English Language and Literature BA Honours
Newcastle University Undergraduate programs
Key Information
Campus location
Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
3 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
GBP 21,000 / per year *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
Request info
* international students; GBP 9,250 - home students
Introduction
Immerse yourself in the literary and linguistic study of language as part of a wide-ranging degree in an inspiring city.
Our English Language and Literature programme will develop your literary and linguistic knowledge. This joint honours degree will help you understand how each discipline complements the other.
You will learn from world-leading experts in everything from language and ageing to the Victorian novel.
You can combine a variety of different modules throughout your course. You can take a module in child language acquisition alongside one in children’s literature. You can learn about the development of English alongside heroic sagas. You can learn about dialects while also studying the poetry of Robert Burns.
On top of this, you’ll use everything you’ve learnt to undertake independent research on a topic of your choice.
At the end of your degree, you’ll have highly specialised knowledge from two disciplines. You will also have a huge range of skills, covering everything from transcription and annotation to archival research and persuasive argument.
Study abroad
You can study abroad for one semester in your second year as part of this degree. In Europe we have links with:
- Ghent University, Belgium
- Leipzig University, Germany
- Groningen University, Netherlands
- Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
We also have links with universities in other parts of the world, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and the USA, including, but not limited to:
- Monash University, Australia
- University of Sydney, Australia
- McGill University, Canada
- University of Hong Kong
- University of Vermont, USA
- Find out more about Study Abroad.
Work placement
During your degree, you’ll have multiple opportunities to undertake a meaningful work placement. In your second and third years, you may choose to take the Career Development Module which offers academic credit for 50 hours of placement. You can choose to carry out your placement via part-time work, volunteering or in a local school. You will be assessed through a mixture of written work, presentations, and professional skills assessment.
In addition, you'll have the option to spend 9 to 12 months on a work placement with University support from our dedicated Careers team to help you secure your dream placement in the UK or abroad. Work placements take place between stages 2 and 3.
You'll gain first-hand experience working in the sector, putting your learning into practice, and developing your professional expertise. Previous placements have been in a range of sectors, including:
- Journalism and Broadcasting
- Sustainable Energy
- Politics
- Digital Media and Marketing
- Education
- Finance
- Museum and Heritage
- Travel and Tourism
If you choose to take a work placement, it will extend your degree by a year. Placements are subject to availability.
Rankings
- Global Top 125 University - QS World University Rankings 2023
- Top 100 for English Language and Literature - QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022
- Top 135 for Arts and Humanities - QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022
- 65% increase in research power since 2014 – Research Excellence Framework 2021
- 42% of our research is classified as 4* world-leading research – Research Excellence Framework 2021
- 15th in the UK – Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023 (English category)
- 1st in the UK and 8th in the world for sustainable development – Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2022
- Top 150 for Arts and Humanities – Times Higher Education World University Rankings by Subject 2022
- Global Top 140 University - Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023
Curriculum
Stage 1
You will build the foundations for the theoretical and historical study of language and literature.
You'll study half of your topics in the English language and half in literature.
In your language modules, you'll be introduced to general topics on the nature of language and more specific ones, such as the investigation of regional dialects and other kinds of language variation.
Literature modules will provide you with an overview of the development of English literature through time and across cultures.
Compulsory Modules
- Introduction to Literary Studies 1 20
- Introduction to Literary Studies II 20
- The Nature of Language 20
- Transformations 20
- Introduction to the Structure of Language 1: Syntax and Phonology 20
- Language Variation and Change: Dealing with Data 20
Stage 2
Your language modules give you the option to develop different aspects of your knowledge of the structure of English, the history of the English language, the social contexts in which English is used, and scientific methodologies for studying these phenomena.
In literature, you take at least one pre-19th-century topic alongside a more contemporary one. A range of topics is available, including Renaissance literature; Romantic literature; the Victorians; 20th-century British and American modernism; post-war and contemporary culture; drama; children’s fiction; postcolonial literature; film modules; and creative writing.
Optional Modules
- Career Development for second-year students 20
- Phonological Theory 20
- Introduction to Child and Adult Language Acquisition 20
- Syntactic Theory 20
- Sociolinguistics 20
- Renaissance Bodies 20
- Writing New Worlds, 1688-1789 20
- Revolutionary Britain, 1789-1832 20
- Victorian Passions: Victorian Values 20
- Contemporary Cultures 20
- Modernisms 20
- Independent Research Project 20
- Early English: Texts, Patterns and Varieties 20
- Creative Practice 20
- Speakers as Wordsmiths: the creation of new words in present-day English 20
- Poetry Workshop 20
- Theatre Script Workshop 20
- Prose Workshop 20
- Screenwriting Workshop 20
- Experimental Methods in Linguistics 20
- Multilingualism 20
- Linguistic Controversies 20
- Stagecraft in Early Drama 20
- Literatures of Decolonisation 20
- Overseas Exchange (Semester 1) 60
- Overseas Exchange (Semester 2) 60
You only take one of the following modules if you undertake the Study Abroad exchange programme:
- Overseas Exchange (Semester 1)
- Overseas Exchange (Semester 2)
Stage 3
At Stage 3, module options relate to your lecturers' specialisms, allowing you to explore some of the topics in language and literature studied at Stage 2 in more depth and giving you the opportunity to develop your specialist interests.
Optional Modules
- Career Development for final year students 20
- Phonological Theory 20
- Introduction to Child and Adult Language Acquisition 20
- Syntactic Theory 20
- Sociolinguistics 20
- Early English: Texts, Patterns and Varieties 20
- Speakers as Wordsmiths: the creation of new words in present-day English 20
- Experimental Methods in Linguistics 20
- Multilingualism 20
- Linguistic Controversies 20
- Topics in Phonological Theory 20
- Growing Up Global: Childhood and National Identity from Postwar to Present 20
- English Grammar through Time 20
- Language in the City 20
- Other Renaissances: Gender, Race and Sexuality in Early Modern Culture 20
- Extended Study 1: Linguistics and English Language 20
- Extended Study 2: Linguistics and English Language 20
- Dissertation: Linguistics and English Language 40
- Contemporary Documentary 1: Theory and Practice 20
- Contemporary Documentary 2: Theory & Practice 20
- The History of Linguistic Ideas 20
- Dissertation in English Literature: Long-Form Essay 40
- Independent Essay I (English Literature) 20
- Independent Essay II (English Literature) 20
- Women of Virtue and Women of Pleasure: Sensibility in the Age of Reason 20
- Landscapes of American Modernism 20
- Enlightened Romantics: writing on the margins 20
- Between the Acts: English Theatre, 1660-1737 20
- American Poetry Now 20
- Prose Portfolio 40
- Theatre Script Portfolio 40
- Poetry Portfolio 40
- Screenwriting Portfolio 40
- Jazz-Age Magazines 20
- Dissertation: Digital Exhibition 40
- Making Ireland: Kingdom, Colony and Nation in Text and Performance 20
- Writing Liberty in the Romantic era 20
- Language and Ageing 20
- Dissertation by Digital Edition 40
- Fiction and the Philosophy of Terror: From the Supernatural to the Sublime 20
- Reading Freud: An Introduction to the Principles of Psychoanalytic Theory 20
- Comparative Syntax: English in a cross-linguistic context 20
- Freedom and Imagination: US Literature 1850 – 1900 20
- Second Language Acquisition 20
- Unbinding Utopia, 1750 - 1832 20
- Performance and EveryDay Life 20
- Making Young Adult Literature 20
- All the Feels: Theatre, Emotion and Spectatorship 20
- Dissertation: Project-based 40
- Child Language Acquisition 20
- North by North East 20
Student Testimonials
Career Opportunities
Industry links
English graduates from Newcastle University include:
- Peter Straughan (screenwriter of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy)
- Andy Bird (former chairman of Walt Disney International)
- Neil Astley (writer and founder of Bloodaxe publishing house)
- Teresa Graham (accountant and SME champion, awarded a CBE in 2007 and an OBE in 1997)
Students with this degree get a range of valuable skills, which they can transfer to many different sectors. Your literary training can be used in journalism, librarianship, teaching and the highly competitive fields of writing, acting, and directing. Our graduates have also gone into a variety of career areas including marketing, law, politics, and human resources.
Admissions
Gallery
Scholarships and Funding
Several scholarship options are available. Please check the university website for more information.
Program Tuition Fee
Program delivery
You can normally expect to spend around 10 hours per week attending lectures, seminars, workshops and film screenings. You also spend around 25 hours per week on class preparation, reading, writing, and other kinds of independent research recommended by your tutor.