Classical Studies - BA (Hons)

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Discover the dynamic legacies of ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt. Turn your passion into expertise as you explore myth, history, literature, classical archaeology, philosophy and art, in the heart of Roman Britain.

Overview

Join world-leading experts, including practicing archaeologists and historians. You’ll study civilisations, from the Minoan and Mycenean period, up to classical Greece, Republican Rome and early Christianity. Build a perspective of classical cultures as living traditions, and how they’ve continued to shape the world. You’ll also have the opportunity to learn ancient languages, and spend valuable time working as an intern in the heritage or museum sector.

Why study Classical Studies?

  • 95% of final-year Classics students who completed the National Student Survey 2022 were satisfied with the overall quality of their course
  • Classics at Kent was ranked 3rd in the UK for student satisfaction by The Complete University Guide 2023
  • Study in historic Canterbury: the centre of major historical events and the home of classical scholarship in the UK. Ancient languages have been taught in the City since the seventh century
  • Work alongside internationally-renowned experts: our academics are practicing experts in the languages and literature of the ancient world, covering the works of Virgil, Homer, the Greek historians, Cicero, ancient philosophy, and post-classical literature
  • Unlock over a thousand years of literature: study the development of western literature from the world of the bronze age and Homeric epic to the writings of Byzantine Christian scholars and saints
  • Decipher ancient languages: Unlock the secrets of the past and learn Latin, Ancient Greek, and Egyptian Hieroglyphs
  • Get career-ready: Make the connections that matter through our links to local heritage organisations and cultural sites, or prepare for teacher training with our practical modules. Meet our graduates and discover that Classical & Archaeological Studies gives you the skills to have an exciting career across a wide range of fields

What our students say

“The Fieldwork Practice module gave me my first taste of practical archaeology which has definitely sold archaeology to me! I loved The Crisis of the Late Republic because it’s been a fun overview of Roman history and we had assignments that weren’t essays which gave me a creative way to explore topics I wanted to look at.” Martha Carter, BA Classical and Archaeological Studies

What you'll learn

In your first year, you’ll take introductory modules on archaeology and the civilisations of Greece and Rome. You can also study Latin and Greek, and choose from other literature or history modules.

In your second and third years you can delve into more specialist areas: Greek plays, the literature of early Christianity, Greek philosophy, Egypt and the classical world and the Ancient Celts.

In your final year, you complete a dissertation or our capstone project in a subject of your choice, supported by a supervisor. You can also apply to take one of our placement modules, subject to a selection process, spending time on an internship in a heritage organisation or a museum.

Do you have a passion for Archaeology too? BA Classical & Archaeological Studies is also available.

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Entry requirements

The University will consider applications from students offering a wide range of qualifications. All applications are assessed on an individual basis but some of our typical requirements are listed below. Students offering qualifications not listed are welcome to contact our Admissions Team for further advice. Please also see our general entry requirements.

  • medal-empty

    A level

    BBB

  • medal-empty Access to HE Diploma

    The University welcomes applications from Access to Higher Education Diploma candidates for consideration. A typical offer may require you to obtain a proportion of Level 3 credits in relevant subjects at merit grade or above.

  • medal-empty BTEC Nationals

    The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances. A typical offer would be to achieve DDM.

  • medal-empty International Baccalaureate

    30 points overall or 15 points at HL

  • medal-empty International Foundation Programme

    Pass all components of the University of Kent International Foundation Programme with a 60% overall average including 60% in Academic Skills Development.

  • medal-empty T level

    The University will consider applicants holding T level qualifications in subjects closely aligned to the course.

International students

If you are an international student, visit our International Student website for further information about entry requirements for your country, including details of the International Foundation Programmes. Please note that international fee-paying students who require a Student visa cannot undertake a part-time programme due to visa restrictions.

Please note that meeting the typical offer/minimum requirement does not guarantee that you will receive an offer.

English Language Requirements

Please see our English language entry requirements web page.

Please note that if you do not meet our English language requirements, we offer a number of 'pre-sessional' courses in English for Academic Purposes. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.

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Course structure

Duration: 3 years full-time (4 with a year abroad/placement year), 6 years part-time (7with a year abroad/placement year)

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.

Fees

The 2023/24 annual tuition fees for this course are:

  • Home full-time £9,250
  • EU full-time £13,500
  • International full-time £18,000
  • Home part-time £4,625
  • EU part-time £6,750
  • International part-time £9,000

For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.

For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* 

Your fee status

The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.

Fees for year in industry

Fees for undergraduate students are £1,385.

Fees for year abroad

Fees for undergraduate students are £1,385.

Students studying abroad for less than one academic year will pay full fees according to their fee status.

Additional costs

Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.

Funding

We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.

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Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details. 

The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence

At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence. 

The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of A*AA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.

Teaching and assessment

All modules have a weekly seminar, and most also have weekly lectures. Archaeology modules sometimes include museum and site visits. We encourage students to take part in excavations and surveys with staff and associated institutions, and student bursaries are available to support this.

Assessment at all stages varies from 100% coursework to a combination of examination and coursework.

Contact hours

For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours.  The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Programme aims

The programme aims to:

  • teach within the framework of ancient literature, providing flexibility and a multidisciplinary approach as outlined in our mission statement
  • treat the diverse societies and cultures of the Ancient World, its interaction and influences, with a focus on literature
  • make a study in depth of selected themes, regions and periods in antiquity
  • introduce key elements by which early Europe acquired its social, political, cultural and intellectual foundations, in accordance with our statement on building on close ties within Europe
  • explore different types of evidence – literary, historical, and archaeological – using primary source material wherever possible and focusing on different approaches and techniques based on research-led teaching as outlined in our mission statement
  • examine the problems of interpretation in each type of source material through critical analysis of current studies.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

  • another culture, whether focused on literature, thought, art and religion, or on history and political and social organisation, or on material culture, with an informed sense of the similarities and differences between it and our own culture
  • complementary subjects to read both critically and empathetically literary, philosophical, historical and other source materials, while addressing questions of genre, content, perspective and purpose
  • selected themes, periods and regions within ancient literature and history in the context of current debate
  • an appropriate and diverse range of primary materials and the appropriate methods of interpretation.

Intellectual skills

You will be able to:

  • apply the skills needed for academic study and enquiry
  • analyse, evaluate and interpret a variety of types of evidence in an independent and critical manner
  • select, gather and synthesise relevant information from a wide variety of sources to gain a coherent understanding
  • deploy a range of techniques and methodologies of study
  • utilise problem-solving skills
  • evaluate research in a critical manner
  • study and reach conclusions independently.

Subject-specific skills

You gain subject-specific skills to enable you to:

  • make a critical evaluation of a variety of sources for literary and historical study (eg texts, inscriptions, and other data)
  • extract key elements from complex data and identify and solve associated problems
  • select and apply appropriate methodologies in assessing data, such as bibliographical research, textual analysis, historical analysis, visual skills, use of statistics, philosophical argument and analysis
  • gather, memorise and deploy evidence and information, and show awareness of the consequences of the unavailability of evidence
  • marshal argument lucidly and communicate interpretations using the appropriate academic conventions.

Transferable skills

You gain transferable skills to enable you to:

  • communicate effectively with a wide range of individuals using a variety of means
  • evaluate and learn from your own academic performance
  • manage time and prioritise workloads and assessments, and write and think under pressure
  • utilise problem-solving skills in a variety of theoretical and practical situations
  • work creatively, flexibly and adaptably with others; understand how groups function
  • deploy a range of IT skills effectively, such as producing word-processed text with footnotes, basic formatting, using email, research using databases and text files, locating and exploiting websites.

Independent rankings

Of Classics students who completed the National Student Survey 2022, 95% were satisfied with the overall quality of their course.

Classics at Kent was ranked 3rd for student satisfaction and 7th for research quality in The Complete University Guide 2023.

Careers

You gain key transferable skills such as the ability to analyse and summarise complex information, to manage and organise your time, and to express your opinion persuasively and with sensitivity, skills that will leave you well placed to embark on a graduate career.

Possible careers include archaeology, the heritage industry, museums, business, journalism, Civil Service, computing, media, librarianship or teaching; you might also want to pursue further academic study.

Apply for Classical Studies - BA (Hons)

If you are from the UK or Ireland, you must apply for this course through UCAS. If you are not from the UK or Ireland, you can apply through UCAS or directly on our website if you have never used UCAS and you do not intend to use UCAS in the future.

Find out more about how to apply

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International applicants

Contact us

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United Kingdom/EU enquiries

Enquire online for full-time study

T: +44 (0)1227 768896

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International student enquiries

Enquire online

T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk

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