English and American Literature - BA (Hons)

Course structure

Duration: 3 years full-time, 6 years part-time

Modules

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.   On most programmes, you study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also be able to take ‘elective’ modules from other programmes so you can customise your programme and explore other subjects that interest you.

• Year in industry
• Year abroad

Teaching and assessment

Teaching and assessment can vary between modules. All modules are taught by weekly seminars. In addition to seminars, the majority of literature modules also include a weekly lecture.

Assessment at Stage 1 and 2 is by a mixture of coursework and examination. Some modules may include an optional practical element.

Assessment at Stage 3 is by coursework only and may include an optional Dissertation.

Attendance at seminars is required, and for the majority of modules, you are assessed on your seminar contribution/performance.

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:

• introduce you to a wide range of literatures, particularly British and American, from Chaucer to the present day, and encourage you to identify and develop your own interests and expertise in fields of literary study
• enable you to develop an historical and cross-cultural awareness of literary traditions and the ways in which they interact
• develop your understanding and critical appreciation of the expressive resources of language
• offer opportunities for you to develop your potential for creative writing
• offer generous scope for the study of literature within an interdisciplinary context
• enable you to follow a particular pathway within the context of English and American literary study
• develop your ability to argue a point of view with clarity and cogency, both orally and in written form
• develop your ability to assimilate and organise a mass of diverse information
• offer you the experience of a variety of teaching styles and approaches to the study of literature
• develop your capacity for independent critical thinking and judgement
• provide a basis for the study of English or related disciplines at a higher level
• provide a basis in knowledge and skills for those intending to teach English literature, including a broad frame of cultural reference
• provide you with the opportunity to develop more general skills and competences so that you can respond positively to the challenges of the workplace or of postgraduate education.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

• a wide range of authors, texts and cultures from 1350 to the present day in both British and American Literature
• the principal literary genres, fiction, poetry, drama and of other kinds of writing and communication
• the cultural, national and historical contexts in which literature is written, transmitted and read, particularly inflected by traditions of study in English, American and Postcolonial Literature
• awareness of the range and variety of approaches to literary study, include creative practice
• traditions in literary criticism
• the mechanisms of circulation and reception of literary texts
• critical theory and its applications, understood within its historical contexts
• the ways the study of literature relates to other disciplines
• the ways literary work relates to other aesthetic forms
• the history and conventions of the principal literary genres.

Intellectual skills

You develop intellectual skills in:

• listening to and absorbing the oral transmission of complicated data
• careful reading of literary works and theoretical material
• reflecting clearly and critically on oral and written sources, using power of analysis and imagination
• marshalling a complex body of information
• remembering relevant material and bringing it to mind when needed
• constructing cogent arguments
• formulating independent ideas and defending them in a plausible manner
• presenting arguments in written form in a time-limited context (examinations).

Subject-specific skills

You gain the following subject-specific skills:

• enhanced skills in the close critical analysis of literary texts
• informed critical understanding of the variety of critical and theoretical approaches to the study of literature
• ability to articulate knowledge and understanding of texts, concepts and theories relating to English studies
• sensitivity to generic conventions in the study of literature
• sensitivity to the problems of translation and cultural difference 
• ability to articulate the relation between literary work and other aesthetic forms 
• well-developed language use and awareness, including a grasp of standard critical terminology
• articulate responsiveness to literary language
• appropriate scholarly practice in the presentation of formal written work, in particular in bibliographic and annotational practices
• understanding of how cultural norms, assumptions and practices influence questions of judgement
• appreciation of the value of collaborative intellectual work in developing critical judgement.

Transferable skills

You develop the following transferable skills:

• developed powers of communication and the capacity to argue a point of view, orally and in written form, with clarity, organisation and cogency
• enhanced confidence in the efficient presentation of ideas designed to stimulate critical debate
• developed critical acumen
• the ability to assimilate and organise substantial quantities of complex information of diverse kinds
• competence in the planning and execution of essays and project-work
• enhanced skills in critical analysis
• enhanced capacity for independent thought, intellectual focus, reasoned judgement, and self-criticism
• enhanced skills in collaborative intellectual work, including more finely tuned listening skills
• the ability to understand, interrogate and apply a variety of theoretical positions and weigh the importance of alternative perspectives
• research skills, including scholarly information retrieval skills
• IT skills: word-processing, email communication, the ability to access electronic data.

Careers

Graduate destinations

Our graduates have gone on to work in areas including:

• journalism
• broadcasting
• publishing and writing
• teaching
• banking
• marketing
• project management.

Our graduates include:

• Kazuo Ishiguro
• David Mitchell
• Sarah Waters.

Help finding a job

The University has a friendly Careers and Employability Service, which offers advice on how to:

• apply for jobs
• write a good CV
• perform well in interviews.

Career-enhancing skills

Alongside specialist skills, you also develop the transferable skills graduate employers look for, including the ability to:

• think critically 
• communicate your ideas and opinions 
• work independently and as part of a team.

You can also gain extra skills by signing up for one of our Kent Extra activities, such as learning a language or volunteering.

Alumni profiles

Lianna Brinded is Head of Yahoo! Finance UK. She graduated from Kent with a degree in English and American Literature.

Read Lianna's full profile