Why choose this course?

• Join our award-winning Oral History Team (featured on BBC R4)
• Focus on your interests - All History modules optional after 1st year
• Be taught by award-winning poets, fiction and non-fiction writers

 

Are you interested in learning how past events helped shape today’s world? And do you enjoy writing stories, plays or non-fiction? This joint course allows you to do both. Studying History will teach you how human emotions, needs and desires act as political, social, and cultural catalysts for change. You can then apply this knowledge to your writing, whether you prefer fiction or non-fiction. This will make you a versatile writer, who is able to write in depth about the human psyche and how this underlies the changes we see in the world.?

 

Your History lecturers take part in international research projects, working on the frontline of the latest development in the field. All your Creative Writing lecturers are active writers in their field, which means they have excellent links with the industry. One of them was the editor of Granta, a prestigious British publisher. You’ll benefit from up-to-date knowledge of the writing world, giving you the best chances to succeed. You can join up to 1500 competitions in prose, fiction, drama, and short stories.

 

Hertfordshire is one of the historic counties of England, known for its rich past, museums and market towns, steeped in history. St Albans, where the traditional hot cross buns are rumoured to have originated, is only a few miles away. You’ll be able to visit the St Albans Cathedral and the Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies (HALS) are only a short drive away in Hertford. Hertfordshire is also known for its writers, including Geoffrey Chaucer and Beatrix Potter. In other words, it’s the perfect place to study both History and Creative Writing. Why choose if you can do both? 

 

You’ll be able to join one of the few Oral History societies run by universities in the UK. This is an optional extra-curricular that is sure to make your CV stand out. You’ll go out and interview real people about the changes and events they have experienced in their own lives. Topics range from retirement to the history of football clubs, immigration and more. The point here is to not only capture factual information, but to allow your interviewee to express their feelings. What did they say? How did they feel? You’ll get a unique insight into real human experience, which will enrich your writing.