Program Overview

• Set yourself up to flourish in your degree and beyond with our Foundation Year
• Survey a wide range of periods while zooming in on landmark medieval events such as the Norman Conquest, the Black Death and the Wars of the Roses
• Secure work placements at leading historic and cultural venues such as the Mary Rose and the British Museum
• Learn from expert tutors and their cutting-edge research
• Join a student-led history society on trips to sites of historical interest and talks by major historians

A Foundation Year is the perfect way to boost your academic skills, build your confidence and develop your wider subject knowledge so you can succeed at Winchester. This course offers an extra year of study at the start (Year 0) which leads onto a full degree programme (Years 1, 2 and 3).

A Foundation Year is ideal if you are returning to education after a break; haven’t quite achieved the entry qualifications required; are wanting more support during the transition to studying at university; or are unsure about which subject you wish to pursue.

In Year 0, you will study a set of modules from across the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences which are designed to develop your academic and practical skills. This broader focus in your first year introduces you to studying at university level and provides you with a better understanding of Medieval History and related subjects.

In Year 1 (second year of study), you take core modules that explore the nature of history as a discipline. You look at the changing assumptions, methods and definitions of history and explore the current concerns of historians. You also select from a range of possible optional modules, including Early Medieval Britain 400-1066 and Europe 1300-1500.

Having acquired research skills and knowledge in Year 1, your studies in Years 2 and 3 (third and fourth year of study) are more specialised. You take core modules that deepen your understanding of the study of history, including Past Historians and Current Practice, and optional modules focused primarily on the Medieval World. You either concentrate on how to use original documents (in translated ad printed form where appropriate) or explore, through  thematic approaches, social continuity and change over long periods.

In Year 3 (fourth year of study), you produce your dissertation and take core modules in Writing History, and History and the Public Sphere. Optional modules take the form of Depth Studies, using primary and secondary sources as evidence, and Comparative Studies, where more than one country and culture is examined. Depth Studies options may include The Hundred Years' War 1337-1453, Alfred the Great, and The Pax Romana. The Possible Comparative Studies options include Gender and Authority in Early Medieval Europe, Greek and Roman Comedy Theatre, and The Black Death in Europe.