Key Info

English

NFQ Level 8 major Award Honours Bachelor Degree

Entry route(s):

Duration
4 Years
Subject area
Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Course Director
School of English, Irish, and Communication
Email
EIC@ul.ie
Admissions:
Tel
+353 (0)61 233755

English can be taken as part of the UL Arts Degree as a joint honours combination. Review the subjects you can study with English by looking at the table on the BA Arts course page.

About you

Above all else, you love to read: novels, poetry, non-fiction, drama, magazines. You want to give yourself the time and opportunity to read great books and to learn more about English literature. You want to engage with narratives that help us to understand ourselves and the world we live in. You want to know more about culture in the broadest sense. You love film and music and you want to understand how these art forms relate to fiction, drama, and poetry. You are creative, love to write, and you want to express yourself as eloquently and effectively as possible. You are open to new ideas and to the power of words and images to inform, influence, and convince. 

Why study English at UL?

Our English programme enables you to develop critical thinking skills through an appreciation of the wide world of literature in English, and by analysing the social and historical contexts through which that literature emerged. You will learn about the art of writing and shaping narrative by exploring literary genres and history from the 700s on. You choose electives to suit your own interests, in Irish, British, American, and world literatures, and in gender and sexuality studies among other specialist topics. 

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What you will study

English at UL has four main components that run throughout the four years of the programme:

  • Literary analysis and theory, critical practice;
  • Historical schools/eras in literature (e.g. Early Modern Literature; Augustan and Romantic Literature; Victorian Texts and Contexts; Literary Modernism and Postmodernism; Old and Middle English Literature);
  • Specialist electives in Irish Literature (e.g. Gothic Literature in Ireland; Irish Literary Revolutions 1880-1930; Irish Literature 1930-1990; Study of a Major Irish Author; Contemporary Irish Literature);
  • Specialist electives in Creative Writing and in World Literatures (e.g. American Literature; Contemporary African Literature; Postcolonial/Postcolonial Literature in English; Contemporary Women’s Writing).

More information on the study of English can be found on the School of English, Irish, and Communication page

English Pathway Joint Honours

Modules are subject to change

Year 1 Semester 1   Semester 2
EH4141

English Literature 1: Novels and Short Fiction

EH4022

English Literature 2: Early Modern Poetry and Plays

Year 2 Semester 3   Semester 4
EH4003

Introduction to Literary Theory

  Cooperative Education Work Placement
  Students Select 1:    
EH4053

Augustan and Romantic Literature

   
EH4023

The New World: American Literature to 1890

   
EH4043

Irish Literary Revolutions 1880-1930

   
EH4121

Gothic Literature in Ireland

   
Year 3 Semester 5   Semester 6
  Erasmus/Exchange placement with a partner institution abroad EH4006

Victorian Texts and Contexts

      Students Select 1:
    EH4016

State of the Union: American Literature since 1890

    EH4026

Colonial/Postcolonial Literature in English

    EH4036

Irish Literature 1930-1990

Year 4 Semester 7   Semester 8
EH4007

Literary Modernism

  Students Select 2:
  Students select 1: EH4018 Contemporary Irish Literature
EH4028

Study of the Major Irish Author

EH4026 Colonial/Postcolonial Literature in English
EH4017 Contemporary African Literature in English EH4038 Study of a Major Author
EH4027 Contemporary Women's Writing EH4008 British Literature 1945-Present Day
EH4037 Introduction to Creative Writing EH4125 Feminist Theory and Literary Texts

 

How to apply

 

Where are you applying from? How to Apply
Ireland Irish students must apply to UL via the CAO
The UK  Students who have completed their A-Levels can apply to UL via the CAO. More information can be found on the Academic Registry website. 
The EU EU Students can apply to UL via the CAO. More information can be found on the Academic Registry website.
Non-EU country

If you are outside of the EU, you can apply for this subject through the Bachelor of Arts degree.

 

 

Fees and funding

Student course fees are broken into three components - Student contribution, Student Levy and Tuition Fees.

A number of illustrative examples of fees for this course based on the current fee levels have been set out in the tables below.

An explanation of the components, how to determine status and the criteria involved is provided below the examples as is a list of possible scholarships and funding available.

EU Students with Free fees status in receipt of a SUSI grant

HEA pays Tuition Fees €2,558
SUSI pays Student contribution €3,000
Student pays Student Levy €100
€5,658

EU Students with Free fees status not in receipt of a grant

HEA pays Tuition Fees €2,558
Student pays Student contribution €3,000
Student pays Student Levy €100
€5,658

Students with EU fee status not in receipt of a grant

Student pays Tuition Fees €2,558
Student pays Student contribution €3,000
Student pays Student Levy €100
€5,658

Non-EU Students

Student pays Tuition Fees €15,262
Student pays Student Levy €100
€15,362

Student course fees are comprised of the following components:

Student Contribution

Annual charge set by the government for all full-time third level students. All students are liable unless they have been approved for a grant by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI). Please refer to https://www.studentfinance.ie to determine your eligibility for a grant and for instructions on how to apply. The current student contribution is set at €3000.

Student Levy

All students are liable to pay the Student Levy of €100. Please note the Student Levy is not covered by the SUSI Grant.

Tuition Fees

These are based on Residency, Citizenship, Course requirements.

Review the three groups of criteria to determine your fee status as follows

  1. Residency
    • You must have been living in an EU/EEA member state or Switzerland for at least 3 of the 5 years before starting your course
  2. Citizenship
    • You must be a citizen of an EU/EEA member state or Switzerland or have official refugee status
  3. Course Requirements (all must be met)
    • You must be a first time full-time undergraduate (Exceptions are provided for students who hold a Level 6 or Level 7 qualification and are progressing to a Level 8 course in the same general area of study).
    • You must be undertaking a full-time undergraduate course of at least 2 year’s duration
    • You cannot be undertaking a repeat year of study at the same level unless evidence of exceptional circumstances eg serious illness is provided (in which case this condition may be waived)

Depending on how you meet these criteria your status will be one of the following -

  • Free Fee Status: You satisfy all three categories (1, 2 and 3) and therefore are eligible for the Higher Education Authority’s Free Fees scheme.
  • EU Fee Status: You satisfy both the citizenship and residency criteria but fail to satisfy the course requirements and are liable to EU fees.
  • Non EU Fee Status: You do not meet either the citizenship or residency criteria and are therefore liable to Non EU fees.

More information about fees can be found on the Finance website

These scholarships are available for all courses

Your future career

Careers open to you with a degree in English include;

  • Journalist
  • Editor
  • English Teacher (Professional Master of Education required)
  • Communications and public relations
  • Media production, media research
  • Publishing and Advertising
  • Research and teaching at third level
  • Development and research in voluntary organisations

Follow-on study

Graduate profiles

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Kieran Fitzpatrick

I chose to study here at UL as it seemed to have the widest range of positive attributes over some of the other third level institutions in the country: a beautiful campus, great sports facilities and a good standard of academic teaching.

I’ve had an interest in English and History from an early age and I wasn’t prepared to give up one for the other. The course is very reading intensive, which for me, is great; prospective students should bear this in mind.

In studying this course, I enjoy the fact that I’ve been given the opportunities to think critically about the world in which we live. It has allowed me to become a much more analytical person and, I believe, a more well-rounded member of society.

For me, UL has a very personable atmosphere about it. There’s a real sense of community here and I know that I’ve forged some friendships that will last long after we’ve all left the campus boundaries.

 For my Co-Op placement, I worked under the guidance of a member of the History Department as a Research Assistant. As part of my placement, I got the opportunity to travel all over the country and, as a result, decided to pursue a career in academia.


 

Chloe Dunne

I’ve always been a big reader, ever since I was little. I joined my local library when I was six, and I think that’s what set me down the path to studying English today. Now I’m a third year, specialising in History and English, and I absolutely love it. UL offers modules like Medieval Literature and Irish Gothic Lit, which really allow me to combine my two subjects; by studying the works of the past, I’m looking through a window to see people just like me, who read or heard the same, unchanging, words that I’m looking at now, centuries later.

I think that English in UL works really well in conjunction with History, Irish, or any of the other languages offered here. Don’t let the idea of core readings and recommended readings scare you away- the workload is usually quite manageable as long as you don’t leave everything to pile up until it’s deadline time. However, English here isn’t all about just reading literature either. UL also offers modules on literary theories and criticism (which are more interesting than they sound, I promise!) as well as creative writing and opportunities to focus solely on a major author, if that’s your cup of tea.

English in UL offers more than just academic opportunities. As part of my degree, I went on Erasmus to Germany, where I also studied English. The opportunity to improve my German (which sadly had been untouched since my Leaving Cert days) as well as live in a new country and with new people was an invaluable experience and helped me grow as a person in numerous ways. My co-op placement (think work experience!) was just as beneficial- I got to work with the Centre for Early Modern Studies here in UL and it really drove home for me just how interconnected the humanities are. CEMS wasn’t just made up of members of the Department of History- here Geography, Languages, Irish, and English academics can also be found. And that’s when it really clicked for me, just how much the arts can bleed into one another; and how English can be the perfect medium to connect them.

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Chloe Dunne