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What can you do with an English literature degree?

Why study an English literature degree? Our essential guide to what you will learn on an English literature course, what you should study to get your place on a degree, and what jobs you can get once you graduate

What is English literature?

The study of English literature focuses mainly on analysis, debate and critical theorizing about a large number of published works, be they novels, poems, plays, or other literary works.

Given this number of genres, it is perhaps unsurprising that a degree in English literature can be incredibly wide-ranging; two students on the same degree course can choose to study very different things outside of their core modules.

As well as analysis, students can also expect to have to defend their ideas, since it’s not enough to simply note something about a text, this must be accompanied by explanation and argument.

What do you learn from an English literature degree?

Unsurprisingly, most English literature degrees, particularly in the UK, will start off with a focus on the literature of England.

More specifically, courses will often go through historical examples of landmark literature such as the works of Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare, then perhaps introducing other lesser-known examples.

You may also be introduced to some foreign texts, although these will mainly be classics.

As the course continues you will be given more freedom to explore authors and genres that hold more interest for you. 

In this way, an English literature degree can provide a great opportunity to test and refine your skills in a way that would be hard to do anywhere else, in addition to the opportunities presented by extra-curricular activities; most universities will have student publications you can get involved with.

What should I study at high school if I want to study English literature?

As with all degrees, different institutions will have different entry requirements and there is no set pre-requisite for studying English literature.

However, there are a few subjects that would be useful to study at high school such as history, philosophy, which can be a great help when studying historical texts and placing them into a context.

In addition to academic qualifications, experience with literature-related activities outside the classroom can be of huge benefit, both in terms of your application and in furthering your enjoyment of the course.

Creative activities such as writing for a publication at school, staying well-read across different types of literature, or even writing your own blog can all prove useful before and during your degree.