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Archaeological Practice

Entry requirements


We welcome applications from students who are completing an Access to Higher Education Diploma. We normally look for applicants to have studied a course that is in a similar subject and offers are usually made in line with our published tariff point range.

GCSE/National 4/National 5

GCSE in English Language at grade 4 or C, or higher.

T Level

P

UCAS Tariff

96-112

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Archaeology

- Use our fully equipped laboratories and the latest industry-standard surveying equipment.

- Take part in fieldwork projects in the UK and overseas.

- Places emphasis on skills acquisition but within an academically rigorous environment.

- We are one of only three archaeology departments - to be a Registered Archaeological Organisation with the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists - a hallmark of the quality of our archaeological work.

-Accredited by The Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIfA) and University Archaeology UK (UAUK).

Archaeology unearths the stories of our past. It is the archaeologist’s job to discover and excavate sites and interpret the material recovered from them. Our Archaeological Practice course is the original vocational archaeology degree, and is specifically designed to give you the practical and technical skills necessary for a successful career in archaeology to that end.

The degree focuses on the current practice of archaeology, including the methods used for prospecting new sites, excavation techniques, analysis of finds and preparation of reports and publications.

Our three-year programme places emphasis on skills acquisition - partly during fieldwork undertaken both during term time and in the summer vacation - but also includes the academic study of different periods and cultures, from the earliest humans to the start of the twentieth century. Year 1 provides an introduction to different sub-disciplines of archaeology, including fieldwork, resources, material culture and archaeological science.

To make sure you leave no stone unturned during fieldwork in the UK and abroad, you will use state of the art field equipment - including ground penetrating radar, magnetometers, magnetic susceptibility meters, differential GPS instruments and total stations. In addition, you will learn how to use industry standard computer software such as ArcGIS, Geoplot and AutoCAD. In addition our department has a geoarchaeological consultancy (ARCA), whose staff will also teach you. The consultancy offers valuable laboratory work experience and an opportunity to combine your academic expertise with reporting for a professional audience.

In Year 2, you will study geographic information systems, sophisticated methods of measured survey and a variety of appraoches to remote sensing. There are also a wealth of optional modules that explore the whole human story from Early and Late Prehistoric Europe, through Ancient Greece to Medieval, post-Medieval and Modern Eurasia.

In Year 3, you write a dissertation, take classes in heritage law and protocols, undertake more fieldwork and conduct in-depth studies into such specialist subjects as the Archaeology of Buddhism, the Archaeology of the Southern Caucasus, The Celts and Intangible Heritage. There is an option to do a short industry placement many of which have led to employment with the archaeological company providing the placement, instead of the dissertation.

Students may also pursue the four-year BSc Archaeological Practice with Professional Placement pathway which includes an industry placement year, providing an invaluable portfolio of experience.

You are taught by experts in the field. Our department is one of only three to be a registered Archaeological Organisation with the Chartered Insitute for Archaeologists, a quality assurance scheme for professional practice.

Graduates work in professional archaeology, for example with a commercial archaeological organisation undertaking developer funded excavation, survey and research work.

Modules

For detailed information on modules you will be studying please click on the 'View course details' link at the top of this summary box.

Tuition fees

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

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£16,700
per year
International
£16,700
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University of Winchester

Department:

Department of Archaeology, Anthropology and Geography

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.

86%
Archaeology

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.

Archaeology

Teaching and learning

79%
Staff make the subject interesting
92%
Staff are good at explaining things
88%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
82%
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

64%
Library resources
92%
IT resources
86%
Course specific equipment and facilities
81%
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?

93%
UK students
7%
International students
54%
Male students
46%
Female students
62%
2:1 or above
12%
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.

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.

£19,000
med
Average annual salary
91%
med
Employed or in further education
32%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

23%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
14%
Natural and social science professionals
12%
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.

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.

£18k

£18k

£21k

£21k

£23k

£23k

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
University of Winchester | Winchester
Archaeology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 104-120
Nearby University
Bournemouth University | Poole
Archaeology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 104-120

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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