Course summary

BA History and American Studies will allow you to examine the history of the USA from colonisation through to the present-day. The course will train you in the methods of American Studies and the skills of historical scholarship. You will also be given the opportunity to study aspects of history that interest you most, from ancient, medieval, modern, and economic and social history, to the history of science, technology and medicine. The University of Manchester was the home of the first Department of American Studies in the UK, and you will be taught by one of the largest concentrations of US historians in the country. Our areas of specialisation range widely from the European colonisation of the Caribbean in the 17th century, through to the development of US racialized slavery, America's Cold War strategy, and the history of US sport in the late 20th century. You will be taught by political, intellectual, social, and cultural historians, gain advanced historical skills, such as those of analysis, debate, and argument, and acquire an appreciation of the historiographical debates that have shaped American and world history. These skills will be refined further through the study of a wide corpus of materials that includes musical scores, diplomatic memoranda, and political cartoons, and through the composition of essays and a final-year dissertation. Students on this course are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunities for study abroad, especially with our partner institutions in North America and Europe. Find out more about our North American partners and European partners.