English and History

English and history is a combination with a long and distinguished intellectual tradition. Both disciplines share a fundamental concern with understanding the human world through close engagement with texts, whether literary, documentary, or archival, and with placing those texts in context. English literature develops the skills of close reading, critical analysis, and the appreciation of how language shapes and is shaped by culture.

History develops the ability to work with primary sources, to think carefully about evidence and causation, and to construct arguments about change over time. Together they develop a uniquely versatile mind trained in both textual sensitivity and historical reasoning.

At the University of Sheffield this three-year full-time programme enables you to interrogate a wealth of texts and place them within their historical and socio-political contexts, moving across the full range of medieval, early modern, and modern periods in both subjects. The course includes a sandwich placement year, a year abroad, and a work placement component, giving you structured opportunities to develop professional experience and an international academic perspective before you graduate. The typical entry tariff of 152 points reflects the strong academic standard expected at Sheffield for this combined degree.

You will develop close-reading and analytical skills, the ability to research and work with complex materials, and the capacity to write clearly and persuasively about difficult ideas. These are capabilities of lasting value in almost every professional context.

Graduates pursue careers in education, journalism, publishing, heritage, archiving, the civil service, law, and the cultural sector. Postgraduate study in English literature, history, creative writing, archival studies, or a related humanities field is a natural and well-supported continuation.