The Uni Guide has a fresh new look

University of Chester

UCAS Code: VV14 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Entry requirements

A level

B,C,C-B,B,C

The Department requires one of the following subjects: A level History or a suitable alternative such as Classical Civilisation, English, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Government and Politics, Sociology or Law

Access to HE Diploma, to include 45 credits at level 3, 30 of which must be at Merit (including 15 in History)

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

28

including 5 in HL History or an alternative such as English, Philosophy or Social and Cultural Anthropology

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H3,H3,H3,H3,H4

including H3 in History or an alternative such as English, Politics & Society or Religious Education

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DMM

The Department also requires one of the following GCE A Level subjects: History or a suitable alternative such as Classical Civilisation, English, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Government and Politics, Sociology or Law

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,B

including History, or an alternative such as English or Religious Studies

UCAS Tariff

112

About this course

Course option

3years

Full-time | 2025

Subjects

History

Archaeology

Archaeology and History is the perfect course combination if you find yourself fascinated by the human past and all its intrinsic diversity. On this degree course you will study the richness of our past and of our heritage, from the hunter-gatherers of Ice Age Europe right through to the inhabitants of early modern cities. The study of Archaeology and History is important because it helps us understand how past events and societies have shaped the world that we live in today. By learning about the struggles, innovations, and cultures of people from different times, you will gain a deeper perspective on current issues such as politics, identity, and justice, whilst uncovering physical traces of the past that will connect you to human stories that might otherwise be forgotten.

Studying Archaeology and History at Chester offers you a unique combination of hands-on experience and academic depth, delivered within a close-knit and highly supportive learning community. Whether you're analysing human remains and environmental samples in our on-site lab, recording artefacts in the Anna Sutton Annex, rooting through Cheshire archives, immersing yourself in state-of-the-art digital technology, handling objects at the Grosvenor Museum or getting your hands dirty during a dig, you will constantly find yourself bringing your studies to life.

From day one, you will discover what life was like for past societies and learn the techniques and approaches that we use to study them. You will study over a thousand years of local, national and international history, covering themes such as race, ethnicity, leisure, the landscape, war, conflict and social change. By challenging existing narratives about the past, you will think critically about how and why things have developed, and you will build exceptional employability skills. Through exploring the past, you will open the gateway to your future.

Modules

For the latest example of curriculum availability on this degree programme please refer to the University of Chester's Website.

Assessment methods

We see assessment as serving a dual role, acting both to assess the students learning and to help them develop their capacity to think creatively and critically, and develop qualitative and quantitative skills. For this reason, we use a wide range of assessment methods, including essays, review articles, technical reports, podcasts, audio-visual presentations, and museum displays. Many of our assessment methods replicate the sorts of tasks that a student would encounter in a professional environment, helping to prepare the student for graduate level employment.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,535
per year
England
£9,535
per year
EU
£9,535
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,535
per year
Scotland
£9,535
per year
Wales
£9,535
per year

The Uni

Course location:

Chester

Department:

History and Archaeology

Read full university profile

What students say

We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

84%
History

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

History

Teaching and learning

84%
Staff make the subject interesting
93%
Staff are good at explaining things
68%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
75%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

75%
Library resources
82%
IT resources
81%
Course specific equipment and facilities
78%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

96%
UK students
4%
International students
46%
Male students
54%
Female students
80%
2:1 or above
7%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

Archaeology

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.


Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

90%
UK students
10%
International students
46%
Male students
54%
Female students
83%
2:1 or above
10%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
C

After graduation

The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

History

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£17,000
med
Average annual salary
91%
low
Employed or in further education
25%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

21%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
15%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
8%
Teaching and educational professionals

History is a very popular subject (although numbers have fallen of late) — in 2015, over 10,000 UK students graduated in a history-related course. Obviously, there aren't 11,000 jobs as historians available every year, but history is a good, flexible degree that allows graduates to go into a wide range of different jobs, and consequently history graduates have an unemployment rate comparable to the national graduate average. Many — probably most — jobs for graduates don't ask for a particular degree to go into them and history graduates are well set to take advantage. That's why so many go into jobs in the finance industry, human resources, marketing, PR and events management, as well as the more obvious roles in education, welfare and the arts. Around one in five history graduates went into further study last year. History and teaching were the most popular further study subjects for history graduates, but law, journalism, and politics were also popular postgraduate courses.

Archaeology

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£17,500
med
Average annual salary
83%
low
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

33%
Natural and social science professionals
31%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
6%
Other elementary services occupations

Want to do a job in the arts - with lots of the great outdoors? Try archaeology! There don't tend to be many archaeology undergraduates out there (just under 700 graduated in 2015) - but it's quite a popular subject at postgraduate level. In fact, over a quarter of archaeology graduates take some kind of further study when they graduate - usually more study of archaeology. When you look at the stats, be aware that junior jobs in archaeology are not always well paid at the start of your career, and that temporary contracts are not uncommon. Thankfully, though, unpaid work, whilst not completely gone, is less common than it used to be. The archaeology graduates of 2015 found jobs in archaeology, of course, but also management and heritage and environment work, as well as more conventional graduate jobs in marketing and the finance industry.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

History

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£17k

£17k

£20k

£20k

£21k

£21k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Archaeology

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£17k

£17k

£20k

£20k

£21k

£21k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
place
Bangor University | Bangor (Wales)
Heritage, Archaeology and History
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2025
UCAS Points: 104-128
Lower entry requirements
place
Bangor University | Bangor (Wales)
History and Archaeology
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2025
UCAS Points: 104-128
Same University
place
University of Chester | Chester
History
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2025
UCAS Points: 112

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here