COURSE CURRICULUM

The BA (Hons) English Literature degree at Surrey provides a comprehensive and contemporary approach to the study of literature, combining traditional texts with modern and interdisciplinary perspectives. In Year 1, students build foundational skills through modules on global literatures, the novel, poetry, stage and screen, alongside critical thinking and literary histories. Year 2 expands these foundations with compulsory studies in gender, sexuality, and contemporary postcolonial fiction, while offering a wide range of optional modules such as narrative studies, nineteenth-century literature, the Gothic imagination, science fiction, and translation. This variety allows students to explore diverse literary forms, cultural contexts, and analytical approaches, fostering both creativity and critical analysis. In Year 3, students focus on advanced topics and specialized interests, with options including contemporary Shakespeare, queer ecologies, Victorian literature, popular culture, screenwriting, and digital or genre-based writing. Throughout the course, students engage in creative practice and research, culminating in a dissertation and a creative writing submission, which develop independent research skills and original literary production. The degree balances rigorous academic study with opportunities for creative exploration, interdisciplinary learning, and cultural engagement, preparing graduates for careers in writing, publishing, education, media, and the arts, as well as providing a strong foundation for further academic research and professional development in literary and creative fields.