English Language & Literature, MA

In this section
English Language & Literature, MA

Introduction

Study the development of the English language from its Anglo-Saxon origins to contemporary usage while exploring its rich literary history.

Study Information

At a Glance

Learning Mode
On Campus Learning
Degree Qualification
MA
Duration
48 months
Study Mode
Full Time
Start Month
September
Location of Study
Aberdeen
UCAS Code
LL10

The MA English Language & Literature degree offers a unique opportunity to examine the English language holistically across a spectrum of literary periods and genres while enabling you to focus on specific areas that capture your interest. Our programme draws on specialist knowledge and expertise from the disciplines of Celtic & Anglo-Saxon studies, Language & Linguistics, and English literary studies, allowing you to appreciate the links between the evolution of English and its use in literary texts. You will explore the language of Old English, the structure and use of contemporary English, and the rich variety of literature in English that has arisen alongside its linguistic development.

What You'll Study

Year 1

Compulsory Courses

  • LN10XX English Past and Present (15 Credit Points)
  • LN15XX Language Structure and Use (15 Credit Points)
Academic Writing for Language & Literature (AW1008)

This compulsory evaluation is designed to find out if your academic writing is of a sufficient standard to enable you to succeed at university and, if you need it, to provide support to improve. It is completed on-line via MyAberdeen with clear instructions to guide you through it. If you pass the evaluation at the first assessment it will not take much of your time. If you do not, you will be provided with resources to help you improve. This evaluation does not carry credits but if you do not complete it this will be recorded on your degree transcript.

Getting Started at the University of Aberdeen (PD1002)

This course, which is prescribed for level 1 undergraduate students (and articulating students who are in their first year at the University), is studied entirely online, takes approximately 5-6 hours to complete and can be taken in one sitting, or spread across a number of weeks.

Topics include orientation overview, equality and diversity, health, safety and cyber security and how to make the most of your time at university in relation to careers and employability.

Successful completion of this course will be recorded on your Enhanced Transcript as ‘Achieved’.

Acts of Reading (EL1009)

15 Credit Points

This course introduces students to the study of English by exploring the dynamic relationship between author, reader and text in a series of classic works of fiction and poetry. It covers a broad historical range (from Folk Tales and ballads to 21st century postmodernity) and offers a basic grounding in key elements of literary theory, literary history and the varieties of literary form.

Controversial Classics (EL1513)

15 Credit Points

Literature can provoke, offend and disturb as well as entertain. This course considers some of the most powerful and controversial works of modern literature. It examines the circumstances of publication, the nature of the controversy, and the cultural and critical impact of each work. The course shows how poems, plays and novels can raise searching questions about national, racial and personal identity, and looks at the methods used by writers to challenge their readers, as well the responses of readers to such challenges.

Optional Courses

Select TWO courses from the list below. Plus, select further courses of choice to make up 120 credit points.

Barbarians, Romans, Gods and Warriors (CE1033)

15 Credit Points

This course gives you an exciting introduction to the Celtic and Germanic worlds. In lectures and small-group tutorials, we will explore the peoples who inhabited western and central Europe in Antiquity. We will discuss their cultures and their interactions with Greece and Rome. The course also covers the fates of these cultures in the post-Roman world. Change over time will provide a major driver of the course: for instance, empire and its effect; the history and impact of the "barbarian"; the successive impacts of Roman religion and of Christianity, and how they were represented in mediaeval "heroic" literature.

Language Myths (LN1006)

15 Credit Points

In this course, students critically examine a broad range of commonly held beliefs about language and the relation of language to the brain and cognition, learning, society, change and evolution. Students read a series of short scholarly articles in order to understand language myths, the purpose for their existence, and their validity (or not). We use science and common sense as tools in our process of “myth-busting”, both on a set range of language myths in class and on individually chosen myths in independent projects.

Rethinking Reading (EL1536)

15 Credit Points

'Rethinking Reading' complements the module ‘Acts of Reading’. Intended primarily for students with degree intentions in English, this course introduces key areas in critical theory that inform the current work of staff at Aberdeen. It asks students to consider the history of English studies and its relationship to colonialism, and how this impacts on conceptions of literature and authorship, alongside topics such as gender and sexuality, and genre. Through a series of modules, the course introduces each area of theory alongside a literary text used as a case study. The course supports students in learning to read and use critical theory in your work, incorporating reflective learning and a practical focus on the techniques involved in critical writing.

Living Language (LN1505)

15 Credit Points

How does the way we use language shape our lives, and how does the way we live shape the language we use? Moving beyond strict notions of structure, this course explores communication in practice, examining how language works in various contexts and cultures. It addresses contemporary social issues that are principally or partly communicative in nature, challenging common misconceptions and giving students an understanding of the contribution awareness of language can make to numerous fields.

Year 2

Compulsory Courses

Encounters with Shakespeare (EL2011)

30 Credit Points

So you think you know Shakespeare? This course invites you to think again. Studying a range of plays we get behind the mythology of Shakespeare, and rediscover the dynamic inventiveness of the Elizabethan theatre. Shakespeare and his contemporaries were the principal players in a period of literary experimentation that reinvented the possibilities of literature. Encounters with Shakespeare is your chance to find out more.

Elements of English (LN2515)

30 Credit Points

We perceive language as an integrated whole, but in fact it exists on many levels. This course investigates these layers of structure through examination of speech sounds, word formation, and sentence construction. We will consider the theory behind these areas of phonology, morphology, and syntax, looking at how they function independently and interact. Students will gain skills to undertake analysis of language structure and think critically about structural elements fundamental to English.

Optional Courses

Select ONE of the following options:

  • LN2008 Language in Society OR
  • BOTH CE2034 Arthur in Medieval Celtic and Scandinavian Literature AND GH2010 Otherworld: Lost Gods and Hidden Monsters of Medieval Scotland

Also, select ONE of the following options:

  • EL2512 The Tragedy of Knowledge OR EL2518 Power, Empire & Equality

Candidates seeking entry to the Junior Honours programme must have accumulated, by award or recognition, or been exempted from, at least 240 credit points at levels 1 and 2, including the prescribed courses required to enter programme year 3.

Language in Society (LN2008)

30 Credit Points

Language is central to our humanity. Language and society are inextricably linked. Language unites; language divides. This course will develop your understanding of the social nature of language, providing insight into, among other things, the relationship between gender and language, language death and the issue of language policy and planning.

Arthur in Medieval Celtic and Scandinavian Literature (CE2034)

15 Credit Points

The course provides a survey of literature on Arthur in the Middle Ages, focusing on early Welsh and Gaelic sources, related Scandinavian literature and French, Welsh and English romances. It includes discussion of broader themes and questions posed by the literature, e.g. whether Arthur could have been a real person, how the Arthurian legend evolved over time and in different areas of Europe, and why the character has been elevated to iconic status.

Otherworld: Lost Gods and Hidden Monsters of Medieval Scotland (GH2010)

15 Credit Points

Godlike ‘immortals’, elves, fairies, the walking dead, the Loch Ness Monster: uncanny Otherworldly beings feature widely in the literature and folklore of medieval Scotland. This course will explore the nature and significance of Gaelic Otherworld-traditions in their wider North Atlantic context. We investigate how Germanic and Celtic beliefs merged in Gaelic Otherworld-lore, how these related to pre-Christian myth and religion, and why they continued to be significant in Scotland many centuries after Christianization. All texts will be studied in translation.

The Tragedy of Knowledge (EL2512)

30 Credit Points

This course traces the use of key Western myths from antiquity to the present to examine the way knowledge is often presented as both dangerous and compelling. As well as introducing students to a range of historical, social, and formal variations on the theme of knowledge, the course also highlights the role of storytelling and adaptation in the formation of knowledge and understanding.

Power, Empire and Equality (EL2518)

30 Credit Points

This optional course in literature allows students at pre-Honours to learn about the impact of global colonialism through the writings of those who experienced it and its repercussions. It includes theorists of our time and texts like Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe and Buchi Emecheta’s Second Class Citizen. The texts on this course are necessarily concerned with enslavement and freedom, with how one encounters difference, and what it means to possess or claim territory. In examining these issues students will engage with issues of power and equality over centuries of writing about colonialism and empire.

Year 3

Compulsory Courses

  • CE3047 Introduction to Old English Language (30 Credit Points)
Knights, Virgins and Viragos: Chaucer and Medieval Writing (EL35DQ)

30 Credit Points

Knights, Virgins, and Viragos offers an introduction to the variety of medieval literature and culture. Turning a critical eye on the role misconceptions of the Middle Ages play in present day white supremacy, the course highlights genres from medieval drama to life writing, with attention to the medieval history of race making and modern responses to the work of Chaucer in the poetry of Patience Agbabi.

Optional Courses

Select ONE of the following:

  • LN3524 Stylistics (30 Credit Points) OR LN3510 Discourse Analysis (30 Credit Points)

Plus, select 30 credits of Level 3 English or Language & Linguistics to make up 120 credit points.

Year 4

Compulsory Courses

  • Dissertation in English Language & Literature (30 Credit Points)
  • LN4520 Perception, Prescription, Prejudice (30 Credit Points)
Not the Queen's English (EL40SC)

30 Credit Points

This course will focus on the ways in which non-standard English is used within anglophone literary texts from the late-eighteenth century to the present day. Classes will cover a wide range of geographical spaces and publishing contexts discussing Scots-language poetry, postcolonial approaches to English, and African-American literature. Authors covered may include: Robert Burns, Zora Neale Hurston, Anne Donovan, Jackie Kay, Chinua Achebe, Tom Leonard, and Percival Everett.

Optional Courses

Plus, select 30 credits of Level 4 English or Language & Linguistics to make up 120 credit points.

We will endeavour to make all course options available. However, these may be subject to change - see our Student Terms and Conditions page.

How You'll Study

Learning Methods

  • Group Projects
  • Individual Projects
  • Lectures
  • Peer Learning
  • Research
  • Seminars
  • Tutorials
  • Workshops

Assessment Methods

You will learn through a mix of teaching methods and supervision to challenge your thinking and put your critical skills to the test. You will engage in a range of assessments to support your personal growth and develop your linguistic skills.

Honours projects are typically assessed based on a written dissertation.

Why Study English Language & Literature?

  • Explore English from a linguistic and literary perspective.
  • Learn how the English language works structurally and in practice. 
  • Develop your skills in written and oral communication, analysis, and research.
  • Acquire new insights into how spoken English is changing, including evidence gathered from tracking TV and radio soaps over the years.
  • Build connections within our vibrant research and teaching community across Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies, English, and Linguistics.
  • Participate in the annual WayWORD Festival, a free student-led recognising internationally acclaimed authors, artists, filmmakers, new talent and more in showcasing alternative forms of literary and artistic expression.
  • Award-winning Sir Duncan Rice Library with top-class study facilities and literary treasures collected over 500 years charting the power of the written word from ancient papyri and medieval manuscripts to contemporary e-books and other media. 
  • Historic collections include rare, printed books, the 12th century Aberdeen Bestiary, MacBean Stuart and Jacobite Collection, the novels of Sir Walter Scott, and an exceptional collection of Charles Dickens' first editions.
  • The university has an international profile through major literary projects including the Cambridge Edition of the Works of Jane Austen and the Edinburgh Edition of the Waverley Novels of Sir Walter Scott.

Aberdeen Global Scholarship

The University of Aberdeen is delighted to offer eligible self-funded international on-campus undergraduate students a £6,000 scholarship for every year of their programme.

View the Aberdeen Global Scholarship

Entry Requirements

Qualifications

The information below is provided as a guide only and does not guarantee entry to the University of Aberdeen.


General Entry Requirements

2024 Entry

SQA Highers

Standard: AABB

Applicants who have achieved AABB (or better), are encouraged to apply and will be considered. Good performance in additional Highers/ Advanced Highers may be required.

Minimum: BBB

Applicants who have achieved BBB (or are on course to achieve this by the end of S5) are encouraged to apply and will be considered. Good performance in additional Highers/Advanced Highers will normally be required.

Adjusted: BB

Applicants who achieve BB over S4 and S5 and who meet one of the widening access criteria are guaranteed a conditional offer. Good performance in additional Highers/Advanced Highers will be required.

More information on our definition of Standard, Minimum and Adjusted entry qualifications.

A LEVELS

Standard: BBB

Minimum: BBC

Adjusted: CCC

More information on our definition of Standard, Minimum and Adjusted entry qualifications.

International Baccalaureate

32 points, including 5, 5, 5 at HL.

Irish Leaving Certificate

5H with 3 at H2 AND 2 at H3.

Entry from College

Advanced entry to this degree may be possible from some HNC/HND qualifications, please see www.abdn.ac.uk/study/articulation for more details.

2025 Entry

SQA Highers

Standard: BBBB

Applicants who have achieved BBBB (or better), are encouraged to apply and will be considered. Good performance in additional Highers/ Advanced Highers may be required.

Minimum: BBC

Applicants who have achieved BBC at Higher and meet one of the widening participation criteria above are encouraged to apply and are guaranteed an unconditional offer for MA, BSc and BEng degrees. 

Adjusted: BB

Applicants who have achieved BB at Higher, and who meet one of the widening participation criteria above are encouraged to apply and are guaranteed an adjusted conditional offer for MA, BSc and BEng degrees.

We would expect to issue a conditional offer asking for one additional C grade at Higher. 

Foundation Apprenticeship: One FA is equivalent to a Higher at A. It cannot replace any required subjects.

More information on our definition of Standard, Minimum and Adjusted entry qualifications.

A LEVELS

Standard: BBC

Minimum: BCC

Adjusted: CCC

More information on our definition of Standard, Minimum and Adjusted entry qualifications.

International Baccalaureate

32 points, including 5, 5, 5 at HL.

Irish Leaving Certificate

5H with 3 at H2 AND 2 at H3.

Entry from College

Advanced entry to this degree may be possible from some HNC/HND qualifications, please see www.abdn.ac.uk/study/articulation for more details.

The information displayed in this section shows a shortened summary of our entry requirements. For more information, or for full entry requirements for Arts and Social Sciences degrees, see our detailed entry requirements section.


English Language Requirements

To study for an Undergraduate degree at the University of Aberdeen it is essential that you can speak, understand, read, and write English fluently. The minimum requirements for this degree are as follows:

IELTS Academic:

OVERALL - 6.0 with: Listening - 5.5; Reading - 5.5; Speaking - 5.5; Writing - 6.0

TOEFL iBT:

OVERALL - 78 with: Listening - 17; Reading - 18; Speaking - 20; Writing - 21

PTE Academic:

OVERALL - 59 with: Listening - 59; Reading - 59; Speaking - 59; Writing - 59

Cambridge English B2 First, C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency:

OVERALL - 169 with: Listening - 162; Reading - 162; Speaking - 162; Writing - 169

Read more about specific English Language requirements here.

Fees and Funding

Please refer to our Tuition Fees page for fee information for this programme, or contact study@abdn.ac.uk.

Additional Fees

  • In exceptional circumstances there may be additional fees associated with specialist courses, for example field trips. Any additional fees for a course can be found in our Catalogue of Courses.
  • For more information about tuition fees for this programme, including payment plans and our refund policy, please visit our Tuition Fees page.

Scholarships and Funding

UK Scholarship

Students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland, who pay tuition fees may be eligible for specific scholarships allowing them to receive additional funding. These are designed to provide assistance to help students support themselves during their time at Aberdeen.

Aberdeen Global Scholarship

The University of Aberdeen is delighted to offer eligible self-funded international on-campus undergraduate students a £6,000 scholarship for every year of their programme. More about this funding opportunity.

Funding Database

View all funding options in our Funding Database.

Careers

You develop a range of transferable skills, providing ideal preparation to progress into postgraduate study or enter careers across different work settings. Graduates can progress onto careers in fields such as:

  • Language Data Analysis
  • Language Documentation
  • Lexicography
  • Technical Writing
  • Publishing
  • Teaching

Our Experts

Other Expert
Dr William Barras, The University of Aberdeen
Programme Coordinator
Dr Elspeth Edelstein, The University of Aberdeen

Information About Staff Changes

You will be taught by a range of experts including professors, lecturers, teaching fellows and postgraduate tutors. However, these may be subject to change - see our Student Terms and Conditions page.

Discover Uni

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Get in Touch

Contact Details

Address
Student Recruitment & Admissions
University of Aberdeen
University Office
Regent Walk
Aberdeen
AB24 3FX