English & Joint Schools
BA English Language and Literature
Admissions requirements
Course structure
English & Modern Languages
Average student intake: 9 (including Joint Schools)
Course length: 3 years
English at Hertford is characterised by intellectual seriousness and literary enjoyment. If you choose to study here, we will encourage you to develop your own academic interests, to relish working hard and independently, and to take pleasure in your own writing and analysis. We are proud of our supportive college community and the excellent academic results of our students. If you decide to apply, you should be intellectually able, ambitious, and really enjoy reading widely and thinking about what you read. In return, you will find an open, stimulating, and unstuffy academic atmosphere where you will be invited to develop your own independent thinking and critical voice.
English at Oxford involves a large amount of self-directed reading and independent study. Much of your academic workload will involve reading primary and critical texts, in preparation for essays and tutorials. We have a great library here at Hertford which you can use at any time of day and night, while just next door is the University’s Bodleian Library which houses one of the world’s greatest collections of printed books and manuscripts. The Humanities Library is a 15-minute walk or short cycle from college, and the new Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, with its theatre, café, and workspace, is also where most of your lectures will be held.
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Teaching and learning
Oxford’s English course has been ranked first or second in the world by the QS World University Rankings consistently over the last decade. Studying English here means that you will be immersed in a wide-ranging, historical course covering literature in English from its earliest origins to the present day.
As a member of the University’s English Faculty, you will be able to attend scores of weekly lectures and seminars where you can access cutting-edge research by academics across the Faculty and beyond, regardless of which college you belong to. At Hertford, we’ll organise your small group teaching sessions and provide you with a personal tutor who will usually meet with you once or twice a term to discuss your overall academic progress. In addition, we have a subject-wide event for all years in most terms, perhaps a theatre or exhibition visit, or a writing workshop: recent convenors have included the award-winning novelist Joanna Kavenna, and the New Yorker staff writer Sam Knight, encouraging students to think more creatively about critical prose.
One of our most important teaching methods is the weekly tutorial – a pair of students with a tutor, working through essays and readings you have prepared during the week and developing your thought, understanding and expression. You will also attend classes with the rest of your year group. Your tutors here at Hertford will deliver most of the core syllabus.
Through both university-wide teaching and college tutorials, you will study prose, poetry and drama from a huge range of historical periods. You will have the opportunity to work alongside expert researchers, especially when completing your dissertation and other assessed work in your final year. As there are no compulsory authors for exam papers, you will be able to explore the writers and ideas which inspire you the most.
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After Hertford
We recognise that a degree in English literature doesn’t train you up for any one profession. But because you will be able to develop your writing, analytical skills, time-management and research methods, an English degree from Hertford is an extremely flexible basis from which to launch your career. Some of our former students have taken professional qualifications in law, journalism, librarianship and museum curation, and teaching, others have joined the civil service. Some use their experiences to build careers in publishing, advertising and communications, or with charity, arts and media organisations. We have former English students who have moved into consultancy and finance, as well as poets and theatremakers.
Hertford organises an annual dinner for current English students and recent graduates, to help build connections and underpin the transition from university into the workplace. We encourage students to take up vacation internships and to think about ways to frame their academic work in different contexts.
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Making an application
We take all aspects of your application into account when making admissions decisions. Alongside your UCAS form, we also ask you to submit a marked essay from school or college.
We’re looking for applicants who will benefit most from our specific teaching style and assessment methods, and who can show us that they read widely outside their current studies. We therefore take a holistic view of your application.
The majority of our students have done UK A levels, including in English Literature or combined English Language and Literature, but we also regularly make conditional offers based on the IB and AP systems.
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Joint Schools: English and Modern Languages
4-year BA including a year abroad
This is an extremely flexible course, allowing you to tailor it to your own interests. On the English side, you’ll be able to choose from courses covering everything from Anglo-Saxon literature to contemporary world literature. The Modern Languages side supplements this with practical linguistic training and a focus on language and literature as a broader field of study.
Both our English and Modern Languages Faculties are among the largest in the UK, offering you a huge range of study subjects, expert tutors and extensive resources. You’ll have access to the English Faculty Library and the Taylor Institution Library (for languages). Both are a short distance from Hertford, and support the resources of the Bodleian Library and 24-hour college library on our doorstep.
See also: Modern Languages