The BA History and American Studies brings together two of the most popular and exciting arts subjects. You have the opportunity to study American history from the eighteenth century to the present as well as studying aspects of British, European and global history. This degree allows you to study American politics and culture in ways that will complement and extend your understanding of both American and world history. As part of the degree, students may apply to study for a year abroad at a partner institution in the USA or Europe.

First Year

Students take six modules in their first year focusing on American and European History as well as modules on US Politics and the American West. The six core modules are American History 1776-1877; American History 1877 to Present; Europe Reshaped 1815-1914; Introduction to US Politics; The American West; and the Making of the Modern World.

Second Year

In Year 2 students look deeper at the history, politics and social life of the United States by taking three core modules on Ethnicity and Diversity in American Life; Twentieth-Century US Foreign Policy; and The American City. The other three modules in the second year are made up of options on British, European and world history.

Third Year (or Fourth Year for Year Abroad Students)

The final year focuses on a long double module dissertation supervised in either Historical Studies or American Studies. The other four modules in the final year are made up of a wide range of options, which may include: The Civil Rights Movement, 1945–1968; The American Presidency; Race and Slavery in the Americas; The US and the Vietnam War; British Society from Churchill to Major; The Nazis and Cinema. Students are also able to opt for year-long Special Subjects, including The Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt; Ideals of Womanhood in America; The Weimar Republic; The Holocaust: Genocide in Europe; The French Revolution; Women’s Suffrage Movement; The Russian Revolution.

Degree Structure

Year One

Year Two

Year Three (Year Abroad Students only)

Final Year