Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in History and Philosophy (with Sandwich Year)

at University of Hertfordshire - De Havilland Campus United Kingdom

Our BA English Language and Journalism degree introduces you to the scientific study of the English Language and allows you to examine human communication in different contexts. You’ll develop a range of journalistic skills while exploring the ways language reflects society and how it is used for different purposes.

In your first year you’ll be introduced to the practical craft of journalism and explore the law and ethics surrounding journalism alongside core English Language modules. You’ll also explore the diversity of use of the English language including regional variants, pidgin and creole English, language and ethnicity, and slang and street English.

Our journalism team are highly experienced practitioners, who’ll help you develop the skills to produce work in different styles and for diverse markets. You’ll learn how to source stories and get hands-on experience as part of a vibrant student community and through work placements. You’ll take part in News Lab workshops, conduct interviews, write features and join lively group discussions.

Core modules in your second year focus on English grammar and the sounds of English. You can explore theories of how and why language developed and study language-related real-life problems such as plagiarism and crime investigation in forensic linguistics. You’ll also have the opportunity to specialize in news or feature writing, radio journalism or social media.

In your final year you can follow modules in different topics, including child language and communication, clinical linguistics, gender and language, and formulaic language, informed by our academics’ own research specialisms. You’ll also develop your journalism skills portfolio, examine journalism, government and the people.

This course gives you a firm foundation for a career in finance. A degree in finance will give you the skills for a career in financial services such as banking, investment management, pension fund management and insurance. During the course you’ll develop the sharp evaluation and analytical skills needed to move into more functional and management roles.

The First Year introduces general business and finance agendas, including economics, quantitative methods and ethics. The Second Year explores employability and the business life cycle. The Final Year focuses on areas such as banking, current issues, and global finance and markets. You can also choose from several specialist options.

This course offers potential exemptions from the professional qualifications of the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).

You can also study a language with this course. You can be awarded the degree ‘with language’ in the title if you choose to study a foreign language in all years of study.

• Study for your degree at one of the UK’s leading business-facing university.
• Develop the skills and knowledge to work in the dynamic, high-reward finance industry.
• Learn from inspiring, supportive teaching staff with innovative research records and extensive professional experience.
• Benefit from Hertfordshire’s unique collaboration with the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT), earning exemptions from professional exams.
• Gain incredible experience by going on a year-long, paid work placement or studying abroad

Study with a top History department and be taught from the cutting edge of historical research. Learn to think and write imaginatively about the past with our colleagues in Creative Writing.

Our BA History and/with Creative Writing gives you the opportunity to study two subjects that will help you to hone the investigative skills of the historian, while developing your writing style.

Through our diverse and inclusive History curriculum you will learn about an array of cultures and identities. What links our work is our focus on people’s history and everyday lives. This is represented strongly in our first year programme, which will
give you an insight into the making of the modern world through exploration of faith, magic and medicine, campaigns for freedom and equality, Africa and the world, and America from Hamilton to Trump.

Throughout your degree, the common link between the two disciplines will be your analysis and interpretation of texts. As historians you will learn to analyse historical documents and debates among historians, while in Creative Writing you’ll explore
published texts, breaking them down to examine writing techniques.

The art of writing, honed over the course of your Creative Writing studies, will benefit you in the final year of History if you choose to write a dissertation. This extended piece of work will grow out of a topic that interests you. There is also the option in Creative Writing of workshopping an idea, which, by the time you graduate, will have developed into a solid piece of work that you can continue working on or submit for publication. Maybe one of your history modules will inspire you to write a historical novel!

We give you: 

• An exceptional History team, conducting world-leading research (REF 2014), and a team of published writers guiding students in Creative Writing,
• Stimulating, innovative courses - our History students reported almost 94% overall satisfaction with their course (2018 National Student Survey)
• A flexible programme of study, allowing you to concentrate on areas you find especially interesting and the scope to write a History dissertation on a topic about which you are passionate
• The prospect of graduating with a solid piece of work that could be further developed or submitted for publication
• CV-building potential through work placements and extra-curricular activities

Through this BA English Language with English Language Teaching you’ll learn about the English Language but you will also learn about teaching English as an integral part of your course. And you’ll be taught by research-active academics working in cutting-edge areas such as language and gender, formulaic language, corpus studies, bilingualism, bilingual processing and codeswitching.

This combined programme of English Language and English Language teaching will give you an excellent grounding if you plan to teach English as a foreign language following postgraduate teacher training.  Alternatively you could be teaching children in primary or secondary schools whose second language is English.

In your first year, alongside core English Language modules, you’ll study language and mind, where you’ll analyse child speech transcripts and consider language acquisition. You’ll also explore the diversity of use of the English language including regional variants, pidgin and creole English, language and ethnicity, and slang and street English. In addition, you’ll take two English Language Teaching (ELT) modules each year.

Core modules in your second year focus on English grammar and the sounds of English. You can explore theories of how and why language developed and also have the option to take a language competencies module leading to a work placement. This could involve field work or observing teaching and learning methods in a college setting.

In your final year you can follow modules in different topics, including child language and communication, clinical linguistics, gender and language, and formulaic language, informed by our academics’ own research specialisms. In addition, you’ll study Global Englishes and take a compulsory project looking at a particular aspect of English Language teaching.

• An understanding of applied language, to underpin a career in teaching English to non-native speakers
• A supportive, research-active academic team
• A flexible programme of study, allowing you to concentrate on areas you find especially interesting
• Access to huge online databases to underpin your original research projects
• CV-building potential through work placements and extra-curricular activities

While much of this course is common with BEng (Hons) Aerospace Engineering, this degree specialises in the design of space vehicles, with a particular emphasis on rocket propulsion, space flight control and satellite communication systems. For many of our students, the highlights of the course are the group design projects in the Third / Final Year, where you join with other aerospace students to design a complete aircraft. You’ll also work with astrophysicists to design a space vehicle in conjunction with a major space industry employer.

• This is a BEng degree course in aerospace engineering with a focus on space technology
• The University of Hertfordshire has produced aerospace engineers with practical experience of design and development for future aerospace systems
• Aerospace students from the University of Hertfordshire have previously completed work placement years at companies including: Airbus, Virgin Atlantic Engineering, and BAE Systems
• You will have access to the best equipment: flight simulator, wind tunnels, specialist laboratories and CAE software
• You will be offered a flying course at a local flying school with one-to-one instruction on both fixed wing aircraft and helicopters Our aerospace staff have a wealth of industrial experience which gives an applied approach to their teaching and their contacts prove invaluable to graduates seeking employment
• Recent Aerospace Engineering graduates have gone on to work at organisations including Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, Martin-Baker Aircraft Compnay, and BAE Systems

Perhaps you are interested in Marketing but would also like to explore some of our marketing pathways, please check: Marketing and Advertising and Marketing with Digital Communications. Marketing is an exciting, dynamic and multi-focused discipline. This course will provide you with a broad perspective, covering subjects such as principles of marketing, strategic planning, consumer behaviour, enterprise, brand and media communications and market research. It will prepare you to work successfully in the sector whether you wish to set up your own business or join a small or a large enterprise. During this degree, you’ll have the opportunity to study for a professional qualification with the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), significantly enhancing your career prospects. In the First Year, students are given the opportunity to become Affiliate Members of CIM and study for a first CIM award.

You may also be interested in the following courses: Marketing and Advertising and Marketing with Digital Communications

You can also study a language with this course. You can be awarded the degree ‘with language’ in the title if you choose to study a foreign language in all years of study

5 Reasons to Study BA(Hons) Marketing:

• The course is professionally accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing and gives you chances to study professional qualifications.
• You will get to work on live industry projects using real data and working with businesses and charities across the UK.
• The course gives you the opportunities to do a work placement in SMEs or large corporations, developing key employability skills
• All students have the option to study abroad.
• You will develop key marketing and communications skills at a leading international business-facing University.

With input from professionals, you’ll investigate the tools used by some of the world’s most successful engineers and producers. Using industry-standard studios and technology, you’ll learn techniques to record, process and mix your work to the highest professional standards. You’ll also gain an in-depth understanding of acoustics, studio design and installation, monitoring, webcasting and advanced digital signal processing techniques.

Our programme is Industry Accredited by JAMES, who represent the Association of Professional Recording Services (APRS), the Music Producers Guild (MPG) and Associate Industry Bodies.

• Develop excellent technical skills over the course of your degree, and benefit from our high quality studio, listening room, venue and sound resources including those by SSL, Yamaha, Avid, Focusrite, Quested, Genelec, Neumann, TLA, Lexicon and Drawmer to name but a few.
• Excellent industry input is built into the design of the degree awards from a huge number of areas within the wider music industry.
• The degree awards within the programme are designed to expose you to areas of music, sound and audio technology that you might not even know exist yet.  "Coming to this course has really given my brain the kick-start it needed, and I'm beginning to see near endless possibilities with where I can go." - Glenn Osborn, second year student.
• We have a strong record of students from the programme securing placement years between years 2 and 3 of their studies.  Placement destinations include Focusrite, Sound Technology (a leading distributor of high profile brands for the Music Retail and Professional Audio industries), The Famous Company, and a number of recording studios.
• Every year, organisations and companies approach us to recommend our graduating students.
• Music business is woven into your degree study at every year giving you the skills to slot into the music industry (or create your own business).
• Organise and Participate ‘live’ projects, and our ‘JamJar’ showcase live events.
• Benefit from studying in creative arts school and collaborate with filmmakers and animators in realising fully featured, professional standard media projects.
• We have some of the best resources in the UK, including the 39 million pound entertainment venue – the Forum where our students perform, and engineer every month, and state-of-the art music studios and film and TV facilities in our 12 million pound building for Music, Film and media.

Social workers help people to live more successfully within their local communities by helping them find solutions to their problems. To succeed, social workers must work not only with clients but their families and friends as well as working closely with other organisations including the police, National Health Service, and schools.

During our two-year MSc programme you will learn the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the social worker role. In your first year of study you will undertake modules which provide core knowledge about social work purpose, practice, and impact, human growth and development, and the policy and legislation which underpins practice. Additionally, you will learn the key methods, interventions, and skills for working with diverse communities and service users.

The second year of teaching builds on this to explore the research evidence and practice relating to a range of social work settings and collaborative and interprofessional working to assess and manage risks and vulnerability. The programme culminates in the writing of a dissertation on a topic area in which you are especially interested.

This academic learning is complemented by two placement blocks totalling 170 days in contrasting settings and 30 days of classroom-based skill development.

Why choose this course?

• Social work is a regulated profession. The MSc Social Work programme leads to eligibility to apply to the Social Work England Register and practice as a social worker in England;
• An emphasis on small group practice prepares you for practice in a modern multi-professional workforce;
• Interactive learning in and out of the classroom will help you to understand concepts fully;
• Academic teaching is supported by social work practitioners from the newly constituted Teaching Partnership with Hertfordshire County Council and the Tavistock and Portman Foundation Trust, service users, and carers enabling you to link theory to practice throughout the programme.
• A distinct feature of the programme is an emphasis on the development of knowledge and skills through reflective practice.

A degree in English Literature with Film will help you grow from passionate reader and film-fan into a critical thinker able to understand literary and cinematic works by applying a wide range of critical, theoretical, political and historical perspectives. The disciplines of Literature and Film Studies are highly complementary, and as you progress through your degree you will find many fruitful connections between them.

This fascinating degree is both geographically and historically wide-ranging. This means you’ll study literature written in English from the Renaissance to the present day, by writers from all parts of the globe; and alongside this, you’ll explore film and television from America, Asia, Britain and the rest of Europe, from the earliest days of moving images to some of the most exciting contemporary work being produced today.

In both disciplines, you’ll be taught by research-active academics who bring fresh thinking to our accessible, engaging courses. We’ll introduce you to writers and film-makers who will open doors to contemporary worlds and cultures remote from your own, and also help you explore more familiar works – both textual and visual – in ways that challenge your preconceptions.

Whatever your taste in literature, there will be something to interest and provoke you. From The Tiger Who Came to Tea to Jane Eyre, from Paradise Lost to Zadie Smith’s Swing Time, we’ll broaden your literary horizons and hone your critical thinking.

A core Literature module in your first year will equip you to read and interpret both traditional and contemporary literary texts critically as a scholar of English literature. Alongside this you can choose to revisit Shakespeare and consider his cultural relevance today through fictional, cinematic and TV adaptations; or to deepen your understanding of Gothic writing by tracing its origins back to the Romantic era.

In your second year you’ll focus on period-based literature from the Renaissance onwards and gain an understanding of literary history, from Elizabethan verse and drama, via Augustan poetry and the emergence of the novel in the 18 th century, to the radical transformations of the Victorian age, and the emergence of modernity in the twentieth century.

You’ll also have the opportunity to consider ways of reading that go beyond textual analysis or historical context, such as understanding literature through the political or ideological lens of Marxism, feminism and post-colonial theory. You’ll have the chance to specialise in your final year, tailoring your literary study to reflect your own interests. Themed options include children’s literature, young adult fiction, Renaissance tragedy, European crime fiction, literary adaptations and the culture of print in the 18th century.

At the same time, your minor in Film will further hone your analytical skills, and give you a sophisticated appreciation of the craft of filmmaking. You’ll look at how the film and television industry has evolved and adapted to new technologies, how novels are recreated in film and how film gives us fresh perspectives on the world. You’ll also have opportunities to design and run film programmes, write and produce your own short films and hear guest lectures by film, television and media professionals. Topics covered range from silent movies to the Golden Age of Hollywood, the birth of the blockbuster, the influence of European style on American film, the way digital technology has transformed the industry, and why franchises have proved so successful, from James Bond and Star Wars to the Marvel cinematic universe.

What is it for sounds, gestures and marks on paper to have meaning? What are the various uses to which we can put language, and how does it manage to have the effects it has? How do we learn language? And how does the language we use reflect society, the nature of our thoughts, and what we take reality to be like?

Our BA Philosophy and English Language degree allows you to examine the nature of language, through two distinct approaches. You’ll develop a range of skills in analysing the structure of the English language and how it is used in a variety of situations, while exploring and challenging the assumptions about the nature of language, its limits and how it functions.

In your first year, alongside core linguistics modules, you’ll learn to think critically by examining how language may be used – and misused – in reasoning and persuasion. You’ll also study social and political philosophy, covering topics such as freedom of speech, and examine the nature of mind and reality.

All our philosophy lecturers are active researchers, so you’ll share the excitement of doing original work in a supportive and highly-rated academic community. Our Philosophy team is in the top 15 in the Guardian League Table 2019 and rates as one of the 100 best Philosophy departments worldwide in the 2017 QS rankings.

Our English language lecturers are research-active academics working in cutting-edge areas such as language and gender, formulaic language, corpus studies, bilingualism, bilingual processing and codeswitching.

Core modules in your second year focus on English grammar and the sounds of English. You can explore theories of how and why language developed and study language-related real-life problems such as plagiarism and crime investigation in forensic linguistics. In Philosophy, you may explore a wide variety of topics, including the option to learn some languages of logic.

One final-year option is corpus studies in English language, which will develop your research skills through your use of Sketch Engine, a text analysis tool that allows you to search vast samples of language, or corpora. In Philosophy, there is the option to study more advanced contemporary themes and theories in the philosophy of language, and also to take a module which focuses in particular on Ludwig Wittgenstein’s influential work on the nature of language.

• A flexible programme of study, allowing you to concentrate on areas you find especially interesting
• An exceptional academic team, conducting internationally renowned research
• Stimulating, innovative courses that allow you to make rewarding connections between two disciplines
• CV-building potential through extra-curricular activities