English Literature MA

Why choose this course

* Our flexible English literature masters will further your ability to analyse words and literary forms, deepening your knowledge of important literary periods, movements, authors and texts.

* In an increasingly AI-enabled world, you’ll cultivate enduring creative capacities such as authorial judgment, imaginative intention, and authentic creative voice, while developing the critical skills needed to use AI tools responsibly and effectively.

* The optionality woven into the programme means you can really tailor your studies to focus on the topics and texts that most interest you.

* You'll benefit from the expertise of our academics who are leaders in their fields. They’ll inspire you to extend your understanding of literary history, genre and theory, introducing you to a variety of up-to-date approaches to literary studies.

* You’ll also get a chance to work with our Poet-in-Residence, James Wilkes, as well as hearing from visiting writers and speakers at our annual Surrey Writers Festival and Surrey Poetry Festival.


* We’re preparing you for the future by integrating AI into every course, building digital skills, confidence and creativity that employers value in tomorrow’s workplace.

What you will study\
You’ll be joining a course that provides exciting opportunities to study a wide range of literary forms and theories at an advanced level. Offering the flexibility to engage with a combination of the traditional and the avant-garde, you can tailor your degree to your own areas of interest.

Options can range from gaming narratives, screenplays, experimental poetry, and queer ecology to modules focusing on more canonical authors and topics, from the medieval period to contemporary literature.

You can choose a general route through the programme or develop a more individualised study pathway that foregrounds your particular interests (for example, in Medieval writing, or in Nineteenth-Century or Modern/Contemporary literature and culture).

Many of our modules offer a choice of critical or creative assessment options; we also offer open writing modules and a final dissertation that give you the scope to home in on the authors, topics and texts that most excite you. This means you can use the MA to lay down a good foundation for PhD study, or just to explore a particular enthusiasm or fascination in depth.

Our MA is taught by academics who are at the cutting edge of their respective fields and who will motivate and support you to produce your best efforts. The English team are all writers and critics who publish world-leading books and articles and are committed to public engagement, contributing to national media via TV, radio, press and podcasts. Many work closely with national and international organisations, including museums and galleries and scholarly associations.