Course summary

Imaginative, persuasive expression in the study of English Literature is a complementary pairing with different philosophical perspectives, as you discover how literary culture has shaped society and how society has shaped literary culture. At Birmingham, you'll have access to world-class talent in philosophical fields as diverse as metaphysics and epistemology, philosophy of language and mind, ethics and ethical theory. In your undergraduate Philosophy studies, you'll explore the great minds of history and the present day, both learning what they thought and engaging with them critically. By studying Philosophy as a Joint Honours degree with English Literature, you'll be given a strong foundation in all major periods and genres and will be able to specialise in areas ranging from medieval poetry to twenty-first century digital literary culture. You'll also have the opportunity to take our specialist second-year undergraduate Shakespeare module and the possibility of participating in our residential trip in Stratford-upon-Avon. Why study this course? Get a head start in the graduate market - kick start your career with our employability modules, including options that provide a minimum of 70 hours' work experience within a sector you're interested in, assist organisations with developing, planning and pitching their business proposals and get involved with public engagement projects. Do more than read books - take advantage of the wide ranging expertise within our academic community and delve into the study of social media, marketing, textual production, video games, comics, art, music and film and TV. Fantastic module variety - the amount of optional modules on offer will allow you to specialise more as you progress through your degree course, so that you can study areas of the discipline that interest you the most. Some module examples include Minds, Brains and Computers: Issues in Philosophy of Cognitive Science, Reasons to Believe: Topics in Epistemology and Fantastic Beasts and How to Understand them and Topics in Philosophy of Biology. Get on board with the bard - where better to study Shakespeare than in the town where he was born! Make use of our internationally renowned Shakespeare Institute based in Stratford-upon-Avon and collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company and take part in fun and interactive study trips, such as the Stratford Residential, which includes creative sessions led by RSC artists and tickets to an RSC performance. A city that values the Arts and Humanities as much as you do - did you know that inspiration for parts of The Lord of the Rings came from our very own campus (our clock tower Old Joe is thought to be the black tower of Isengard)! Explore Birmingham’s literary scene and get involved with the numerous on-campus writers groups, including our very own newspaper, radio and TV stations. Delve into the various city-wide literature festivals and take advantage of our exceptional resources, including our special collections and archives in the Cadbury Research Library and the Library of Birmingham, Europe’s largest regional library. Top 15 for English in the Complete University Guide 2023 Top 10 for undergraduate Philosophy in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023 1st the Department of Philosophy is top in the country for its performance in the latest Research Excellence Framework exercise 2021 based on Grade Point Average (Times Higher Education)