Centre for Scandinavian Studies
Aberdeen has the largest concentration of experts on early Scandinavia in the British Isles.
Introduction
Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies and English at Aberdeen adds to a fascinating study of the lives and legacy of the Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, and Scandinavian peoples. In this programme, you will explore English language and literature through the ages and in all its glory, at a leading centre ranked second in the UK for the quality of our research. You will graduate with wide career options across the arts and skills transferable whichever direction you choose.
This programme is studied on campus.
Aberdeen has been a centre for Celtic studies for more than a century and is now a leading research centre in all aspects of the norther polar regions including its peoples. You will study literature, culture, history and languages, inspired by leading specialists in the history and literature of Britain, Ireland and Scandinavia in the Middle Ages, in medieval Celtic and Scandinavian literature, and the cultural history of Ireland and Anglo-Saxon England.
English gives you all the advantages of a highly-rated teaching, research and creative hub, where you will explore poetry and prose through the dynamic relationship between author, reader and literary text, study every period from Chaucer to contemporary English, Scottish, Irish, European and American writers and examine the cultural and critical impact of powerful and controversial modern works.
You will be inspired by enthusiastic teachers and researchers, themselves acclaimed authors and poets, and be encouraged to develop your own creative writing skills.
This subject combination gives you essential skills in critical thinking, core writing, research, communication and other attributes which will make you attractive to employers whatever your career choice. Our graduates work in a wide variety of areas in the arts and elsewhere, including heritage management, teaching, publishing, research, librarianship, enterprise and broadcasting.
Key Programme Information
At a Glance
- Learning Mode
- On Campus Learning
- Degree Qualification
- MA
- Duration
- 48 months
- Study Mode
- Full Time
- Start Month
- September
- UCAS Code
- 7Q5Q
What You'll Study
- Year 1
-
Year 1
Compulsory Courses
- Academic Writing for Language & Literature (AW1008)
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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.
- Professional Skills Part 1 (PD1001)
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This course, which is prescribed for level 1 students and optional for level 2 students, is studied entirely online and covers topics relating to careers and employability, equality and diversity and health, safety and wellbeing. During the course you will learn about the Aberdeen Graduate Attributes, how they are relevant to you and the opportunities available to develop your skills and attributes alongside your University studies. You will also gain an understanding of equality and diversity and health, safety and wellbeing issues. Successful completion of this course will be recorded on your Enhanced Transcript as ‘Achieved’ (non-completion will be recorded as ‘Not Achieved’). The course takes approximately 3 hours to complete and can be taken in one sitting, or spread across a number of weeks and it will be available to you throughout the academic year.This course, which is prescribed for level 1 students and optional for level 2 students and above, is studied entirely online and covers topics relating to careers and employability, equality and diversity and health, safety and wellbeing. During the course you will learn about the Aberdeen Graduate Attributes, how they are relevant to you and the opportunities available to develop your skills and attributes alongside your University studies. You will also gain an understanding of equality and diversity and health, safety and wellbeing issues. Successful completion of this course will be recorded on your Enhanced Transcript as ‘Achieved’ (non-completion will be recorded as ‘Not Achieved’). The course takes approximately 3 hours to complete and can be taken in one sitting, or spread across a number of weeks and it will be available to you throughout the academic year
Optional Courses
- Select courses worth at least 30 credits from the list of Level 1 options available in the Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies table of courses, including at least one of those listed below
- Plus, select further courses of choice to make up 120 credit points
- Songs, Myths and Hero - Tales of the Old North: an Introduction to Early Celtic and Anglo - Saxon Literature (CE1037) - 15 Credit Points
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This course introduces the oldest vernacular literature of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England, beginning in the sixth century AD. We explore heroic narratives featuring, for example, the Scandinavian monster-fighter Beowulf (immortalized in England’s first epic poem), the Irish warrior Cú Chulainn (hero of the Táin) and the tragic Welsh princess Branwen, caught up in a fatal power-struggle between Wales and Ireland. We examine praise-poetry, meditative poetry, and look at mythological tales about the old gods and voyages to Otherworld isles in the western ocean.
- Acts of Reading (EL1009) - 15 Credit Points
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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.
- Arthur and Finn, Beowulf and Alfred the Great: History, Law and Literature in the Early Medieval North (CE1534) - 15 Credit Points
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This course explores the changing cultures of the early mediaeval North, especially the cultural history and literatures of Britain and Ireland between the Anglo-Saxon settlement of south Britain and the Norman invasions half a millennium later. These islands were a cultural and ethnic melting-pot between Celtic and Germanic peoples, as seen through a rich body of texts: heroic poems, historical narratives, law-texts, family trees, letters and outlaw-legends. In lectures and small-group tutorials, we explore the diverse forms of social organisation which emerged, and we examine how these peoples interacted with each other: from sex to violence and everything in between.
- Controversial Classics (EL1513) - 15 Credit Points
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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.
- Year 2
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Year 2
Optional Courses
- Select courses worth at least 30 credits from the list of Level 2 options available in the Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies table of courses, including at least one of those listed below
- Plus, select further courses of choice to make up 120 credit points
- Arthur in Mediaeval Celtic and Scandinavian Literature (CE2034) - 15 Credit Points
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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.
- Encounters with Shakespeare (EL2011) - 30 Credit Points
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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.
- Love, Loss and Revival: Gaelic Ireland, 1700 to the Present (CE2563) - 15 Credit Points
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This course provides an introduction to Gaelic Ireland from the eighteenth century to the present. We will discuss the aims and achievements of all genres of literature written in modern Irish: for instance, political vision-poems, laments, short stories and autobiographies. The course will also cover in detail the major twentieth-century poets and their diverse motivations, e.g. self-discovery, urban/rural tension and commentary on political and social aspects of their own day. The connections between Irish literature and historical events, the changing status of the Irish language, and Ireland's relationship with the rest of Europe, will form important elements of the course.
- The Tragedy of Knowledge (EL2512) - 30 Credit Points
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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.
- Year 3
-
Year 3
Optional Courses
Select a total of two courses from the following groups, each from a different group: Group 1: Medieval/Renaissance
- EL30DQ: Knights, Virgins and Viragos, Chaucer and Medieval Writing
- EL35CP: Page and Stage: Renaissance Writings 1500-1640
Group 2: Romantic/Victorian
- EL30GK: Mind and Monstrosity: Realism and the Gothic in the Long 19th Century
- EL3009: American Innovation
- EL35XR: Romanticism
Group 3: Contemporary/Modern
- EL30IH: States of Mind: Contemporary Irish and Scottish Writing
- EL30JS: Anglo-American Children’s Literature
- EL30FF: Modernism: Make it New
- EL35KM: Perversion of the Interior: Women’s Fiction 1925-1975
- EL35UT: Art and Atrocity: Representations of Violence and Trauma
Group 4
- EL3008: Writing Revolt: Literature and Politics in the 17th Century
- EL35YB: Creative Writing: Creativity and Craft
- EL35EH: Classical Epic
Plus, select 60 credit points of level 3 Celtic & Anglo Saxon courses (listed below)
- Knights, Virgins and Viragos: Chaucer and Medieval Writing (EL30DQ) - 30 Credit Points
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An introduction to late medieval-literature, challenging modern assumptions about the medieval and exploring the diverse range of medieval literary culture, from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales to the autobiographical narrative of Margery Kempe and surprising profanity of medieval lyric.
- Page and Stage: Renaissance Writings 1500 - 1640 (EL35CP) - 30 Credit Points
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This course explores the poetry, drama and prose of a period often referred to as the golden age of English literature. The period saw Shakespeare and his contemporaries produce innovative new literary works in which the language of desire took centre stage.
- Mind and Monstrosity: Realism and the Gothic in the Long 19th Century (EL30GK) - 30 Credit Points
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Exploring connections between Gothic monstrosity and psychological realism, this course investigates an exciting range of texts and contexts from the long nineteenth century. Focusing on novels from 1789-1914, with some attention to other genres and adaptations, we ask what it means to be human, and how cultural anxieties and scientific/technological developments have affected literature (and vice versa). From doubling to degeneration, madness to the metropolis, villain to vampire, empire to the threat of extinction, we examine the work of writers such as Mary Shelley, Dickens, Poe, Charlotte and Emily Brontë, Wilkie Collins, George Eliot, Bram Stoker and H.G. Wells.
- American Innovation (EL3009) - 30 Credit Points
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This level-three course offers an introduction to American literature and culture between 1850 and 1950, a century in which the United States was transformed from a rural economy to an industrialised super-power. You will learn about the key writers of this period, the issues that sparked their imaginations, and the literary strategies which they adopted, or at times invented, to express their response to the changing world around them. This course is delivered through a combination of lectures and seminars.
- Romanticism (EL35XR) - 30 Credit Points
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The Romantic movement swept Europe in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and produced some of the most innovative and exciting literature that has ever been seen. This rule breaking art helped shape the way that we consider art today and underpins many of our ideas about imagination, originality, creativity and self-expression. This course will explore the ways in which the Romantic movement manifested itself across Britain and Ireland and will consider writers such as Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Scott, Austen and Byron.
- States of Mind: Contemporary Irish and Scottish Writing (EL30IH) - 30 Credit Points
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This course explores a range of contemporary Scottish and Irish texts and looks at the key developments in the literatures of the two nations; indeed, new modes of urban writing, working-class writing and women's writing have altered the landscapes of Scottish and Irish literature. The course looks at 'states of mind' in a dual sense: imaginative projections of the 'nation' and psychological explorations of the mind.
- Anglo - American Children’s Literature (EL30JS) - 30 Credit Points
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From the picture book to the dark fairy tale, literature for children offers a wide range of literary (and visual) modes of engaging with questions of human becoming and beguiling. This course explores American and British children’s literature from the late nineteenth to the twenty-first century (with a focus on the twentieth century). We will look at a range of genres including poetry, the school story, the adventure story and fantasy, as well as examining the construction of children’s literature as a genre of its own, including issues of authorship and readership. We will engage in close reading, examining literary features of the texts, and consider historical and social context and questions of gender, race and sexuality. Authors studied include: Louise May Alcott, Mark Twain, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Sherman Alexie, Ursula K. Le Guin, E Nesbit, Frances Hodgson Burnett, R. L. Stevenson, C.S. Lewis, Susan Cooper, Neil Gaiman, Melvin Burgess, Jamila Gavin, Jackie Kay and others.
- Modernism: Make IT New (EL30FF) - 30 Credit Points
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The early twentieth century was a time of great literary experimentation as literary modernists rose to the challenge to make it new. We will explore modernism’s stylistic experimentation while also considering the social contexts and changes that shaped this literature. The course will examine a range of writers, genres, movements and locations which prompt us to consider what, when and where was modernism.
- Perversion of the Interior: Women's Fiction 1925 - 1975 (EL35KM) - 30 Credit Points
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Gothic, Romance, Autobiography: these are the central topics of mid-twentieth-century fiction by and for women, and yet have often been critically neglected. Looking at a range of women's fiction in this period, including popular and middlebrow titles as well as literary classics, this course looks at what women wrote, what women read, and who deemed these works important. This course especially focuses on the relation between physical space (the home, the village) and psychological space (including representations of mental illness) in order to discuss the space of women's writing.
- Art and Atrocity: Representations of Violence and Trauma (EL35UT) - 30 Credit Points
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How is the artist to respond when the virtual becomes the real and when words cannot carry the weight of trauma? How can an author avoid the accusations of voyeuristic prurience or crass opportunism when he or she attempts to re-present events of public violence? This multi-disciplinary course examines work from a wide range of modes, including fiction, poetry, film and graphic art, and looks at the difficulties of inscribing trauma and the ethics and praxis of remembrance. Key events covered include the Holocaust, the Sabra and Shatila massacre, 9-11, the Gulf War and the conflict in the Balkans.
- Writing Revolt: Literature and Politics in the Seventeenth Century (EL3008) - 30 Credit Points
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Literature has the power to reimagine society. The course will explore how poetry, drama and other literary forms across the century sought new literary approaches to meet the challenges of these times. We will examine different literary strategies adopted by authors to engage with their times, from those who drew upon classical precedent to others who brought new voices, and new publics, into the forum of literature. Texts on the course will vary each year, but will feature such authors as Ben Jonson, John Donne, Katharine Philips, John Milton, Lucy Hutchinson and Samuel Daniel.
- Creative Writing: Creativity and Craft (EL35YB) - 30 Credit Points
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This course offers students the opportunity, through lectures and interractive workshops, to develop their understanding of, and practical skills in, the writing of prose fiction, poetry and creative non-fiction. Taught by widely published, award-winning writers, it provides a thorough, practice-based understanding of creative process and of the technical challenges involved in developing an original idea into a completed literary artefact, presented to a professional standard. It also contributes to students' future career potential, whether as ‘creative’ or other kinds of professional writers/communicators.
- Classical Epic (EL35EH) - 30 Credit Points
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This course is your opportunity to study four of the most influential and gripping texts of world literature. We begin in the oral culture of ancient Greece, with the Iliad's stark meditation on war and death, and the Odyssey's consolatory reflections on divine justice, poetry and love. In imperial Rome, we see the genre transformed into a monument to political power in Virgil's Aeneid, then thrown into disarray by Ovid's irreverent anti-epic, the Metamorphoses. We end by considering some of the ways these texts have been exploited and adapted across the intervening centuries, in poetry and prose, art and film.
- Brittonic Language Ia (CE3074) - 30 Credit Points
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This course consists of an exposition of the grammar of mediaeval Welsh, accompanied by appropriate translation-exercise and grammatical interpretation of selected passages.
- Tales of Vengeance and Enchantment: the Heroic Age in Irish and Icelandic Saga Literature A (CE3088) - 30 Credit Points
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This course explores and compares the legendary saga-narratives written in medieval Ireland and Iceland which dramatize the great deeds and even greater misdeeds of Celtic and Scandinavian ‘heroes’. Characters studied range from the frenzied Ulster warrior Cu Chulainn to the tragic and troll-like Icelander Grettir the Strong and the mythic dragon-slayer Sigurdr the Volsung, made famous by Wagner but much wilder in the original. Stories studied will include cattle-raids, bloodfeuds, Otherworld quests and fights with zombies. By the end of the course, students will know how to go berserk in an informed and critically aware manner.
- Brittonic Language Iia (CE3574) - 30 Credit Points
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The course consists of continued study of the grammar of mediaeval Welsh, accompanied by reading, translation exercise and grammatical interpretation of selected passages of text.
- Celtic and Anglo - Saxon Kingship and the Exercise of Authority in the Earlier Middle Ages (CE3595) - 30 Credit Points
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Kingship and the Middle Ages seem to go together. In some cultures mediaeval kingship grew powerful, the public embodiment of a people and the creator of government and (therefore) state. But this was not so everywhere and at all times. The Germanic-speaking peoples, fearful of leaderly power, were very reluctant to embrace kingship. The Celtic-speaking peoples inherited a long-lived ideology of kingship but never embraced monarchy. We examine the development of kingship as social institution, taking the Celts as a whole and using the Anglo-Saxons as representative of a larger Germanic history.
- The Work of Angels (HA3594) - 30 Credit Points
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This course will examine the exquisite art of northern British Isles from seventh to ninth centuries. It will show how the introduction of Christianity both from Ireland and Rome, produced a creative cultural melting pot in which artistic designs from Ireland, Pictland and Northumbria fused into the Insular Style. Technology, literary sources, historical and liturgical evidence are all required to interpret this dramatic era of transition form paganism to Christianity. Highlights are the Book of Kells, Lindisfarne Gospels, Tara Brooch, the Pictish stones. Some fieldtrips. Will appeal to students of Archaeology, Celtic, History, English, as well as Art Historians.
- Year 4
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Year 4
Optional Courses
Option 1
- Dissertation in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies (CE4598)
- Select a further 45 credit points from level 4 courses in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies (listed below)
- Select a further 60 credit points from level 4 courses in English
Option 2
- English Dissertation (EL4502)
- Select a further 60 credit points from level 4 courses in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies (listed below)
- Select a further 30 credit points from level 4 courses in English
- Dissertation in Celtic & Anglo - Saxon Studies (CE4598) - 30 Credit Points
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The Dissertation in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies is for Senior Honours students registered in the Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies degree programme. It will consist of approximately 3 one-hour tutorials, to provide students with guidance on selecting a suitable academic topic and developing a methodology for tackling this topic.
- English Dissertation (EL4502) - 30 Credit Points
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Students will have the opportunity to write a dissertation on a topic of their choosing within English literature.
- Brittonic Language Ib (CE4074) - 30 Credit Points
-
This course consists of an exposition of the grammar of mediaeval Welsh, accompanied by appropriate translation exercises and grammatical interpretation of selected passages of text.
- Tales of Vengeance and Enchantment: the Heroic Age in Irish and Icelandic Saga Literature B (CE4088) - 30 Credit Points
-
This course explores and compares the legendary saga-narratives written in medieval Ireland and Iceland which dramatize the great deeds and even greater misdeeds of Celtic and Scandinavian ‘heroes’. Characters studied range from the frenzied Ulster warrior Cu Chulainn to the tragic and troll-like Icelander Grettir the Strong and the mythic dragon-slayer Sigurdr the Volsung, made famous by Wagner but much wilder in the original. Stories studied will include cattle-raids, bloodfeuds, Otherworld quests and fights with zombies. By the end of the course, students will know how to go berserk in an informed and critically aware manner.
- Brittonic Language Iib (CE4574) - 30 Credit Points
-
The course consists of continued study of the grammar of mediaeval Welsh, accompanied by reading, translation exercises and grammatical interpretation of selected passages of text.
- Celtic and Anglo - Saxon Kingship and the Exercise of Authority in the Earlier Middle Ages (CE4595) - 30 Credit Points
-
Kingship and the Middle Ages seem to go together. In some cultures mediaeval kingship grew powerful, the public embodiment of a people and the creator of government and (therefore) state. But this was not so everywhere and at all times. The Germanic-speaking peoples, fearful of leaderly power, were very reluctant to embrace kingship. The Celtic-speaking peoples inherited a long-lived ideology of kingship but never embraced monarchy. We examine the development of kingship as social institution, taking the Celts as a whole and using the Anglo-Saxons as representative of a larger Germanic history.
- The Work of Angels (HA4594) - 30 Credit Points
-
This course will examine the exquisite art of northern British Isles from seventh to ninth centuries. It will show how the introduction of Christianity both from Ireland and Rome, produced a creative cultural melting pot in which artistic designs from Ireland, Pictland and Northumbria fused into the Insular Style. Technology, literary sources, historical and liturgical evidence are all required to interpret this dramatic era of transition form paganism to Christianity. Highlights are the Book of Kells, Lindisfarne Gospels, Tara Brooch, the Pictish stones. Some fieldtrips. Will appeal to students of Archaeology, Celtic, History, English, as well as Art Historians.
Course Availability
We will endeavour to make all course options available; however, these may be subject to timetabling and other constraints. Please see our InfoHub pages for further information.
How You'll Study
Learning Methods
- Individual Projects
- Lectures
- Seminars
- Tutorials
Assessment Methods
Students are assessed by any combination of three assessment methods:
- Coursework such as essays and reports completed throughout the course.
- Practical assessments of the skills and competencies they learn on the course.
- Written examinations at the end of each course.
The exact mix of these methods differs between subject areas, years of study and individual courses.
Honours projects are typically assessed on the basis of a written dissertation.
Further Information
- View detailed learning and assessment information for this programme
-
How the programme is taught
The typical time spent in scheduled learning activities (lectures, tutorials, seminars, practicals), independent self-study or placement is shown for each year of the programme based on the most popular course choices selected by students.
How the programme is assessed
The typical percentage of assessment methods broken down by written examination, coursework or practical exams is shown for each year of the programme based on the most popular course choices selected by students.
Year 1
Learning Method
scheduled: 23%
independent: 77%
placement: 0%
Assessment
written: 49%
coursework: 44%
practical: 7%
Year 2
Learning Method
scheduled: 14%
independent: 86%
placement: 0%
Assessment
written: 49%
coursework: 42%
practical: 9%
Year 3
Learning Method
scheduled: 13%
independent: 87%
placement: 0%
Assessment
written: 50%
coursework: 47%
practical: 3%
Year 4
Learning Method
scheduled: 6%
independent: 94%
placement: 0%
Assessment
written: 30%
coursework: 70%
practical: 0%
Why Study Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies and English?
- Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies is one of the most unique university programmes offered in Scotland. You will develop your critical thinking and analysis skills through the programme's strong focus on small-group discussion.
- In the process of gaining an in-depth knowledge of the history, literature and languages of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon culture, you will develop many transferable skills that will enhance your employability.
- You will be taught by leading researchers, recognised for their valuable contributions to published books and articles on a variety of topics including Celtic, Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian literature and history.
- Many of our students are members of the Celtic Society, one of the oldest student societies in the University. You will have the opportunity to be a part of social and cultural events, including Welsh and Irish themed evenings.
- A large proportion of our Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies staff and postgraduate students are actively involved in research, so you will gain unique insights into the field.
- Throughout the programme, you will have the opportunity to study optional courses, enabling you to develop your knowledge and understanding of areas that particularly interest you.
- You will benefit from small class sizes and group discussion, meaning that you will have the opportunity to explore your thoughts and ideas with staff and students.
- Our programme covers all periods of English Literature, which includes Scottish, Irish and American writing, providing you with a holistic overview of the subject. You will also benefit from courses in creative writing with our prize-winning and published creative writing team.
- You will benefit from being taught by internationally recognised academics at the forefront of research in their field.
- At Aberdeen, our teaching is research-led, so you will have unique insights into the subject based on research carried out by staff and postgraduate students.
- The programme encompasses a range of teaching methods, from lectures and seminars to small-group tutorials and individual supervision.
- The critical thinking and analysis skills that you develop will enable you to work in a wide variety of careers.
- By Studying English at Aberdeen, you will become part of a unique group of students who have been taught English by world leading academics and researchers at one of the oldest universities in the UK.
Entry Requirements
You will find all the information you require about entry requirements on our dedicated 'Entry Requirements' page. You can also find out about the different types of degrees, changing your subject, offers and advanced entry.
Qualifications
The information below is provided as a guide only and does not guarantee entry to the University of Aberdeen.
Please note: entry requirements may differ for 2018 and 2019 entry.
Entry Requirements (2018):
SQA Highers - AABB
A Levels - BBB
S Grade/GCSE - Maths
IB - 32 points, including 5,5,5 at HL
ILC - 5H with 3 at H2 AND 2 at H3 OR AAABB, obtained in a single sitting. (B must be at B2 or above)
Entry Requirements (2019):
SQA Highers
Standard Offer: AABB - BBB
Applicants who have achieved between AABB - BBB are encouraged to apply and will be considered. Good performance in additional Highers / Advanced Highers may be required in order to receive an offer of admission.
Adjusted / Access Threshold: BB (or below)
Applicants who have achieved BB, and who meet one or more Widening Participation criteria, are encouraged to apply and will be considered. Good performance in additional Highers / Advanced Highers will be required in order to receive an offer of admission.
More information on our definition of Standard, Adjusted and Access Threshold entry qualifications.
A LEVELS
Standard offer: BBB
Adjusted / Access Threshold: BB (or below)
More information on our definition of Standard, Adjusted and Access Threshold entry qualifications.
International Baccalaureate
32 points, including 5, 5, 5 at HL.
Irish Leaving Certificate
5H with 3 at H2 AND 2 at H3 OR AAABB, obtained in a single sitting. (B must be at B2 or above)
Further detailed entry requirements for Arts and Social Sciences degrees.
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 - 54 with: Listening - 51; Reading - 51; Speaking - 51; Writing - 54
Cambridge English Advanced & Proficiency:
OVERALL - 169 with: Listening - 162; Reading - 162; Speaking - 162; Writing - 169
Read more about specific English Language requirements here.
Fees and Funding
You will be classified as one of the fee categories below.
Fee Waiver
For international students (all non-EU students) the tuition fee charged upon entry will apply to all years of study; however, most international students will be eligible for a fee waiver in their final year via the International Undergraduate Scholarship.
Most RUK students (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) on a four year honours degree will be eligible for a full-fees waiver in their final year. Scholarships and other sources of funding are also available.
| Fee category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Home / EU | £1,820 |
| All Students | |
| RUK | £9,250 |
| Students Admitted in 2018/19 Academic Year | |
| International Students | £14,600 |
| Students Admitted in 2018/19 Academic Year |
International non-EU Applicants
Further Information about tuition fees and the cost of living in Aberdeen
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 InfoHub Tuition Fees page.
Our Funding Database
View all funding options in our Funding Database.
Careers
Graduates gain essential skills, which include critical thinking, oral and written communication, task management and organised and disciplined working practices. These skills are among the Graduate Attributes which students are encouraged to develop during their time at the University and are crucial in a wide range of professional careers. Our graduates work in a wide variety of areas in the arts and elsewhere, including heritage management, teaching, research, librarianship, enterprise and broadcasting.
Career Opportunities
- Junior Lecturer
- Media Communications
- Museum Officer
- Researcher
Our Experts
Our courses in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies and English are taught by experts in their field. Your teachers will include, among others:
- Other Expert
- Dr Aideen O'Leary
Information About Staff Changes
You will be taught by a range of experts including professors, lecturers, teaching fellows and postgraduate tutors. Staff changes will occur from time to time; please see our InfoHub pages for further information.
Facilities
Centre for the Novel
The Centre for the Novel is a interdiciplinary research centre which aim is to promote discussion about the theory and practice of the novel across a range of languages, historical periods and critical approaches.
Find out moreCeltic Society
One of the oldest, most famous and liveliest student societies in the University. The Society organises social and cultural events, including Welsh and Irish themed evenings and traditional music sessions.
Unistats
Unistats draws together comparable information in areas students have identified as important in making decisions about what and where to study. You can compare these and other data for different degree programmes in which you are interested.
Get in Touch
Contact Details
- Address
-
Student Recruitment & Admissions Service
University of Aberdeen
University Office
Regent Walk
Aberdeen
AB24 3FX