University of Durham
Old Shire Hall, Durham DH1 3HP
See below for
The University
Special features of History at Durham
Applications
Degree courses and options
Contacts
The University
Durham is a collegiate university, sited in a historic city. Many of the departments (including history) are in old buildings in the city centre. Some colleges are also in the centre, close to the cathedral; most of the newer ones are in an attractive area to the south, well within walking distance. The university has also developed a separate campus at Stockton-on-Tees. Durham is less than three hours by train from London, and less than two hours from Edinburgh). Overall, student numbers are approaching 12,000. We take approximately 150 History students a year, including those taking joint degrees. The division between men and women is roughly half and half.
Why study at Durham?
- 96% of our students gain their degrees. This is 7% above the national average. 93% of our students gain first or second class degrees.
- We can accommodate students for two years out of three in Colleges.
- Durham graduates have an excellent employment record. Recent surveys show us doing consistently well in employment league tables.
- At Durham we promote a broad view of education. You will have the opportunity to join over 50 University sports clubs and over 100 University societies, as well as countless College-based groups.
The cathedral
History at Durham
The Department has a high reputation. We were judged ‘excellent’ when teaching quality was last assessed, and achieved a grade of 5 in the last research assessment exercise. At Durham we recognise no division between teaching and research, believing that students gain enormously from being taught by those who are steeped in the historical archives and are at the very forefront of their subject. Though it is not possible to cover all periods of history for all countries and all approaches, we believe in offering students as wide a choice as possible, and we pride ourselves on the range of our courses. You will find that different members of staff have expertise in medieval as well as modern history, in Britain as well as Europe, North America and Africa, and in cultural, ecclesiastical, economic, military, and social history as well as political. We believe in providing you with a diversity of teaching methods, which range from the formal lecture course typical of the first year to the more specialist subjects taught in the final year through weekly small group seminars.
Applications
Entry requirements guidelines (2000): We normally make offers to candidates of AAB at GCE A level.
UCAS application course codes.
Load the free UCAS CD-Rom.
Tel. 01242 223707. E-mail. app.req@ucas.ac.uk
UCAS address: Rosehill, New Barn Lane, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL52 3LZ
The Department’s web-site is: http://www.dur.ac.uk/History/
The details: History degree courses and options
Students following degrees at Durham University follow a course of study that involves six modules per annum, or their equivalent (eg 3 double modules). We are not semesterized; work on a module extends over a whole academic year.
Year 1. The modules available in History in the first or preliminary year have the broad purpose of introducing students to the great variety of ways in which the past can be studied. At one level they extend in chronology from 300 AD to the present, while, at another, they cover political, religious, cultural, social, economic, diplomatic imperial and intellectual history.
Year 2. We offer a very wide range of choice. You have to take at least one module in medieval, early modern, and late modern history, and also have to do at least one in European, and one in British history.
Year 3. You write a dissertation (either single or double module). You also take a double module special subject, chosen from a wide range of options. You will also take a module which is intended to provide you with the opportunity to reflect on the way in which a historical topic has been treated in the past, and how knowledge of it has developed. For the final module in this third year, you can choose from any of those offered in the second and third year syllabus.
The structure also provides you with the opportunity to take modules outside the History department. Thus you can include subjects offered by other departments in each year of study. This could be periods or forms of history not offered by the history department, such as Chinese History, Ancient History, the History of music or of medicine. You can also take modules in traditional disciplines such as a modern European language or non-school subjects such as Anthropology.
We also offer degrees of History with a language (French, German or Russian). In these degrees, you take some language modules taught by our School of Modern European Languages, and spend the third year of what is a four year course studying in the relevant country
The main degrees we offer are:
History (V100)
History with French (V1R1)
History with German (V1R2)
History with Russian (V1R8)
We also offer the following joint degrees:
Ancient, Medieval and Modern History (V101)
English and History (QV21
Politics and History (MV11)
Contacts
History applicants should contact Miss Tracy Swaddle, Admissions Secretary, University of Durham, Department of History, 43 North Bailey, Durham, DH1 3EX.
Telephone (0191) 374 2013.
Email: Admissions.History@durham.ac.uk
The Department’s web-site is: http://www.dur.ac.uk/History/