Program Overview

You can expect more studying an English Literature degree at Surrey. We offer a modern course which balances traditional texts with contemporary modules on Writing Gaming, Queer Ecologies, Monsters, Mystics, and Demons, and The Gothic Imagination.

Why choose this course

• Our BA English Literature course is taught by published researchers, writers, and poets, our Writer in Residence and Poet in Residence
• The library is open 24/7 in term time, and students studying a degree in English Literature can access our podcast and publishing rooms
• The course benefits from excellent pastoral care with small class sizes, sector-leading staff to student ratio and an individualised approach
• We focus on employability, preparing our students for careers in journalism, publishing, marketing, media, communications, education, and copywriting
• Our Professional Training Placements are award-winning, and prepare students for a wide range of roles in industry.

What you will study
On our English Literature BA course, you’ll study vital and influential works of literature, reading and discussing contemporary works as well as classics in a wide range of genres and cultures from around the world.

The course will introduce you to thought-provoking critical and theoretical approaches to literature. You’ll discover a range of perspectives, such as postcolonialism, psychoanalysis, and gender studies, that will enhance your understanding of literary works in relation to important societal challenges.  

You will study classic works like those of Shakespeare and George Eliot, as well as writing by contemporary authors including Kazuo Ishiguro, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Jhumpa Lahiri.     

Genres you’ll study include travel writing, 19th-century theatre and fiction, science-fiction, contemporary global literatures, medieval literature, romantic literature, early modern and modernist literatures.

You can tailor your course with a number of specialist optional modules on specific periods and themes, from the early modern to the contemporary, and from children’s literature to American fiction.

Unusually for an English literature course, we also offer you the opportunity to take a Professional Training placement, enabling you to apply your skills in an industry-relevant context, such as marketing, publishing, social media and communications roles.

English Literature placements
Our BA (Hons) English Literature course was the first English course in the UK to include the choice of a Professional Training component, back in 2008. Our experience as a leader in placements will help you make the most of your year in industry.

A placement will give you the opportunity to develop valuable transferable skills in analysis, reflection, communication and organisation. It will help to enhance your employability by giving you experience in degree-related professions such as publishing, marketing, the media industries, teaching, creative writing and arts administration.

Some organisations that have participated in this scheme include:

• Brighton and Hove Independent
• British Council
• GE Healthcare
• NBC Universal
• Place2Be
• Toyota (PR and Press Communications)
• UBS Investment Bank.