The History of the Book

Entry requirements

The normal minimum entrance requirement would be a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree from a university in the UK, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

We will consider applications from candidates who do not meet the formal academic requirements but who offer alternative qualifications and/or relevant experience.

Months of entry

October

Course content

The History of the Book studies the making, manufacturing, distribution and reading of books, and thus offers a unique way of understanding different literary, cultural, social, intellectual and technological processes in history. The subject extends to include newspapers, magazines, chapbooks, ephemera, digital text and all kinds of printed or written media. It also includes the manuscript book in all its forms from the pre-classical, classical and medieval periods.

The MA degree in the History of the Book is the oldest postgraduate programme in this growing area in the humanities. You'll study six taught modules and complete a dissertation of 15,000 words.

If you're interested in undertaking a larger independent research project, you can consider the MRes, which leads to an equivalent master’s qualification. You'll study three taught modules and complete a 30,000-word dissertation.