]H
Glad I could help @l_ecn!
I thought the 3 years at uni would help me figure out what I wanted to do but when I graduated I was still stuck and realised I definitely was not ready for a 9-5 job. I was also sick of people telling me all I could do was be a journalist or a teacher as I had no desire to pursue any of those professions! So, long story short I decided to do a masters and after short listing a few courses I decided on marketing and it was the best decision ever. I am now nearly finished my Marketing masters and have finally decided that I want to go into marketing and business as a career. My advice is don't stress if you haven't got it all figured out yet, everything will fall into place when the time is right
Good luck with everything,
Habiba
Original post by Habiba Chowdhury
Hey @l_ecn
Hiya Habiba,
That’s actually so helpful, thank you! Yes I’ve completely neglected considering coursework/exams so I’ll have a look at the list you’ve attached
Hiya Habiba,
That’s actually so helpful, thank you! Yes I’ve completely neglected considering coursework/exams so I’ll have a look at the list you’ve attached
Glad I could help @l_ecn!
I thought the 3 years at uni would help me figure out what I wanted to do but when I graduated I was still stuck and realised I definitely was not ready for a 9-5 job. I was also sick of people telling me all I could do was be a journalist or a teacher as I had no desire to pursue any of those professions! So, long story short I decided to do a masters and after short listing a few courses I decided on marketing and it was the best decision ever. I am now nearly finished my Marketing masters and have finally decided that I want to go into marketing and business as a career. My advice is don't stress if you haven't got it all figured out yet, everything will fall into place when the time is right
Good luck with everything,
Habiba
Oxbridge are both (obviously) excellent, but their teaching style is very different to any other uni (Durham and UCL may claim to have tutorial systems, but in reality their systems aren't very similar to Oxbridge's at all). Their style may not suit you, so you shouldn't just apply for reasons of prestige or reputation. UCL is a solid choice. Warwick is also worth looking into for English, as is KCL. I'd advise not disregarding southern unis on the basis of location - you'll miss out on a lot of excellent unis, which are often superior to northern unis for English (really, it's only Durham in the north which offers a decent English course).
Original post by l_ecn
I’ve got my heart set on Durham or York at present but some insight from present/former English Lit students would be fab!
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
(I’m keen on staying in the North just so you have an idea location-wise, but if you can persuade me otherwise I’m open to other unis too!)
Thanks a lot,
Lily
Hi! I am a third year studying English and Related Literature at York and I absolutely love it and would cannot recommend it enough. The course is really interesting and extremely flexible so that you can get a broad understanding of all of the key themes but you still get a chance to explore your own interests in detail. I've studied everything from medieval literature, to French literature, to the Bible! As I am in my final year, my peers are all doing their dissertations so I am writing on Jane Austen, but my friends are doing everything from David Bowie, to Saturday Night Live!
One of the really interesting things about York is that in addition to lectures, seminars, and workshops you have the opportunity to visit your lecturers one on one in their open office hours to discuss anything at all. You can talk about an upcoming essay, some feedback that you've received, or just a book that you read recently for fun or something that came up in one of your contact hours that you are interested in discussing further. The lecturers are extremely helpful and friendly, and so is everyone I've met at York.
If you have any questions, this page from the university is really helpful. Also, a few different blogs like this or this one about York's social life may give you an idea of what York is like but if you have any questions about anything at all please just let me know!
Hope that helps!!
Hey Lily,
I did my undergraduate in English Literature at Glasgow University and I had an amazing experience.
The staff and the course was really fantastic from beginning to end. We covered a wide range of literature across time, genre and nationality which gave me a great overview and also allowed me to learn quickly what work I liked and where my research interests really lay. We also did a really good mix of male/female authors which I think is very important and something not often discussed. A lot of our reading lists covered classics alongside more unusual texts which gave me a great breadth of knowledge. I feel like a lot of English departments stick to the canonical stuff. Glasgow has a particular focus on Victorian literature, Modern literature and Literary theory but regardless of this I never felt my interests were sidelined (I was into Scottish Literature and contemporary stuff in particular) which I think is another rareity for a university - but really important. Another great thing is how you are introduced to literary theory early on in the course which I think is a great way to expand your understanding quickly and makes for better essays later on in your university career.
The staff were consistently friendly, mostly really approachable and knowledgeable about their subject. Most of them are really well-regarded within their field and publish regularly but were really generous with their time and insight. Lectures and tutorials were really informative, interesting and fun and the learning experience really made the course for me.
It is a big course and class sizes can reflect this but it never felt too anonymous. There will be people you see on exam days and at graduation you have never seen before but it's still really easy to make friends in tutorials especially in later years where you are all really interested in the books you're studying.
Glasgow as a city is a perfect place for university in my opinion. The West End is where the campus is and it's all very self-contained with nothing being more than 15 minutes walk away. There's lots of options for accommodation, it's extremely affordable overall and the night life/food scene/music scene is great, depending on your interests in that regard.
I also really appreciated how affordable it was and also how I met a really big range of people, especially on my course. I made friends who had lived in Glasgow all their life so it really helped me get to know the city and feel at home. I also met people who were moving away for the first time and were having the same experiences as me and that really helped me feel I belonged.
I really can't praise the Glasgow University English Department or Glasgow University more highly to be honest! I think it's often really overlooked for English Literature which is a real shame!
I hope this helps.
Lilith
I did my undergraduate in English Literature at Glasgow University and I had an amazing experience.
The staff and the course was really fantastic from beginning to end. We covered a wide range of literature across time, genre and nationality which gave me a great overview and also allowed me to learn quickly what work I liked and where my research interests really lay. We also did a really good mix of male/female authors which I think is very important and something not often discussed. A lot of our reading lists covered classics alongside more unusual texts which gave me a great breadth of knowledge. I feel like a lot of English departments stick to the canonical stuff. Glasgow has a particular focus on Victorian literature, Modern literature and Literary theory but regardless of this I never felt my interests were sidelined (I was into Scottish Literature and contemporary stuff in particular) which I think is another rareity for a university - but really important. Another great thing is how you are introduced to literary theory early on in the course which I think is a great way to expand your understanding quickly and makes for better essays later on in your university career.
The staff were consistently friendly, mostly really approachable and knowledgeable about their subject. Most of them are really well-regarded within their field and publish regularly but were really generous with their time and insight. Lectures and tutorials were really informative, interesting and fun and the learning experience really made the course for me.
It is a big course and class sizes can reflect this but it never felt too anonymous. There will be people you see on exam days and at graduation you have never seen before but it's still really easy to make friends in tutorials especially in later years where you are all really interested in the books you're studying.
Glasgow as a city is a perfect place for university in my opinion. The West End is where the campus is and it's all very self-contained with nothing being more than 15 minutes walk away. There's lots of options for accommodation, it's extremely affordable overall and the night life/food scene/music scene is great, depending on your interests in that regard.
I also really appreciated how affordable it was and also how I met a really big range of people, especially on my course. I made friends who had lived in Glasgow all their life so it really helped me get to know the city and feel at home. I also met people who were moving away for the first time and were having the same experiences as me and that really helped me feel I belonged.
I really can't praise the Glasgow University English Department or Glasgow University more highly to be honest! I think it's often really overlooked for English Literature which is a real shame!
I hope this helps.
Lilith
Original post by francescarlett
Hi! I am a third year studying English and Related Literature at York and I absolutely love it and would cannot recommend it enough. The course is really interesting and extremely flexible so that you can get a broad understanding of all of the key themes but you still get a chance to explore your own interests in detail. I've studied everything from medieval literature, to French literature, to the Bible! As I am in my final year, my peers are all doing their dissertations so I am writing on Jane Austen, but my friends are doing everything from David Bowie, to Saturday Night Live!
One of the really interesting things about York is that in addition to lectures, seminars, and workshops you have the opportunity to visit your lecturers one on one in their open office hours to discuss anything at all. You can talk about an upcoming essay, some feedback that you've received, or just a book that you read recently for fun or something that came up in one of your contact hours that you are interested in discussing further. The lecturers are extremely helpful and friendly, and so is everyone I've met at York.
If you have any questions, this page from the university is really helpful. Also, a few different blogs like this or this one about York's social life may give you an idea of what York is like but if you have any questions about anything at all please just let me know!
Hope that helps!!
One of the really interesting things about York is that in addition to lectures, seminars, and workshops you have the opportunity to visit your lecturers one on one in their open office hours to discuss anything at all. You can talk about an upcoming essay, some feedback that you've received, or just a book that you read recently for fun or something that came up in one of your contact hours that you are interested in discussing further. The lecturers are extremely helpful and friendly, and so is everyone I've met at York.
If you have any questions, this page from the university is really helpful. Also, a few different blogs like this or this one about York's social life may give you an idea of what York is like but if you have any questions about anything at all please just let me know!
Hope that helps!!
Also I've just heard about the new academic bursaries at York (all of the details are here https://www.york.ac.uk/english/news-events/news/academicexcellencebursaries/ ) so if you are concerned about finances at uni these may help!!!
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