History at Streatham Campus: New undergraduate students

Welcome to your History studies at the University of Exeter, in our new department of Archaeology and History

During your time studying for a degree with us, we will make learning exciting, engaging and fun – exploring hidden treasures, secret worlds, and famous historical events from new perspectives. You will have the chance to choose from a huge range of History options, covering hundreds of years and many different cultures and continents. We will encourage you to broaden your horizons by taking modules that interest you beyond our Department, and you will be challenged along the way to move out of your comfort zone, not just by what you study, but what you learn about yourself and your capabilities during your degree. This, we believe, will prepare you well for life beyond graduation, including tools that will help you thrive in an increasingly complex, rapidly-changing world.

We will work with you on your personal development so that you can become:

an open-minded and internationally-engaged individual and an informed participant in uncovering the fullest range of human histories, particularly in decolonising the study of the past.
a mature and critical reader able to observe, understand, analyse and interpret a wide variety of historical sources, from ancient archives to digital collections.
a confident, independent thinker and researcher adept at constructing reasoned arguments based on historical evidence.
an effective listener, communicator and collaborator able to use your knowledge, insights and creativity to work with others and independently.

We look forward to welcoming you!

Professor Naomi Sykes
Head of Archaeology and History

Things to do before you arrive

Ahead of your arrival, please complete our online pre-arrival induction. The induction is full of important information and advice about your studies and life as a student here. It also contains activities and discussion boards so you can start to get to know other students even before you start your course.

We strongly recommend that you access this as soon as possible and make the most of this fantastic opportunity to learn more about us, your peers and your programme.

Things to do when you get here

Freshers’ Week 2023: Monday 18 September - Sunday 24 September

During Fresher's Week you should attend the Academic Induction events and activities for your subject/s, as detailed below. If there is any reason why you may not be here for Fresher's Week, please contact the Amory Hub, who support History students, as soon as possible by emailing history@exeter.ac.uk.

The Student's Guild is also running welcome events throughout the week, including a Welcome Festival and regular guided tours of campus.

Please check your academic timetable during Freshers’ Week, so that you know exactly where and when you need to attend your first classes and lectures! If you have any timetable-related problems or questions, please contact the Amory Hub at history@exeter.ac.uk.

Academic induction activities

The purpose of Academic Induction is to introduce you to your academic programme, complete any necessary pre-registration tasks, familiarise yourself with your academic buildings, and meet fellow students and the academic staff for your subjects. These sessions form the core part of your Freshers' Week timetable and we expect all students to be present at these compulsory sessions, either in person or online as appropriate. If you need any advice about issues or clashes within your Freshers' Week timetable please contact history@exeter.ac.uk.

Academic Induction timetable:

History and Ancient History students
10:30-12:00 Classics and Ancient History Welcome talk in AMO/Moot
12:00-13:30 History Welcome talk in FOR/AUD-LT
13:30-14:30 History and Ancient History combined honours meeting with Ancient History personal tutors
14:30 Ancient History personal tutors bring those students to the History/Archaeology social event

Ancient History and Archaeology students
10:30-12:00 Classics and Ancient History Welcome talk in AMO/Moot
12:00-13:00 Classics and Ancient History social event in AMO/Moot
13:00-14:00 Ancient History and Archaeology combined honours meeting with Ancient History personal tutor
14:00-15:00 Archaeology Welcome talk in LAV/LT6
15:00 Students are taken from the Archaeology talk to the History/Archaeology social event

History and Ancient History students
10:30-12:00 Classics and Ancient History Welcome talk in AMO/Moot
12:00-13:30 History Welcome talk in FOR/AUD-LT
13:30-14:30 History and Ancient History combined honours meeting with Ancient History personal tutors tbc
14:30 Ancient History personal tutors bring those students to the History/Archaeology social event

Please also be aware that an optional Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Information Fair will be held in Queen Margaret Rooms 1-3, Queen’s Building, Streatham campus on Monday 18 September. You will find details in your timetable when it is published.

Follow our Archaeology & History Eventbrite page for the latest updates regarding all Department events and information: University of Exeter Archaeology & History Dept. Events | Eventbrite

Student social with scones and tea at the community garden. Student Social:

Join us for a Community Garden gathering Tickets, Tue 19 Sep 2023 at 13:30 | Eventbrite

Tuesday 19 September, 13:30 – 15:30
Join us for the community garden social gathering organised especially for incoming students of the Archaeology and History Department.
If you're a first-year History or Archaeology student, our staff will guide you from your Welcome Lecture on a pleasant campus stroll to the Community Garden. There will be tea and scones to enjoy and other new students and staff to mingle with.

Explore the Digital Humanities Lab:

Explore the Digital Humanities Lab Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite

Friday 22 September, 11am, 1pm, 3pm, meet at the entrance of Digital Humanities Lab
We invite you to join us for a whistle-stop tour of the Digital Humanities Lab, where you'll gain insights into the array of equipment that you can use to enhance your studies.
The Digital Humanities Lab works with students and staff in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences to explore the intersection of technology and humanities research. Come for a tour of the Labs and see how we work with professional standard photographic equipment for cultural heritage image capture, 3D printing and AV equipment for podcast recording, filming and editing. Learn more about undergraduate internships and volunteering opportunities in the Lab and how you can get involved.
There will be x3 separate tours around the Digital Humanities Lab, which will last approximately 1 hour.

11am
1pm
3pm

Please meet in the entrance of the Digital Humanities Lab.

Combined Honours or Flexible Combined Honours Students

If you are a Combined Honours or Flexible Combined Honours student please ensure you view the New Students information for all your subjects since each will have its own Academic Induction information and timetable.

New undergraduate student information

Joining instructions

Reading list

Preparatory reading

In readiness for the start of academic work, you should read some works relating to the core ‘Becoming a Historian' module. You should read any two of the following books:

Peter Claus and John Marriott, History: An Introduction to Theory, Method and Practice (Harlow: Pearson, 2012)
Ulinka Rublack ed., A Concise Companion to History (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011)
Ludmilla Jordanova, History in Practice (London: Arnold, revised 2nd ed. 2006)
John Tosh, The Pursuit of History (London: Longman, revised 3rd ed., 2002)

Background Reading History (2023-24)

Online module choice

Choosing your modules using the Online Module Selection System

In readiness for this process you should familiarise yourself with the Module choice document for 2023.

Modules for Combined Honours programmes

For students on Combined Honours programmes, module choice information will be released and co-ordinated by the lead discipline for the programme, that is the first named subject in the degree title. For example, BA Archaeology and Anthropology is led by the Archaeology department; BA Philosophy and Theology is led by the Philosophy department. (Please see the ‘Combined Honours or Flexible Combined Honours Students’ link above for more information).

Useful information

Programme related links

History pages
History Handbook
Humanities undergraduate modules
Programme specifications

Information for new students

Language modules

Modules are available at a range of levels from Beginners to Advanced via the Language Centre in:

• French
• German
• Italian
• Japanese
• Korean
• Mandarin Chinese
• Russian
• Spanish
• British Sign Language

We can help you get the language you study with us named on your degree title. This involves successfully completing a minimum of 60 credits in one language taken through the Language Centre. You could choose to start a new language from scratch or develop an existing one. For example, a Geography student who passes 30 credits at Spanish Beginners and a further 30 credits at Spanish Intermediate 1 could have their degree title amended to BA (Hons) Geography with proficiency in Spanish.

If you are not able to take a language as part of your programme due to timetabling constraints, or if you are interested in studying a language that is not currently available via modularity, our Language Centre also runs an Evening Language Programme with many more language options.

To find out more about language modules and other languages offered by different departments see the Language Centre webpage.

Useful links