Ancient History offers the opportunity to study the history of Greece and Rome in the Classical period (600 BCE – 700 CE). Ancient History is a fundamental area of study: its politics, events, and development lie behind our understanding of many aspects of historical societies and, indeed, our own culture. The course at Royal Holloway will open up themes in Greek and Roman history, such as the emergence (and fall) of democracy and the rise, decline and fall of Empires. The course is designed to build skills and knowledge from day one and to develop your understanding of key periods and problems in Greek and Roman history. In year two, the experience of historical periods will be deepened and widened and you will develop skills in research, which will culminate in specialist studies and an individual research project in year 3. The Philosophy course units will deepen your understanding of the subject – covering areas such as ancient philosophy and reason, argument and persuasion – before allowing you to choose from a wide array of optional topics. Ancient History forms the major element of the degree, comprising 75% of the course, with the remaining 25% of the degree consisting of philosophy.

Choosing a Classical subject at Royal Holloway will equip you with a broad range of skills, such as the ability to analyse and summarise content, critically evaluate resources and construct coherent arguments in the written and spoken word. Studying an intellectually demanding discipline will demonstrate to employers that you enjoy being challenged and are able to understand complex issues. You will also develop the transferable skills valued by employers: communication and presentation skills, teamwork, time management and critical thinking. From 2013 (subject to validation) we will be adding a new ‘skills’ module as part of the degree programme, as well as a competitive new work placement scheme – the only such scheme in a UK Classics department.