COURSE CURRICULUM

This English degree is structured to develop students' literary, linguistic, and creative skills across three years. In Year 1, students complete five core modules worth 100 credits. These include Voices of Birmingham, which explores the city’s multicultural identity while developing academic and research skills, Adaptation, focusing on text transformation and stylistic analysis, Prose Writing, which hones analytical and creative prose skills, and Key Critical Concepts, introducing literary theories and critical interpretation. Students also explore conflict in literature through the Literature and Conflict module. Additionally, they choose at least one optional module such as Language in Action, which introduces topics in phonetics and sociolinguistics, or Craft of Writing, where students develop creative writing and produce a Writer’s Manifesto. In Year 2, students study core modules like Writing and the Environment, examining literature’s engagement with ecological and societal issues, and historical modules on The Romantics and The Victorians. They also choose between a Work Placement or Collaborative Practice for professional development, and take 40 credits from options such as Grammar and Style, Writing Short Stories, Language in Society, Screenwriting, or Multicultural Literature. These broaden their literary, linguistic, and creative scope. In the final year, students complete 80 core credits, including Modernism and its Legacies, Major Project Preparation, and a dissertation through the Major Project module, which allows in-depth, independent research. They also select 40 credits of optional modules from areas like Applied Sociolinguistics, The Gothic, Shakespeare Studies, Writing Poetry, Teaching English as a Foreign Language, Moral Philosophy, and Audio Drama and Podcast Writing. These modules allow students to specialize, apply their knowledge practically, and develop research, writing, and analytical skills suited for careers in education, media, creative industries, and beyond. The course balances academic theory, practical experience, and creative expression throughout.