English Literature Northumbria University

Overview

The English Literature MA programme from Northumbria University gives you the key skills to navigate and offer a critique of narrative and storytelling. How is literature politicised? How are classic texts adapted for the contemporary moment? Literature’s continued relevance is everywhere. Our course gives you the skills to understand the importance of literature: who has the authority to influence, and with what motives.

Culminating in a major piece of research of your own, you will shape debate and ideas in your chosen field of literary studies, showing mastery of the discipline and an ability to redefine our approach to the stories that shape our world.

Stories powerfully shape our experiences and identities in the modern world. Books and films instruct us about how the voices of the past inform the present and the future. They tell us about politics, gender, sexuality and race, our landscape, environment and the digital. Stories are told about places and people, but also show how modern myths are made. How can we read such stories critically?

Career opportunities:

• On completion of the English Literature programme from Northumbria University, you will have improved your employability through enhancing your critical skills and attitudes, presentation skills, and reflective and evaluative abilities. You will be self-motivating, be capable of making decisions in complex situations, and possess a thirst for independent learning. 
• In addition to these personal skills, you will have demonstrated a critical awareness of the current research and scholarship within your discipline, facilitating your ability to interpret knowledge in a variety of professional fields.
• The MA builds on undergraduate skills, distinguished by the level of intensity, complexity, and density of study.  Advanced communication skills and media literacy must be demonstrated along with exceptional ability for time management, ethical and professional understanding, and highly developed research and inquiry skills.
• There are considerable opportunities for you to advance your studies further, and advice in writing PhD and funding applications is available. The course offers a qualification that may enhance promotion prospects in some professions – most notably teaching, professional research, museums/archives, public policy, and project management.