Manchester Metropolitan University
BA (Hons) English
Manchester, United Kingdom
BA
DURATION
4 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 20,000 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* EU and non-EU international students full-time fee
As part of our community of students studying BA (Hons) English, you will analyse literature in all its forms, from the Renaissance to the present day, and consider literature’s relationships to its many cultural counterparts, including film, art and popular culture.
You will develop a range of subject-specific and transferable skills, which will set you up for success in the future, and you’ll be supported by academics who are leading researchers in their fields.
From your first year, your learning will be internationally engaged, working on modules that consider global forms of literature, and you will have the opportunity to work with academics who are internationally renowned in their fields.
Our students are trained to evaluate shared assumptions about the world through decolonised learning resources and curricula. You will learn how and why representation matters as you explore how language and literature shape the world around you. You’ll engage with our cultural partners and be inspired by the diverse stories of a UNESCO City of Literature.
Our assessments will help you build confidence, independence, and develop further expertise by challenging you to acquire new skills that are highly valued in the workplace. We will support you to develop your self-knowledge, encourage your creativity and foster your critical thinking.
Features and benefits
- You’ll have access to the many conferences, readings, research programmes, festivals and competitions run by the Department of English.
- Staff include internationally renowned experts in the fields of literary study and creative writing.
- We are a world-class English department — 70% of our research impact is rated as world-leading (REF21).
- Engage with the Manchester Children’s Book Festival, a year-long programme of events and activities.
- We’ll help you build your own network among our many partners within the creative and culturally rich city of Manchester, one of only 28 recognised UNESCO Cities of Literature in the world.
- You can take the four-year route, spending a year studying abroad, or boost your career prospects with a placement in industry.
Course information
This course takes a comparative and contemporary approach to the study of literature and focuses on the major genres of drama, prose, fiction and poetry. In historical terms our curriculum covers the 17th century to the present, with strong emphasis on the literature of the last two centuries. You will learn strategies for reading and interpreting a wide range of literary and cultural texts, and the world around you. We pride ourselves on our excellent teaching, highly positive student feedback and strong research culture.
Year 1
In Year 1, there is a compulsory syllabus, with core units including narrative, poetry, and drama. Your units in Year 1 will introduce you to the key skills and ideas needed for the rest of your degree.
Core modules
- Reading and Writing Mancunia (Literature)
- The Poetry Anthology
- Framing Narrative
- Genre and Global Drama
Year 2
In Year 2 there is flexibility, with core modules representing some of the major aspects of the subject, and opportunities to tailor your studies with specialised option modules that draw on areas of staff expertise, including American literature, film and creative writing units.
Please note, these option modules are indicative of what options may be on offer in Year 2 of this programme but may be subject to change.
Core modules
- Into the Archive
- Literature, Theory, and Culture
- Writing After the British Empire
Year 3
If you choose one of our four-year routes, Year 3 will be spent on placement or studying abroad.
In your final year, you will undertake an extended critical project and select areas of study from a range of option modules to suit your interests. Please note that the following list of modules is indicative and may be subject to change.
Core modules
- Independent Project (English)
- Shared Futures
Option modules
- Reading Games, Making Games
- Blockbuster Movies: Mainstreams and Margins
- Space, Place and Environment
- The Gothic
- The Global Nineteenth Century
- Contemporary Global Literatures
Graduates enter a wide range of careers, especially media work and teaching, where their transferable skills are particularly relevant. Recent graduates have become school and college teachers, and some have gained employment in fields as diverse as marketing, finance, recruitment and social media management.
There is also the opportunity to engage in further study and professional training, for example some of our graduates go on to study MA English Studies at postgraduate level where you have the opportunity to build your own bespoke masters experience, reflecting your interests in the further study of English. Alongside this we offer MA Publishing, delivered in collaboration with industry professionals, and many of our students go on to study MA/MFA Creative Writing at our Manchester Writing School, one of the largest and most successful of its kind in the UK.
Study
- Year 1 25% lectures, seminars or similar; 75% independent study
- Year 2 25% lectures, seminars or similar; 75% independent study
- Year 3 100% placement (optional)
- Year 4 20% lectures, seminars or similar; 80% independent study
Assessment
- Year 1 100% coursework
- Year 2 100% coursework
- Year 3 100% placement (optional)
- Year 4 100% coursework