Bachelor of Arts (BA)

BA English Literature and American Studies

English Literature and American Studies at Manchester combines literature with history, politics and popular culture of the United States.

  • Duration: 3 years
  • Year of entry: 2025
  • UCAS course code: QT37 / Institution code: M20
  • Key features:
  • Study abroad

Full entry requirementsHow to apply

Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,535 per annum (subject to Parliamentary approval). Tuition fees for international students will be £26,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

Course unit details:
Long Essay

Course unit fact file
Unit code ENGL30001
Credit rating 20
Unit level Level 3
Teaching period(s) Semester 1
Available as a free choice unit? No

Overview

This course gives students the freedom to formulate their own research topic and produce a 6000 word long essay on it. They are also required to produce an annotated bibliography to assist them in the formulation of a suitably focused research question.

Pre/co-requisites

THIS COURSE IS COMPULSORY FOR STUDENTS ON BA (HONS) ENGLISH LITERATURE

THIS COURSE IS OPTIONAL FOR STUDENTS ON JOINT HONOURS ENGLISH LITERATURE PROGRAMMES.

Aims

  • To enable students to formulate a suitable topic for research based on their own interests;
  • To develop students' abilities to research their chosen topic in order to meet the demands of an extended piece of written work;
  • To develop the personal skills involved in defining, undertaking and completing a project
  • To encourage students to assess, evaluate and deploy in their own work the available critical material on their chosen topic;
  • To develop students' writing skills by encouraging them to think about the demands, in terms of form and complexity, of an extended piece of written work.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course unit the successful student will have demonstrated:

  • Independence in her/his ability to formulate a suitable research topic based on her/his own interests;
  • Resourcefulness - including an ability to use electronic resources - in her/his ability to research that topic;
  • The ability to assimilate and critically deploy critical material on that topic;
  • The formal and intellectual skills requisite to the production of an extended piece of written work.
  • An ability to undertake and complete an extended individual project

Teaching and learning methods

Three personal supervision meetings during Semester 2.

Employability skills

Analytical skills
Students taking this unit will be able to analyse and evaluate arguments and texts. Above all, committed students will emerge from this course unit with an advanced capacity to think critically, i.e. knowledgeably, rigorously, confidently and independently.
Innovation/creativity
On this unit students are encouraged to respond imaginatively and independently to the questions and ideas raised by texts and other media.
Project management
Students taking this unit will be able to work towards deadlines and to manage their time effectively.
Research
Students on this unit will be required to digest, summarise and present large amounts of information. They are encouraged to enrich their responses and arguments with a wide range of further reading.
Written communication
Students on this unit will develop their ability to write in a way that is lucid, precise and compelling.

Assessment methods

Bibliographical essay 15%
Long Essay 85%

 

Feedback methods

Written and face-to-face (upon arrangement)

Recommended reading

Students are encouraged to begin thinking about a research topic over the summer. Defining and forming a question, in consultation with a member of the academic staff, will be undertaken before the winter break. Further details on this will be distributed early in semester 1.

Study hours

Scheduled activity hours
Project supervision 3
Independent study hours
Independent study 197

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Clara Dawson Unit coordinator

Return to course details