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CHOOSE A SUBJECT
2023/24
2024/25
Undergraduates
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Undergraduates
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Subjects A-B

  • Accounting
  • Agriculture
  • Ancient History
  • Animal Science
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Architectural Engineering
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Biological Sciences
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Biomedical Sciences
  • Bioveterinary Sciences
  • Building and Surveying
  • Business and Management

Subjects C-E

  • Chemistry
  • Classics and Classical Studies
  • Climate Science
  • Computer Science
  • Construction Management
  • Consumer Behaviour and Marketing
  • Creative Writing
  • Criminology
  • Drama
  • Ecology
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Engineering
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  • English Literature
  • Environment

Subjects F-G

  • Film & Television
  • Finance
  • Food
  • Foundation programmes
  • French
  • Geography
  • German
  • Graphic Communication and Design

Subjects H-M

  • Healthcare
  • History
  • International Development
  • International Foundation Programme (IFP)
  • International Relations
  • Italian
  • Languages and Cultures
  • Law
  • Linguistics
  • Marketing
  • Mathematics
  • Medical Sciences
  • Meteorology and Climate
  • Museum Studies

Subjects N-T

  • Nutrition
  • Pharmacology
  • Pharmacy
  • Philosophy
  • Physician Associate Studies
  • Politics and International Relations
  • Psychology
  • Real Estate and Planning
  • Spanish
  • Speech and Language Therapy
  • Surveying and Construction
  • Teaching
  • Theatre & Performance

Subjects U-Z

  • Wildlife Conservation
  • Zoology

Subjects A-C

  • Accounting
  • Agriculture
  • Ancient History
  • Animal Sciences
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Biological Sciences
  • Biomedical Sciences
  • Business (Post-Experience)
  • Business and Management (Pre-Experience)
  • Chemistry
  • Classics and Ancient History
  • Climate Science
  • Computer Science
  • Construction Management and Engineering
  • Consumer Behaviour
  • Creative Enterprise
  • Creative Writing

Subjects D-G

  • Data Science
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Energy and Environmental Engineering
  • Engineering
  • English Language and Applied Linguistics
  • English Literature
  • Environmental Sciences
  • Film, Theatre and Television
  • Finance
  • Food and Nutritional Sciences
  • Geography and Environmental Science
  • Graphic Design

Subjects H-P

  • Healthcare
  • History
  • Information Management and Digital Business
  • Information Technology
  • International Development and Applied Economics
  • Languages and Cultures
  • Law
  • Linguistics
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Meteorology and Climate
  • Microbiology
  • Nutrition
  • Pharmacy
  • Philosophy
  • Physician Associate
  • Politics and International Relations
  • Project Management
  • Psychology
  • Public Policy

Subjects Q-Z

  • Real Estate and Planning
  • Social Policy
  • Speech and Language Therapy
  • Strategic Studies
  • Teacher training
  • Theatre
  • Typography and Graphic Communication
  • War and Peace Studies
  • Zoology

Subjects A-B

  • Accounting
  • Agriculture
  • Ancient History
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Architectural Engineering
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Biological Sciences
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Biomedical Sciences
  • Bioveterinary Sciences
  • Building and Surveying
  • Business and Management

Subjects C-E

  • Chemistry
  • Classics and Classical Studies
  • Climate Science
  • Computer Science
  • Construction Management
  • Consumer Behaviour and Marketing
  • Creative Writing
  • Criminology
  • Drama
  • Ecology
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Engineering
  • English Language and Applied Linguistics
  • English Literature
  • Environment

Subjects F-G

  • Film & Television
  • Finance
  • Food
  • Foundation programmes
  • French
  • Geography
  • German
  • Graphic Communication and Design

Subjects H-M

  • Healthcare
  • History
  • International Development
  • International Foundation Programme (IFP)
  • International Relations
  • Italian
  • Languages and Cultures
  • Law
  • Linguistics
  • Marketing
  • Mathematics
  • Medical Sciences
  • Meteorology and Climate
  • Museum Studies

Subjects N-T

  • Nutrition
  • Pharmacology
  • Pharmacy
  • Philosophy
  • Physician Associate Studies
  • Politics and International Relations
  • Psychology
  • Real Estate and Planning
  • Spanish
  • Speech and Language Therapy
  • Surveying and Construction
  • Teaching
  • Theatre & Performance

Subjects U-Z

  • Wildlife Conservation
  • Zoology

Subjects A-C

  • Accounting
  • Agriculture
  • Ancient History
  • Animal Sciences
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Biological Sciences
  • Biomedical Sciences
  • Business (Post-Experience)
  • Business and Management (Pre-Experience)
  • Chemistry
  • Classics and Ancient History
  • Climate Science
  • Computer Science
  • Construction Management and Engineering
  • Consumer Behaviour
  • Creative Enterprise
  • Creative Writing

Subjects D-G

  • Data Science
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Energy and Environmental Engineering
  • Engineering
  • English Language and Applied Linguistics
  • English Literature
  • Environmental Sciences
  • Film, Theatre and Television
  • Finance
  • Food and Nutritional Sciences
  • Geography and Environmental Science
  • Graphic Design

Subjects H-P

  • Healthcare
  • History
  • Information Management and Digital Business
  • Information Technology
  • International Development and Applied Economics
  • Languages and Cultures
  • Law
  • Linguistics
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Meteorology and Climate
  • Microbiology
  • Nutrition
  • Pharmacy
  • Philosophy
  • Physician Associate
  • Politics and International Relations
  • Project Management
  • Psychology
  • Public Policy

Subjects Q-Z

  • Real Estate and Planning
  • Social Policy
  • Speech and Language Therapy
  • Strategic Studies
  • Teacher training
  • Theatre
  • Typography and Graphic Communication
  • War and Peace Studies
  • Zoology

BA Ancient History and Archaeology with Professional Placement

  • UCAS code
    VV42
  • Typical offer
    BBB
  • Year of entry
    2024/25 See 2023/24 entry
  • Course duration
    Full Time:  4 Years
  • Year of entry
    2024/25 See 2023/24 entry
  • Course duration
    Full Time:  4 Years

Discover the ancient Greco-Roman world, spend a year in another country, and take the opportunity to join an archaeological dig and study abroad, with our BA Ancient History and Archaeology with Professional Placement degree.

At the University of Reading, our BA Ancient History and Archaeology with Professional Placement joint degree combines the study of ancient history – and its political, military, social and cultural contexts – with invaluable archaeological training.

Through your study of ancient history, you’ll immerse yourself in the rich culture of Greece and Rome from around 2000BC to 600AD and discover how these ancient civilisations have influenced the modern world. Your archaeological studies will take you further back in time, broaden the geographical focus, and enable you to experience the excitement of genuine discovery.

Placements

A key feature of this four-year programme is the opportunity to undertake a professional placement between your second and third year of study and gain valuable experience and insight into the workplace. Placements are an excellent way to enhance your work-related skills and develop a network of contacts, as well as strengthen your employability prospects.

We provide opportunities for you to undertake placements in a variety of contexts across the archaeological, heritage, planning and museum sectors, including:

  • research institutions
  • government organisations
  • local planning authorities
  • archaeological consultancies
  • field units
  • specialists
  • archivists.

The University's museums, including the Department's own Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology, also provide a number of voluntary work placements, ranging from helping with school visits to preparing displays and exhibitions. Alternatively you can choose a placement in a non-related business or industry, exploring different career options and enhancing your employability by drawing on the many non-vocational, transferable skills you obtain from an Ancient History and Archaeology degree.

Our Department has a dedicated member of staff in charge of placements, who can provide you with advice and support.

Your learning environment

You will benefit from the joint expertise provided by both our Department of Classics and Department of Archaeology.

In the Department of Classics, our academics are at the forefront of their disciplines. Their research feeds directly into your studies, exposing you to the latest developments in the field. We achieved a 91% satisfaction score for the teaching on our courses (National Student Survey, 2022). In the same survey we achieved a 92% satisfaction score for BA Ancient History. 

The Department of Archaeology has an outstanding track record for student satisfaction, with scores consistently between 90-100% for overall student satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2010-2022, with Archaeology achieving the highest score for overall student satisfaction in the UK in 2022. Core modules will provide you with a solid historical and archaeological grounding, and optional modules will allow you to explore the different periods, cultures and countries that interest you. Popular modules taken by students on this degree include: History and Culture of New Kingdom Egypt and Rome's Mediterranean Empire.

  • Read about our Head of Department of Archaeology Professor Hella Eckardt’s research.

Enhance your knowledge through varied learning opportunities

Through your studies, you will address important questions relevant to our global future – human diets and health, environmental change, and inequality, migration and identity – and trace them back to their roots, exploring different periods of ancient history through both literary and material sources.

You can also enhance your knowledge and understanding of the ancient world through varied learning opportunities, such as:

  • optional Latin and Greek language modules
  • hands-on experience with artefacts from the University’s Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology, which features one of the largest collections of Greek and Egyptian antiquities in Britain
  • archaeological excavations in the UK and Europe, including prehistoric monuments, Roman cities and medieval castles.

Read about Marcie Weeks’s experience as an alumnus of our BA Archaeology and History degree.

Archaeology field school

During your studies, you will have the opportunity to participate in our Archaeology field school. The field school enables you to gain direct, hands-on experience in all aspects of an archaeological excavation, including:

  • excavation
  • surveying
  • GIS (Geographical Information Systems) mapping
  • planning
  • finds processing.

You will be able to put your skills into practice and contribute to new archaeological knowledge through our discoveries. Many recent students have opted to conduct their field school placement at the Roman town of Silchester, helping to uncover the details of this unusually well-preserved site.

Explore a new location with Study Abroad

If you’re interested in studying abroad – and getting to experience a new academic and cultural environment – you can apply to spend a term at one of our partner universities in your second year. The Department enjoys active links with approved partner universities in Europe, Canada and the US, including:

  • Aarhus University, Denmark
  • University of Florida
  • University of Malta
  • University of Sydney.

All classes are conducted in English and bursaries are available to help with travel and accommodation costs.

BA Ancient History and Archaeology students sometimes choose to apply to visit Malta and study Phoenician and Punic archaeology. The Department of Classics also has strong links to the British School in Athens and the British School in Rome.

Overview

Discover the ancient Greco-Roman world, spend a year in another country, and take the opportunity to join an archaeological dig and study abroad, with our BA Ancient History and Archaeology with Professional Placement degree.

At the University of Reading, our BA Ancient History and Archaeology with Professional Placement joint degree combines the study of ancient history – and its political, military, social and cultural contexts – with invaluable archaeological training.

Through your study of ancient history, you’ll immerse yourself in the rich culture of Greece and Rome from around 2000BC to 600AD and discover how these ancient civilisations have influenced the modern world. Your archaeological studies will take you further back in time, broaden the geographical focus, and enable you to experience the excitement of genuine discovery.

Placements

A key feature of this four-year programme is the opportunity to undertake a professional placement between your second and third year of study and gain valuable experience and insight into the workplace. Placements are an excellent way to enhance your work-related skills and develop a network of contacts, as well as strengthen your employability prospects.

We provide opportunities for you to undertake placements in a variety of contexts across the archaeological, heritage, planning and museum sectors, including:

  • research institutions
  • government organisations
  • local planning authorities
  • archaeological consultancies
  • field units
  • specialists
  • archivists.

The University's museums, including the Department's own Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology, also provide a number of voluntary work placements, ranging from helping with school visits to preparing displays and exhibitions. Alternatively you can choose a placement in a non-related business or industry, exploring different career options and enhancing your employability by drawing on the many non-vocational, transferable skills you obtain from an Ancient History and Archaeology degree.

Our Department has a dedicated member of staff in charge of placements, who can provide you with advice and support.

Learning

Your learning environment

You will benefit from the joint expertise provided by both our Department of Classics and Department of Archaeology.

In the Department of Classics, our academics are at the forefront of their disciplines. Their research feeds directly into your studies, exposing you to the latest developments in the field. We achieved a 91% satisfaction score for the teaching on our courses (National Student Survey, 2022). In the same survey we achieved a 92% satisfaction score for BA Ancient History. 

The Department of Archaeology has an outstanding track record for student satisfaction, with scores consistently between 90-100% for overall student satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2010-2022, with Archaeology achieving the highest score for overall student satisfaction in the UK in 2022. Core modules will provide you with a solid historical and archaeological grounding, and optional modules will allow you to explore the different periods, cultures and countries that interest you. Popular modules taken by students on this degree include: History and Culture of New Kingdom Egypt and Rome's Mediterranean Empire.

  • Read about our Head of Department of Archaeology Professor Hella Eckardt’s research.

Enhance your knowledge through varied learning opportunities

Through your studies, you will address important questions relevant to our global future – human diets and health, environmental change, and inequality, migration and identity – and trace them back to their roots, exploring different periods of ancient history through both literary and material sources.

You can also enhance your knowledge and understanding of the ancient world through varied learning opportunities, such as:

  • optional Latin and Greek language modules
  • hands-on experience with artefacts from the University’s Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology, which features one of the largest collections of Greek and Egyptian antiquities in Britain
  • archaeological excavations in the UK and Europe, including prehistoric monuments, Roman cities and medieval castles.

Read about Marcie Weeks’s experience as an alumnus of our BA Archaeology and History degree.

Archaeology field school

During your studies, you will have the opportunity to participate in our Archaeology field school. The field school enables you to gain direct, hands-on experience in all aspects of an archaeological excavation, including:

  • excavation
  • surveying
  • GIS (Geographical Information Systems) mapping
  • planning
  • finds processing.

You will be able to put your skills into practice and contribute to new archaeological knowledge through our discoveries. Many recent students have opted to conduct their field school placement at the Roman town of Silchester, helping to uncover the details of this unusually well-preserved site.

Explore a new location with Study Abroad

If you’re interested in studying abroad – and getting to experience a new academic and cultural environment – you can apply to spend a term at one of our partner universities in your second year. The Department enjoys active links with approved partner universities in Europe, Canada and the US, including:

  • Aarhus University, Denmark
  • University of Florida
  • University of Malta
  • University of Sydney.

All classes are conducted in English and bursaries are available to help with travel and accommodation costs.

BA Ancient History and Archaeology students sometimes choose to apply to visit Malta and study Phoenician and Punic archaeology. The Department of Classics also has strong links to the British School in Athens and the British School in Rome.

Entry requirements A Level BBB

Select Reading as your firm choice on UCAS and we'll guarantee you a place even if you don't quite meet your offer. For details, see our firm choice scheme.

Typical offer

BBB

International Baccalaureate

30 points overall

Extended Project Qualification

In recognition of the excellent preparation that the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) provides to students for University study, we can now include achievement in the EPQ as part of a formal offer.

BTEC Extended Diploma

DDM

English language requirements

IELTS 6.5, with no component below 5.5

For information on other English language qualifications, please visit our international student pages.

Alternative entry requirements for International and EU students

For country specific entry requirements look at entry requirements by country.

International Foundation Programme

If you are an international or EU student and do not meet the requirements for direct entry to your chosen degree you can join the University of Reading’s International Foundation Programme. Successful completion of this 1 year programme guarantees you a place on your chosen undergraduate degree. English language requirements start as low as IELTS 4.5 depending on progression degree and start date.

  • Learn more about our International Foundation programme

Pre-sessional English language programme

If you need to improve your English language score you can take a pre-sessional English course prior to entry onto your degree.

  • Find out the English language requirements for our courses and our pre-sessional English programme

Structure

  • Modules

We will be updating this page with module information over the coming weeks. You can also register your details with us to receive information about your course of interest and study and life at the University of Reading.

Fees

New UK/Republic of Ireland students: £9,250

New international students: £22,350

UK/Republic of Ireland fee changes

UK/Republic of Ireland undergraduate tuition fees are regulated by the UK government. These fees are subject to parliamentary approval and any decision on raising the tuition fees cap for new UK students would require the formal approval of both Houses of Parliament before it becomes law.

EU student fees

With effect from 1 August 2021, new EU students will pay international tuition fees. For exceptions, please read the UK government’s guidance for EU students.

Placement year fees

If you spend a full year on placement, you will only pay 15% of your usual tuition fee for that year. For more information, please see our fees and funding pages or contact placements@reading.ac.uk.

Additional costs

Some courses will require additional payments for field trips and extra resources. You will also need to budget for your accommodation and living costs. See our information on living costs for more details.

Financial support for your studies

You may be eligible for a scholarship or bursary to help pay for your study. Students from the UK may also be eligible for a student loan to help cover these costs. See our fees and funding information for more information on what's available.

Careers

You'll gain a broad range of subject-specific and transferable skills and experiences spanning the sciences and humanities, such as the ability to analyse and understand complex information and to research, document and present findings in a coherent manner, as well as the ability to empathise with others from diverse cultures, backgrounds and beliefs.

This can lead you to a variety of careers in different sectors, including:

  • archaeology and heritage (including commercial archaeology, museum, archive)
  • business, consulting and management
  • marketing, advertising, PR and media
  • public sector (including central government, charities, intelligence services)
  • teaching and education
  • publishing
  • insurance and the law.

Past graduates have gone on to work with organisations including:

  • the Museum of London Archaeology
  • the Daily Telegraph
  • Infonetica
  • Harman Build
  • the Zoological Society of London
  • Christie's Auction House.

Read how Rebecca MacRae landed roles at the British Museum and Bipolar UK thanks to the transferable skills she acquired during her time at Reading.

The fieldwork experience has been invaluable in my career development since I left university. I learnt how to excavate and record features of differing periods to a high standard and was able to prove this to employers on my CV.

Ross Baker
BA Ancient History and Archaeology

Contextual offers


We make contextual offers for all our courses.

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  • Ancient History
  • Archaeology

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