Classical Studies - BA (Hons)

This is an archived course for 2021 entry
2023 courses

Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece form the cornerstones of modern Western civilisation. Learning to interpret their language, literature and philosophy can unlock new ways of thinking.

Overview

Ancient civilisations laid the foundations of the modern world, and shaped how we perceive all elements of our society, including power, sexuality, ethics, migration, identity, globalisation and religion.

Classical Studies allows you to build a perspective of classical cultures as living traditions, with the opportunity of learning ancient languages.

You study the literature and art of the ancient world, developing a cultural understanding of the ancient civilisations of Greece, Rome and Egypt, and how these civilisations have continued to shape the world.

In your first year, you take compulsory modules on archaeology and the civilisations of Greece and Rome. You can also study Latin and Greek, and choose from other literature or history modules.

In your second and final years you can broaden your studies and delve into more specialist areas such as Greek plays, the literature of early Christianity, Greek philosophy, Egypt and the classical world and the Ancient Celts. In your final year, you also take a dissertation or extended essay.

You can also apply to take one of our placement modules, spending time on an internship in a heritage organisation or a museum. The placement modules are subject to a selection process.

Year abroad/placement year

You can apply to spend a year working or studying abroad as part of your degree programme. Studying abroad is a great opportunity to discover a new culture and demonstrates to future employers that you can succeed in a new environment. You don’t have to make a decision before you enrol at Kent but certain conditions apply.

Study resources

You have access to our specialist laboratory for cleaning and sorting finds and our specialist equipment for geophysical surveys, photography, 3D laser scanning and microscopy. Our archaeology technician is on hand to help you as you work.

The University has an excellent library on campus, with journals in English and other languages, and many specialist collections. You can also easily access local collections and international collections in London.

Extra activities

The Kent Classical and Archaeological Society organises essay help sessions, lectures and social events, such as day trips to historical landmarks in the UK and Europe.

Featured video

Entry requirements

Please also see our general entry requirements.

  • medal-empty

    A level

    BBB

  • medal-empty Access to HE Diploma

    The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis. 

    If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above.

  • medal-empty BTEC Nationals

    The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances. A typical offer would be to achieve DDM.

  • medal-empty International Baccalaureate

    34 points overall or 15 points at HL

  • medal-empty International Foundation Programme

    Pass all components of the University of Kent International Foundation Programme with a 60% overall average including 60% in Academic Skills Development.

International students should visit our International Student website for further specific information. International fee-paying students who require a Student visa cannot study part-time due to visa restrictions.

English Language Requirements

Please see our English language entry requirements web page.

If you need to improve your English language standard as a condition of your offer, you can attend one of our pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes before starting your degree programme. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.

Course structure

Duration: 3 years full-time (4 with a year abroad/placement year), 6 years part-time (7with a year abroad/placement year)

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.

Stage 1

You study all compulsory modules and then choose a further 60 credits from the list of optional modules.

Compulsory modules currently include

The module will introduce archaeology as an academic discipline, providing grounding in basic concepts and methodology and techniques of analysis relating to archaeological evidence. It will provide background relevant to other archaeological and historical modules in the Classical & Archaeological Studies and related programmes, through examining aspects of the archaeological process and examples in prehistoric, Roman, medieval and post-medieval contexts. It will enable students to make an informed choice of subsequent modules. Topics will include ceremonial, religious and burial sites, the emergence of settlement sites, the creation and development of towns, trade and exchange, artefactual and landscape studies using cases through time. Seminars will focus on methods and approaches, and the presentation of data and its interpretation.

Find out more about CLAS3290

This module introduces classical archaeology, and the skills needed to study it. The course reviews the subject chronologically, from Minoans to Late Antiquity, and methodologically, covering the evidence and non-invasive research methods employed to make these tell the societal history of Mediterranean societies. It explores key issues such as Greek colonisation, Roman conquest and Romanisation, the nature of Minoan Palaces, and the city of Rome, as well as equipping students with knowledge of practical skills such as military archaeology, numismatics, epigraphy, ceramics, and other finds. We will look at major sites of classical archaeology, from Thera, Knossos, and Lefkandi, to Athens, Vergina, and Rome. We will also explore heritage issues surrounding the appreciation and looting of classical Greek and Hellenistic art.

Find out more about CLAS3670

This module is an introduction to Ancient Greek history, culture, and literature. Spanning almost two thousand years from the Bronze Age Mycenaeans to the Greeks living under the Roman Empire, classes will cover the major events, developments, and themes of Greek history and introduce you to the key evidence. You will also be introduced to the major works and genres of Greek literature. You will also be asked to consider and discuss the role of literature as a vehicle for public debate throughout Greek history, and its treatment of themes such as justice, religion, rationalism, violence, war, displacement, the body, sexuality, and gender.

Find out more about CLAS3680

This module is an introduction to Roman history, culture, and literature. Spanning almost 1,500 years from pre-Roman Italy to Late Antiquity, classes will cover the major events, developments, and themes of Roman history and introduce you to the key evidence. You will also be introduced to the major works and genres of Roman literature. You will also be asked to consider and discuss the role of literature as a vehicle for public debate throughout Roman history, and its treatment of themes such as power, justice, war and peace, class and social mobility, identity, slavery, and gender roles.

Find out more about CLAS3690

Optional modules may include

This module gives students a foundation in Ancient Greek, covering the fundamentals of morphology and syntax. By the end of the module, students will be able to read, comprehend, and translate simple sentences and short passages of Ancient Greek.

Find out more about CLAS3590

This module is designed for students who have already acquired some fundamentals of Ancient Greek morphology and syntax. It aims to introduce students to reading and understanding complex sentence and longer passages by providing them with more knowledge of grammar and syntax.

Find out more about CLAS3600

This module gives students a foundation in Latin, covering the fundamentals of morphology and syntax. By the end of the module, students will be able to read, comprehend, and translate simple sentences and short passages of Latin.

Find out more about CLAS3640

This module is designed for students who have already acquired some fundamentals of Latin morphology and syntax. It aims to introduce students to reading and understanding complex sentence and longer passages by providing them with more knowledge of grammar and syntax.

Find out more about CLAS3650

This module provides a general introduction to myth in the ancient world. Scholarship on approaches to mythology will inform the analysis of myth in its ancient setting. The curriculum will be designed to introduce students to a working repertoire of a large span of ancient (e.g. Greek) mythology and to its meanings and functions within its original context. A selection of case-study myths (represented in literature and/or iconography) will be used to examine the potential meanings and social functions of myth in general.

Find out more about CLAS3660

This module introduces the history of the wider Mediterranean from (roughly) the rise of Macedon to the destruction of Carthage. Focusing on the period's key events, main players, and various cultural traditions, the module enables students to widen their perspective on ancient history beyond Greece and Rome. The lectures, seminars, and readings are based around the history, archaeology, and literature of various ancient societies that met, fought, traded, and interacted culturally. These include the Persians, Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Macedonians, Greeks, Bactrians, Mauryans, and Romans.

The lectures are thematic, following a loosely chronological framework. The module kicks off with a survey of Near Eastern history to explore notions of empire, city state, and cultural interaction. The survey continues by introducing further ancient societies through the lens of thematic topics. The lectures form the basis for broader discussion of the transfer of cultural ideas across the ancient world. Topics include, among other things, the Greco-Buddhist art of the Hellenistic Far East and the legacy of the Persian empire across the Eurasian continent.

The seminars focus on training in the use and interpretation of ancient literary, documentary and material evidence. This includes written evidence, inscriptions and papyri, coins, and art and architecture. Where appropriate, discussion of these sources in the seminars will be used to introduce major debates in the study of the ancient Mediterranean. This includes questions about the legacies of the ancient world and their connections to contemporary debates around orientalism and colonialism.

Find out more about CLAS3700

This module is intended as an introduction for those new to studying Egyptology, but also those who want to pursue the subject mainly from an archaeological point of view. It will explore the diversity of methodologies and debates concerning Egyptian archaeology. In doing so, it will introduce students to aspects of anthropological and archaeological theory, as well as the relationship between theory, fieldwork, and the resulting interpretation. The aim is to introduce the archaeology of ancient Egypt and its culture, monuments, and civilisation.

The course will develop an understanding of the wide range of archaeological material encountered at Egyptian sites, demonstrating how the study of material culture greatly contributes to the understanding of important aspects of ancient Egyptian culture (history, geography, material remains and society). The history of Egyptology and Egyptian archaeology will also be examined, including discussion of new excavations in Egypt, connecting recent work with the results of projects spanning the late 19th and 20th centuries.

Find out more about CLAS3720

This module offers students a wide-ranging grounding in classical literature as a basis for the further study of Western literature within a comparative framework. Major works of ancient Greek and Roman literature are studied in order to enable students to appreciate literary engagement with the classical world: for example, myth; the relationship between human beings and the gods, between the sexes, and between the human and the animal; and the journey motif. Themes explored may include sexuality, violence, conceptions of justice, and metamorphosis.

The module introduces students to some of the major genres of Western literature (tragedy, comedy, the epic), and considers how these were theorised in antiquity. It also encourages students to reflect on questions of cultural transmission, and on why the myths represented in classical literature have proved to be such a rich source for the literature of the West.

Find out more about CLAS3730

Stage 2

Optional modules may include

The module covers the study of Roman art and architecture, including the close interpretation of works of art and buildings, and an investigation of the role of art and architecture within the wider Roman world. The geographical area covered will include both Rome and Italy, and provincial Roman sites and material. Aspects to be examined include context, dating, technique, styles and subject matter, and ideology including the role played by art in Roman society. Arranged broadly in chronological order, from the Republican to the late Roman period, the course gives an overview of the varied media and techniques used in Roman art and architecture and the changes in art style that occurred throughout the Roman period.

Find out more about CLAS6090

The course will cover the period of history in Britain from the initial raids of Julius Caesar to the fifth century AD. We will not only discuss the historical changes in Roman Britain, but explore urban and rural settlements, life in the Roman army, death and burial, art, trade and daily life in Roman Britain. Throughout the module, critical examinations will be given to theories of Romanisation, identity and interaction. We are fortunate that there are a number of sources, which can be used to study Roman Britain: classical texts, epigraphic remains and remains of burials, material culture and architectural structures. These sources, however, do not provide us with the entire picture of the past, thus the student will learn to use them in a critical manner.

Find out more about CLAS6480

The module examines the Iron Age peoples of temperate Europe, their ways and means of living combining the archaeological, artefactual and historic sources of evidence. This was the era of the proto-historic Celts: farmers, crafts people and warriors. Peoples described as Celts sacked Rome in the early fourth century BC; they probably ravaged Delphi towards the mid third century BC; and from the later second century BC they were in conflict with the expanding Roman Empire, ultimately becoming the majority of its subjects in the West. The intent of this module is to search for the Iron Age Celts of Antiquity... but participants should not embark on the study with the certain expectation that they will be found! For long interpreted within a largely Classically-derived pan European model, the archaeological evidence is now increasingly discussed in ways which emphasise the diversity rather than the uniformity of life and culture across west/central Europe during the centuries in which the Classical World was in contact with those whom it identified as Celts.

The module will critically evaluate the evidence for the pre/proto historic Celts derived from the Classical writers, the concept of a widespread European Celtic culture in antiquity, and the contrasting interpretations that can be generated by the archaeological evidence for the conventional pre Roman Iron Age in temperate Europe. The Iron Age of temperate Europe presents a rich array of burials, finely crafted metalwork, settlements, hillforts, ritual, religious manifestations, artefacts and environmental remains plus evidence of travel, trade, contact and warfare both within its realms and with the Mediterranean peoples: all these elements form curriculum subjects via study, characterisation and contextualisation.

Find out more about CLAS6510

This module will provide a framework for fieldwork training undertaken on University of Kent training excavations, or approved partners, supported by a SECL archaeological fieldwork bursary, to assist with the costs involved in a participation of 15 working days, normally including social and educational activities such as a museum trip and an orientation day.

The module will permit three alternative pathways, in excavation, survey or museum studies. Assessment will be in the form of an illustrated portfolio featuring a description of the project and an account of each type of work undertaken by the student. Project directors will be provided with a checklist of fieldwork tasks to be completed, of which a minimum number will be mandatory.

Staff teaching on this module will be provided with a Kent –approved fieldwork checklist of skills to train students a range of no less than ten skills appropriate to fieldwork that will result in a broad portfolio illustrating the best work done on site.

Find out more about CLAS6770

This module introduces some of the major works in ancient philosophy in relation to ethics, aesthetics, political theory, ontology and metaphysics. Students will study substantial portions of primary texts by the Presocratics, Plato, Aristotle the Epicureans, Stoics and/or the Skeptics. The emphasis throughout will be on the philosophical significance of the ideas studied. The module will concentrate on understanding key philosophical arguments and concepts within the context of the ancient intellectual tradition. This means that students will gain a critical distance from normative and modern definitions of philosophical terms in order to understand how ancient philosophy generally approached questions and problems with different suppositions and conceptions of reality, reason and the purpose of human existence.

Find out more about CLAS7080

This module explores 5th-century Athenian history through the plays that were put on stage during this period of war and political upheaval. Greek tragedies and comedies produced during this tumultuous period (472-405 BC) offer us some of the most enticing, yet challenging, evidence for the state of Athenian politics and attitudes to contemporary events (especially war and empire). In this module, the evidence of key plays will be set against other forms of historical evidence to illuminate the complex relationship between the types of evidence that survive and the nature of 'making history'.

Find out more about CLAS7130

This module examines in detail the history of the Roman Republic from 350 BC through to 100 BC, and provides both a survey of a major period of Roman history and an opportunity to study in greater depth the political, social, and economic consequences of the development of Rome's imperial ambitions in the Mediterranean. Students will read widely in the ancient sources, historical, literary and documentary. Students will read widely from a range of works including Polybius, Plutarch, Livy, Appian, Cicero, and Sallust.

Find out more about CLAS7320

The module focuses on solidifying students' knowledge of Ancient Greek grammar and vocabulary through exercises and by reading texts in the original. Students will participate in the close reading and interpretation of Greek literary texts through translation. This enhances their understanding of the key themes and ideas in the text.

Find out more about CLAS7550

In addition to consolidating intermediate knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, this module emphasises close reading and interpretation of Ancient Greek literary texts in their literary and cultural contexts.

Find out more about CLAS7560

The module focuses on solidifying students' knowledge of Latin grammar and vocabulary through exercises and by reading texts in the original. Students will participate in the close reading and interpretation of Latin literary texts through translation. This enhances their understanding of the key themes and ideas in the text.

Find out more about CLAS7600

In addition to consolidating advanced knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, this module emphasises close reading and interpretation of Latin literary texts in their literary and cultural contexts.

Find out more about CLAS7610

Virgil composed the Aeneid in order to provide Rome with an epic equal to Homer. Commonly regarded as one the greatest epics of the ancient world, the Aeneid is the story of the foundation of Rome; a tale of exile, war, passionate love and the deepest humanity. We will analyse, comment on and explore the epic, book by book. This will be intertwined with a thematic approach, investigating issues concerning the gods, fate, morality, art and gender.

Find out more about CLAS7620

This module examines, in detail, Greek history from the end of the Persian invasions to the fall of Athens in 404 BC. The main themes of the module are the rise and fall of the power of Athens, the Peloponnesian War and the role of the Persian Empire in Greek history in the 5th century BC. Particular attention will be paid to the causes of the conflict between Athens and Sparta and to the political and military history of the last three decades of the 5th century BC.

Find out more about CLAS7630

Homeric epic forms the foundation of literature in the Western tradition, its study therefore enriches our cultural understanding of both the ancient Greek past and our present. This module explores Homeric epic through the study of the Iliad and/or the Odyssey. Students will be introduced to the key concepts of the world of epic, such as xenia (guest friendship), kleos (reputation), and kudos (glory). They will also learn to recognise, and analyse the meaning of, epic conventions, such as stock epithets, type scenes, and formulaic repetition. These concepts and conventions will enhance the examination of the central themes of the Homeric epic, such as the hero, women, ethnicity, gods, war, peace, poetry, and mortality.

Find out more about CLAS7640

This module is concerned with the interaction between two contiguous but very different peoples, Egypt in the Late Period and Classical Greece. Though the Aegean world had a long history of contact with Egypt, the volume of contact increased dramatically under the XXVI (Saïte) Dynasty, with the foundation of commercial settlements, the development of vigorous trade relations and the arrival of many Greeks as traders, mercenaries and tourists. That contact had profound consequences both in the short and longer term; provided an essential support for the last great dynasty of independent Egypt; aided the rise of the East Greek cities of Ionia; and it influenced the development of Greek sculpture and architecture.

Equally important, it revealed to the Greeks a civilisation, which was deeply impressive, in many ways superior, yet alien. The immediate fruit of that perception lies in the stimulus to Greek thought and history writing, especially through Herodotus (a vital witness to Egyptian religion and society of this age). In the longer term, it shaped the way in which the West perceived Egypt, creating myths about its antiquity, its religion and its wisdom that continues to affect us today, not least in the shaping of traditional Egyptology. The module will be taught from a range of sources, archaeological, papyrological, historical and literary.

Find out more about CLAS7700

You have the opportunity to select elective modules in this stage.

Year in industry

You have the opportunity to undertake a placement year, either at home or abroad, between the second and final year of your degree and to receive credits and a dedicated award for this achievement.

The placement year enables you to gain work experience in a professional environment, and to develop employment-related skills and qualities such as independent thought, personal responsibility and decision-making.

The placement can be either paid work or an internship. Tuition fees for the placement year are greatly reduced, and employers may offer expenses or a salary. The year is assessed on a pass/fail basis through employer feedback and a written report that you submit.

Year abroad

Going abroad as part of your degree is an amazing experience and a chance to develop personally, academically and professionally.  You experience a different culture, gain a new academic perspective, establish international contacts and enhance your employability.

You can apply to add a Year Abroad to your degree programme from your arrival at Kent until the autumn term of your second year.  The Year Abroad takes place between Stages 2 and 3 at one of our partner universities.  Places and destination are subject to availability, language and degree programme.  For a full list, please see Go Abroad.

You are expected to adhere to any academic progression requirements in Stages 1 and 2 to proceed to the Year Abroad.  The Year Abroad is assessed on a pass/fail basis and will not count towards your final degree classification.

Stage 3

Optional modules may include

How did the Western Roman Empire undergo its transformation into the early medieval world? This course provides an overview of the period between 300 and 600 A.D., in particular, examining the collision between barbarian and Roman in late Antiquity and the development of the post-Roman and early medieval West, focusing on changes in culture and society through a critical evaluation of evidence from history, art, architecture and archaeology. There will be a focus on Italy, France and Britain, which is intended to provide a manageable and structured course at an appropriate level of detail, with the potential for some depth of analysis. It is also intended to concentrate on those geographical areas which mesh closely with the subject matter of other courses in Roman archaeology and late Antique and medieval history offered by the Classical & Archaeological Studies department.

Find out more about CLAS5910

This module is intended to introduce undergraduate students to research. As such it provides an opportunity to work on a topic of their own choosing, in either archaeology, history or ancient literature. Originality and feasibility are important aspects of writing dissertations, and to avoid problems topics will be scrutinised and approved by CLAS before research can begin. Students can expect guidance from the module convenor and an academic supervisor throughout the process, varying from one-to-one tutorials to classes on how to edit your own prose. There will also be a meeting regarding the Dissertation at the end of the Spring term of the previous year to clarify arrangements and to outline what work is required on this module.

The programme document with regulations is sent to all students before the end of spring term of Stage 2. Students are invited to suggest titles for comment, for which tutors are allocated. They are advised to do preliminary reading over the summer based on generic advice of the module convenor. They then choose precise topics in consultation with the convenor and personal tutors at the start of the autumn term.

Find out more about CLAS6001

This module addresses one of the fundamental aims of the programme, to familiarise students with the techniques of independent study and practice methodological skills they have acquired/are acquiring in their other modules. Projects may be developed on any suitable subject, subject to approval by the convenor, and the module can be linked with any of the modules in the programme. Choices will be informed by the student's personal interests, the fulfilment of the aims of the module, the availability of expert supervision, and the accessibility of relevant material.

Find out more about CLAS6002

This module will provide a detailed and research-led study of the century of political instability now known commonly to historians as the 'crisis' of the Roman Republic. It begins at the end of the 2nd century BCE amidst a period of rising populism, demagoguery, and socio-economic strain and fragmentation among the traditional elite. Proceeding through the civil wars of the 1st century BCE, from Sulla and Marius, Pompey and Caesar, and finally Antony and Octavian, the study ends with the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BCE and the accession of Octavian/Augustus as monarch over the Roman Empire.

The lectures will give detailed discussion of the varying scholarly interpretations of this much-discussed and famous period of Roman history, introducing students to the sources of evidence (historiography, biography, political philosophy, art, coinage, architecture, inscriptions) and providing models of their effective combination. In addition to the chronological survey of the period discussed, lectures will also develop major themes essential to the students' understanding of the century of political crisis that precipitated the transition from Republic to monarchy. Topics covered may include tradition and innovation; art and the political; consensus models; crisis theory; women and the sub-elite as political actors; rhetoric and its abuse; warfare and imperialism.

The seminars will provide hands-on training in the interpretation of the evidence for these periods and themes, both material and literary, arising out of the content of the immediately preceding lecture. Some seminars will also be reserved for discussion in order to clarify best practice for the assessments.

Find out more about CLAS6004

The module will introduce students to the literature of early Christianity. A variety of texts will be read – the gospels, apocryphal gospels, early martyrdom texts, edifying tales and hagiography – to show the variety of genres that existed and the intertextual fluidity of these genres. The texts will be contextualised against the historical developments of the Roman Empire. Social and cultural issues will also be raised, such as the new roles of women and men in an emerging Christian world and the concepts of pain, sacrifice, authority, virginity and asceticism will be examined.

Find out more about CLAS6860

This module is aimed at those students who would like to follow a career as Primary or Secondary School teachers but is also suitable to those who would like to combine an academic course with work experience. Placements in a school environment will enhance the students' employment opportunities as they will acquire a range of skills. It will also provide students with the opportunity to develop their knowledge and understanding of Classical Studies and Ancient History in the primary or secondary school context. The university sessions and schoolwork will complement each other. At the university sessions students will benefit from the opportunity to discuss aspects related to their placement and receive guidance.

Students will normally make visits to a school, where each student will have a designated teacher-mentor who will guide their work in school. They will observe sessions taught by their designated teacher and possibly other teachers. Initially, for these sessions students will concentrate on specific aspects of the teachers' tasks, and their approach to teaching a whole class. As they progress, it is expected that their role will be, to some extent, teaching assistants, by helping individual pupils who are having difficulties or by working with small groups. They may teach brief or whole sessions with the whole class or with a small group of students where they explain a topic related to the school syllabus. They may also talk about aspects of University life.

Find out more about CLAS7310

This module is an introduction to ancient Greek ritual and religion, including the Mystery cults. The module offers a comprehensive introduction to the major gods and goddesses of ancient Greece, spheres of influence, characters, relationships, exploits, and worship. It is concerned with the analysis of religious festivals, cults, beliefs, and the development of religious architecture. The module additionally briefly contrasts Greek religion to Christianity, as an example of investigating how Greek religion differs from, and resembles modern religions. The materials of the module are drawn from archaeology, Greek poets, artists, playwrights, mythographers, and philosophers from the 10th–2nd centuries BC.

Find out more about CLAS7520

The module provides students with an advanced understanding of Ancient Greek Prose through the reading, translation and interpretation of ancient text(s). Students will gain a systematic understanding of Greek by reading texts in the original with special attention to stylistics, textual criticism and/or thematic development through the use of author- and theme-specific scholarly tools and publications. The emphasis in this module will be on the development of critical skills that aid in the analysis of the text(s) as literature within a broader literary and cultural context.

Find out more about CLAS7530

The module provides students with an advanced understanding of Latin Prose through the reading, translation and interpretation of ancient text(s). Students will gain a systematic understanding of Latin by reading texts in the original with special attention to stylistics, textual criticism and/or thematic development through the use of author- and theme-specific scholarly tools and publications. The emphasis in this module will be on the development of critical skills that aid in the analysis of the text(s) as literature within a broader literary and cultural context.

Find out more about CLAS7580

The module provides students with an advanced understanding of Latin Verse through the reading, translation and interpretation of ancient text(s). Students will gain a systematic understanding of Latin by reading texts in the original with special attention to stylistics, textual criticism and/or thematic development through the use of author- and theme-specific scholarly tools and publications. The emphasis in this module will be on the development of critical skills that aid in the analysis of the text(s) as literature within a broader literary and cultural context.

Find out more about CLAS7590

The module is concerned with the history, archaeology and culture of the ancient Graeco-Roman world, and covers the period from c. 776-479 BC. Among the subjects examined in detail are the growth of the formation of the Greek polis (city-state, a central feature of the civilisation of Greece and Rome), the impact of colonisation on the Greek world, and the circumstances for the invasion of Greece by the contemporary Persian world-empire.

Find out more about CLAS7650

This module takes a critical and interdisciplinary approach to ancient history and modern interpretations of ancient history. After first developing a rich and detailed view of a key theme in ancient history (e.g. politics, law, migration, colonisation, violence, inequality and social justice, race and ethnicity, the environment), the module will then explore how its central theme can be studied for the ancient world and how it is addressed in twenty-first century debates.

Find out more about CLAS7680

This module will provide a framework for advanced fieldwork training undertaken on University of Kent training excavations, or approved partners, supported by a SECL archaeological fieldwork bursary since 2008, to assist with the costs involved in a participation of 15 working days, normally including social and educational activities, such as a museum trip, on at least one day off, and an orientation day. In the event of these not being provided fieldwork will be confined to Canterbury.

The module will permit three alternative pathways, in excavation, survey, or museum studies. Assessment will be in the form of an illustrated archaeological report, aiming at the publication level used in UK professional archaeology (grey literature), which 1st class students will certainly achieve under our guidance. The report will feature a description of the phasing and chronology of the site and a fully documented account of each type of work undertaken by the student, linking specialist findings to the wider whole.

This work will use high-quality data produced on site during a field school under close supervision by module teachers, who will benefit from the post-dig engagement of the students in project-related data analysis during the autumn term. We have seen this on fieldwork practice, within the strong community bond that fieldwork creates. Students are highly motivated to complete work to a high standard, especially if it is then used by the director with accreditation within a report submitted to the Historic Environment Record.

Project directors who act as teachers on this module will be provided with a checklist of fieldwork tasks to be completed, of which must be completed. Their role in professional coaching of students on site and in the classroom, via extensive feedback will be stressed, informed by national benchmarks of 'proficiency' in different skills as defined by the BAJR Archaeology Skills Passport, endorsed by the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIFA).

Find out more about CLAS7710

You have the opportunity to select elective modules in this stage.

Fees

The 2021/22 annual tuition fees for this programme are:

  • Home full-time £9,250
  • EU full-time £12,600
  • International full-time £16,800
  • Home part-time £4,625
  • EU part-time £6,300
  • International part-time £8,400

For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.

For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* 

Your fee status

The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.

Fees for Year in Industry

Fees for Home undergraduates are £1,385.

Fees for Year Abroad

Fees for Home undergraduates are £1,385.

Students studying abroad for less than one academic year will pay full fees according to their fee status. 

Additional costs

General additional costs

Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.

Funding

We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.

Search scholarships

University funding

Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details. 

Government funding

You may be eligible for government finance to help pay for the costs of studying. See the Government's student finance website.

Scholarships

General scholarships

Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.

The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence

At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence. 

The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of A*AA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.

Teaching and assessment

All modules have a weekly seminar, and most also have weekly lectures. Archaeology modules sometimes include museum and site visits. We encourage students to take part in excavations and surveys with staff and associated institutions, and student bursaries are available to support this.

Assessment at all stages varies from 100% coursework to a combination of examination and coursework.

Contact hours

For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours.  The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Programme aims

The programme aims to:

  • teach within the framework of ancient literature, providing flexibility and a multidisciplinary approach as outlined in our mission statement
  • treat the diverse societies and cultures of the Ancient World, its interaction and influences, with a focus on literature
  • make a study in depth of selected themes, regions and periods in antiquity
  • introduce key elements by which early Europe acquired its social, political, cultural and intellectual foundations, in accordance with our statement on building on close ties within Europe
  • explore different types of evidence – literary, historical, and archaeological – using primary source material wherever possible and focusing on different approaches and techniques based on research-led teaching as outlined in our mission statement
  • examine the problems of interpretation in each type of source material through critical analysis of current studies.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

  • another culture, whether focused on literature, thought, art and religion, or on history and political and social organisation, or on material culture, with an informed sense of the similarities and differences between it and our own culture
  • complementary subjects to read both critically and empathetically literary, philosophical, historical and other source materials, while addressing questions of genre, content, perspective and purpose
  • selected themes, periods and regions within ancient literature and history in the context of current debate
  • an appropriate and diverse range of primary materials and the appropriate methods of interpretation.

Intellectual skills

You will be able to:

  • apply the skills needed for academic study and enquiry
  • analyse, evaluate and interpret a variety of types of evidence in an independent and critical manner
  • select, gather and synthesise relevant information from a wide variety of sources to gain a coherent understanding
  • deploy a range of techniques and methodologies of study
  • utilise problem-solving skills
  • evaluate research in a critical manner
  • study and reach conclusions independently.

Subject-specific skills

You gain subject-specific skills to enable you to:

  • make a critical evaluation of a variety of sources for literary and historical study (eg texts, inscriptions, and other data)
  • extract key elements from complex data and identify and solve associated problems
  • select and apply appropriate methodologies in assessing data, such as bibliographical research, textual analysis, historical analysis, visual skills, use of statistics, philosophical argument and analysis
  • gather, memorise and deploy evidence and information, and show awareness of the consequences of the unavailability of evidence
  • marshal argument lucidly and communicate interpretations using the appropriate academic conventions.

Transferable skills

You gain transferable skills to enable you to:

  • communicate effectively with a wide range of individuals using a variety of means
  • evaluate and learn from your own academic performance
  • manage time and prioritise workloads and assessments, and write and think under pressure
  • utilise problem-solving skills in a variety of theoretical and practical situations
  • work creatively, flexibly and adaptably with others; understand how groups function
  • deploy a range of IT skills effectively, such as producing word-processed text with footnotes, basic formatting, using email, research using databases and text files, locating and exploiting websites.

Independent rankings

Of final-year Classics students who completed the National Student Survey 2021, 95% were satisfied with the overall quality of their course. 

Over 92% of final-year Classics and Ancient History students were satisfied with the quality of teaching on their course in The Guardian University Guide 2021.

Careers

You gain key transferable skills such as the ability to analyse and summarise complex information, to manage and organise your time, and to express your opinion persuasively and with sensitivity, skills that will leave you well placed to embark on a graduate career.

Possible careers include archaeology, the heritage industry, museums, business, journalism, Civil Service, computing, media, librarianship or teaching; you might also want to pursue further academic study.

Apply for Classical Studies - BA (Hons)

This course page is for the 2021/22 academic year. Please visit the current online prospectus for a list of undergraduate courses we offer.

Contact us

bubble-text

United Kingdom/EU enquiries

Enquire online for full-time study

T: +44 (0)1227 768896

earth

International student enquiries

Enquire online

T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk

network

Discover Uni information

Full-time
Part-time

Discover Uni is designed to support prospective students in deciding whether, where and what to study. The site replaces Unistats from September 2019.

Discover Uni is jointly owned by the Office for Students, the Department for the Economy Northern Ireland, the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales and the Scottish Funding Council.

It includes:

  • Information and guidance about higher education
  • Information about courses
  • Information about providers

Find out more about the Unistats dataset on the Higher Education Statistics Agency website.