American Studies and English (with a study abroad year)
University of Sussex
UCAS Code: TQ73 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
University of Sussex
UCAS Code: TQ73 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
You should have a broad range of GCSEs 9-4 (A*-C), including good grades in relevant subjects.
Pass Diploma with at least 39 level 3 credits at Merit or above including 24 credits at Distinction. The Access to HE Diploma should be in the Humanities or Social sciences.
We take the EPQ into account when considering your application and it can be useful in the summer when your results are released if you have narrowly missed the conditions of your offer. We do not routinely include the EPQ in the conditions of your offer but we sometimes offer alternative conditions that include the EPQ. If you wish to discuss this further please contact Admissions at [email protected]
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
You should have a broad range of GCSEs 9-4 (A*-C), including good grades in relevant subjects.
Scottish Higher
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
**2nd in the UK for American Studies (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024)**
**3rd in the UK for American Studies (Complete University Guide 2025)**
**94% of our research overall in English Language and Literature was assessed to be world leading or internationally excellent (REF 2021)**
**About the course**
American Studies at Sussex takes an interdisciplinary approach to studying America. By examining the history, politics, literature and culture of a nation that has been pivotal in shaping the 20th and 21st centuries, you’ll better understand the world we live in today. In English, we offer a bold, forward-thinking curriculum that allows you to study a thousand years of literature in new and progressive ways. We offer you a distinctive approach to a radical breadth of literary texts.
You’ll learn from one of the largest groups of experts dedicated to American Studies in the UK. Our faculty’s broad research interests are also reflected in our module options. You can tailor your course according to the areas that interest you. You also have the opportunity to study for a year at a university in North America, building your confidence and expanding your horizons.
Our teaching has involved:
- working with unique archives such as the private letters of Virginia Woolf and Doris Lessing
- field trips to literary landmarks such as Woolf’s house and the Globe Theatre.
You’ll have the opportunity to experiment with your own writing, supported by our experts. They have many links with the creative industries as well as literary events in Brighton, including the poetry series Placeholder and the festival The Coast is Queer. We’ve also previously offered our students career-building experience through schemes – such as Sussex Writes – that bring the power of reading and creative writing to the public.
**About Sussex**
Our courses, research, culture and campus aim to stimulate, excite and challenge. From scientific discovery to global policy, from student welfare to career development, Sussex innovates and takes a lead. And today, in every part of society and across the world, you'll find someone from Sussex making an original and valuable contribution.
**Location**
Study on our beautiful, green campus on the edge of the South Downs National Park and just minutes from the vibrant seaside city of Brighton & Hove. We’re near to Gatwick airport and just over an hour from London.
Modules
See the modules you will study by year by going to the ‘visit our course page’ link at the bottom of the page.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
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.
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.
English studies (non-specific)
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
American studies
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?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
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.
English studies (non-specific)
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.
Top job areas of graduates
English is one of the most popular degree subjects and in 2015, more than 11,000 students graduated with English degrees - although this does represent a fall from recent years. As good communication is so important to modern business, you can find English graduates in all parts of the economy, although obviously, you can't expect to get a job in science or engineering (computing is a different matter - it's not common but good language skills can be useful in the computing industry). There's little difference in outcomes between English language and English literature degrees, so don't worry and choose the one that suits you best. More English grads took another postgraduate course when they finished their degree than grads from any other subject - this is an important option. Teacher training was a common choice of second degree, as was further study of English, and journalism courses. But many English graduates changed course and trained in law, marketing or other languages -or even subjects further afield such as computing, psychology and even nursing. This is a very flexible degree which gives you a lot of options
American and australasian studies
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.
Top job areas of graduates
Just 615 UK students graduated with American studies degrees in 2015, so it's one of the smaller subjects in terms of student numbers and has lost numbers in recent years. Most graduates stay in the UK once they graduate - quite unusual for graduates in languages and studies of overseas cultures - and about one in six go into further study, mostly to take Masters degrees in subjects like journalism, languages, teaching and law. Graduates tend to go into any general graduate jobs, in industries such as education, advertising, social care and media and publishing. There might not be many jobs that specifically require a degree in American studies, but the skills you learn are useful in many roles.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
English studies (non-specific)
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
£24k
£28k
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.
American and australasian studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£21k
£25k
£28k
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
Lower entry requirements
Nearby UniversitySame UniversityThis 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
