Victorian Studies

Drawing on Birkbeck's position as a world-leading centre in the field of nineteenth-century studies, our MA Victorian Studies offers you the chance to take a genuinely interdisciplinary approach to studying the literature, culture and history of Victorian Britain. You will encounter a compelling range of Victorian texts, contexts, themes and ideas on a degree course that does justice to the energy and variety of the Victorian period.

Two core modules introduce you to some of the most significant debates, ideas and events of the long nineteenth century, and offer you the chance to develop new critical approaches to Victorian studies. These are supplemented by a wide range of option modules, which allow you to pursue your own interests in the field of Victorian studies and beyond. You will be supported with one-to-one supervision for your culminating dissertation.

Students in their final year of study have the chance to take an internship module. Successful interns spend a term working with one of London's Victorian cultural institutions, gaining first-hand experience of working in the cultural sector and using their host institution's archives to develop a unique research project. Previous interns have worked with the Bethlem Museum of the Mind, the Salvation Army Heritage Centre and Archive, and the Guildhall Art Gallery, and have developed their projects into funded doctoral research topics. Read about one intern’s experience.

• Birkbeck was ranked 2nd in the UK for its English Language and Literature research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.
• Our lively Centre for Nineteenth-Century Studies organises a dynamic range of year-round events that showcase the research of Birkbeck's academics, researchers and students, including our annual Dickens Day and our Forum for Nineteenth-Century Studies. The Centre also established, and for many years hosted, the London Nineteenth-Century Studies Seminar.
• Read 19: Interdisciplinary Studies in the Long Nineteenth Century, our free-to-read, open-access online journal. Recent issues include 'Women Collectors: Tate, Legacy and Cultural Philanthropy c. 1850-1920' and ‘The Old Nineteenth Century: Ageing Against the Grain’.
• We offer a number of postgraduate bursaries and studentships.