English Literature and History of Art

Studying the BA English Literature and History of Art undergraduate degree at the University of Birmingham, you will explore art and literature from a wide range of perspectives. Learn from world-class researchers and access literature and artworks in our outstanding research library and campus art gallery.

Discover visual and literary culture through a broad range of perspectives, such as social history, global art, philosophy, anthropology, feminism and religion. You will have access to original works through a dedicated fine art library and collection of resources in the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, our acclaimed public gallery on-campus. Here you will find works by artists such as Botticelli, Van Gogh, Monet, Magritte, Vigée LeBrun and Rodin. You will also have access to our Special Collections, which contains over 60,000 rare and early printed books, and over 2 million manuscripts and archive items.

Study trips play an important part in your degree. For History of Art this includes a week-long, University-funded trip to a major European centre of artistic importance, where you’ll examine works of art and architecture in situ. For English, this includes the possibility to partake in our study residential in Stratford-upon-Avon. Our Shakespeare Institute, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, is a world-leading centre for international Shakespeare scholarship.

Barber Institute refurbishment
The Barber Institute of Fine Arts is currently undergoing a two-phase £10 million improvement program which includes a temporary closure of the Lady Barber Gallery and select areas until June 2024 and, in Phase Two, a temporary closure of the Barber Institute's building from February 2025 until late autumn 2025, as we make essential repairs and upgrades to enhance your future experience.

Why study this course?

Develop your interest in two complementary areas - gain key transferable skills including textual and visual analysis. Our staff are here to encourage your passion for literary writing and artworks of all kinds, from Shakespearean drama to postcolonial fiction; Medieval illustrated manuscripts to contemporary global art. You will learn to analyse these from a range of perspectives including social history, feminist, queer and decolonial methodologies.

Go beyond the printed book - take advantage of the wide-ranging expertise within our academic community and explore the study of art, comics, film, marketing, music, social media, textual production, theatre, TV and video games.

Participate in RSC-led workshops - make use of our internationally renowned Shakespeare Institute, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, collaborate with the Royal Shakespeare Company, and take part in fun and interactive study trips, such as the Stratford Residential and writing workshops.

Explore a city brimming with culture - the city of Birmingham hosts many art venues and cultural festivals. You will find a thriving underground arts scene, edgy contemporary pieces in the Ikon Gallery, and stunning traditional works in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, which houses the largest collection of pre-Raphaelite artworks in the world.

Boost your employability - we offer funded internships exclusively for University of Birmingham students, and can help you find paid and volunteer work during your studies through our Careers Network. You will have the opportunity to take employability-focused modules, such as Inside the Gallery, which focuses on how to curate an exhibition, and a final year graduate-level work experience placement on the Professional Skills Module, to further develop your transferable skills, knowledge and confidence.

Top 5 for History of Art in the Complete University Guide 2025

26th in the world for English in the QS subject world rankings 2024

Top 5 for undergraduate History of Art in Guardian University Guide 2024

First-year modules cover a broad base of the subject and are designed to introduce you to ways of studying at university. By the final year the modules you take will become more specialised and reflect the research expertise of the academic staff. More detailed module information can be found on the ‘Course detail’ tab on the University of Birmingham’s coursefinder web pages.