Ancient History

Explore diverse cultures and societies across the ancient world in this fascinating degree.

You'll study the civilisations of ancient Greece, Rome, Persia and beyond, analysing their political, cultural and social histories and how we understand their world today.

Alongside great historical figures, you'll study ordinary lives and think critically about the evidence available to us. You'll gain knowledge of historical research methods, archaeology, literary analysis and life in ancient Greek and Roman society. Optional modules will allow you to focus on topics such as classical literature, early Islamic history or Ancient Greek and Latin.

Explore our libraries

Leeds has plenty of useful resources for Ancient History students. The world-class Brotherton Library holds a wide range of scholarly material on the subject, and its Special Collections include manuscript, archive and early printed material, as well as coins and other materials from the ancient world.

The University Library offers comprehensive training and support to help you make the most of these resources, and you'll also have the chance to visit other collections close by, such as Leeds City Museum.

Take a look around our libraries:

Brotherton Library
Laidlaw Library
Edward Boyle Library

The programme is designed for international students. Applicants must meet two of the following three criteria in order to be eligible for our programmes:

• Have an educational gap between their high school qualifications and the requirements for entry to undergraduate programmes at the University of Leeds. Qualifications beyond high school level will be considered within the applicant profile.
• Have completed the majority of their high school studies in a non-English speaking environment.
• Have completed the majority of their high school studies in a different educational context from that in the UK.

Students who have completed the International Baccalaureate will be considered for the International Foundation Year if they have reached a minimum Grade of 26 points overall with grade 4 at Standard Level or 3 at Higher Level in two subjects. Specific subjects will be dependent on the chosen degree path of progression.

A degree in ancient history gives you a wide range of knowledge and skills across disciplines.

You'll be an excellent problem solver, capable of researching complex topics from different sources and drawing your own conclusions. You'll have highly developed communication skills and be able to present your views effectively.

All of this is valued by employers, and graduates from the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures go on to a wide range of careers, including publishing, journalism, law, curatorship, the civil service, the armed forces, advertising and marketing, education, business and finance and the charity sector.

Many of our graduates also progress onto postgraduate study.

We do everything we can to help prepare you for your career. Student-run career groups allow you to meet other students who share your career ambitions. You could also become a peer mentor under our scheme or apply for one of the internships offered every year.

We are committed to helping you achieve your career ambitions. The School of Languages, Cultures and Societies careers and employability support includes promoting internships, providing opportunities to work for the School and employer-led workshops and events.

You can read more about the range of careers our Ancient History graduates progress into, as well as the support we offer you throughout your degree.

Careers support

We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That's one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.

Leeds for Life is our unique approach to helping you make the most of University by supporting your academic and personal development. Find out more at the Leeds for Life website.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.

Apply

There are three steps to applying:

1. Read our Access to Leeds application guidelines
2. Fill in our Access to Leeds application form (this will be available here once the application cycle opens). If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader), there is an accessible version of this form available to download. Please only use this version if you have accessibility requirements
3. Submit your application using our online Access to Leeds Application Submission Form (this will be available here once the application cycle opens).

If you require it for your application, please download our Declaration of Household Income Form (this will be available here once the application cycle opens).