2-Term Pathway - Foundation Certificate in Humanities - Continue to Bachelor of Arts (Honours) - English and Comparative Literature

Program Description For students who've finished high school but don’t meet the entry requirements for university, a Foundation Certificate can help them gain entry to an undergraduate degree. After completing this pathway option students qualify for progression to the 1st year of an undergraduate degree at the University of Essex.

A student’s course length is determined mainly by their English language level (UKVI IELTS score). Students on all course lengths take a set of common or similar modules to gain a solid base of skills for university. Students taking a course longer than 2 terms, will take additional modules designed to improve one or more of their English language level, academic skills, and basic knowledge of particular subjects.

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) - English and Comparative Literature

The BA English and Comparative Literature program offers a unique opportunity to explore English literature alongside writings from across the globe, both in English and in translation. Essex places the study of English firmly in the global context from which it emerges, and explores the ways in which English interacts with the literatures of Europe, the US, Caribbean and beyond. There is a focus on deepening students' knowledge of literary traditions and movements across a variety of genres in order to develop their skills as a reader and to sharpen their critical intelligence. Studying different literary traditions from around the world and across history enables students to understand literary movements and developments in their global context, whether in relation to the evolution of the epic, the novel or poetry. From ancient texts to contemporary literature, from US literature to Petrarch and the English Imagination, this course provides students the chance to immerse themselves in a wide range of topics, whilst also providing the opportunity to focus on a specialist area of their choice. Essex has nurtured a long tradition of distinguished writers whose work has shaped literature as it is known today, from past giants such as the American poets Robert Lowell and Ted Berrigan, to contemporary writers such as mythographer and novelist Dame Marina Warner, and Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri. The degree in literature takes place in the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies, which is home to a variety of Academic disciplines. Students will have the opportunity to benefit from seminars, lectures and events from all the disciplines available in the department. These include film studies, drama and theatre studies, creative writing and journalism. The number of careers that lead from courses in literature is almost as large as the number of graduates, but two particular areas in which graduates have had recent success are publishing and the theatre. One of Essex's former students is now in charge of editorial at a large publishing house, and another has just taken over running one of the country’s major theatres.