Why study a degree with us?

On all our courses, you can choose from any of the optional modules we offer, so you can follow your interests as they develop.

You can create your own pathway through your degree by pursuing a specialism in Egypt, the Near East, or Late Antiquity, for example.

We have a unique strength in museum studies, and offer a number of opportunities to gain practical museum experience.

If you wish to diversify your studies, you can choose to study a modern language module or a university wide module on current issues such as climate change, offered by departments outside of the Department of Classics.  

During your studies, you'll have access to a variety of historical resources of international importance held by the Department of Classics. 

These resources include the Ure Museum, which is based in the Department.

The wider University has two other on-site museums, as well as the Special Collections – a substantial collection of rare books, archives and manuscripts that we encourage students to explore during their studies.

Learn how Shona gained hands-on experience within the Classics Department.

Enhance your classics degree by visiting the ancient sites you are studying. We offer incredible opportunities to travel and have the experience of a lifetime.

We organise an annual five-day trip to Rome, Athens or another city that features in your studies. You can also attend summer schools with the British Schools in Athens and Rome, which count as credit towards your Reading degree. 

We also run a Study Trip Abroad module with the Department of History where you can spend a week in a European city, exploring urban and national identities through the historical remains of material and visual culture.

Travel bursaries are available on a competitive basis; we try to help all students who want to travel for their studies.

You can also spend up to a year of your degree in another country with the University's Study Abroad scheme.

Find out more about Study Abroad

Our internationally acclaimed academic staff provide expert supervision and teaching on topics ranging from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia to the study of antiquity in the modern age. They are active researchers at the forefront of their disciplines. Their research-led teaching will provide you with access to current thinking and ground-breaking research.

Their excellence in research has been recognised through a number of prestigious awards and fellowships. Examples of staff who have recently been awarded fellowships include:

• Dr Emma Aston – Margo Tytus Visiting Fellowship, University of Cincinnati (2021)
• Professor Ian Rutherford – Research Fellow, Käte Hamburger Kolleg, Bochum, Germany: "Dynamics in the History of Religions between Asia and Europe" (2018–19)
• Professor Katherine Harloe – British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship (2018–19): "Winckelmann's Love Letters"
• Professor Rachel Mairs – British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship (2018–19): "Teach Yourself Arabic: Foreigners Learning Colloquial Arabic, 1850–1945"
• Professor Annalisa Marzano – Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship (2017–2019): "'Grafting Glory': New Plants, the Economy and Elite Identity in Ancient Rome"
• Dr Arietta Papaconstantinou – Gerda Henkel Foundation Research Scholarship (2015–2016): "Credit, Debt, and the Transformation of Rural Society in Egypt and Palestine from Constantine to the Abbasids"; ERC Award (2013 ff.): "The Cult of Saints: a Christendom-wide Study of its Origin, Spread and Development"
• Professor Amy Smith – Visiting Fellow, Humanities Research Centre, Australian National University (2017): "Encountering strangers in Classical Athenian Art".

 
Our excellence in teaching and learning has been recognised through various awards, from both the Reading Students' Union and external organisations.

• Jackie Baines was awarded the 2017 Reading Students' Union Teaching Excellence Award.
• Dr Emma Aston won the 2015 Reading Students' Union Teaching Excellence Award.

Learn more about our staff

A degree in classics at the University of Reading prepares you for a wide range of careers.

You'll develop transferable skills such as critical thinking, analysing data and communicating confidently and concisely.