“I love that Comparative Literature has been a window into so many different perspectives. Not only have I had the chance to study literary texts from all over the world, and from numerous time periods and genres, but the international student community in Comparative Literature here at St Andrews means that our classes and lectures always see a wide range of opinions and backgrounds brought to the texts that we study.”
- Renfrewshire, Scotland
Entry requirements
The University offers different entry requirements, depending on your background. Find out more about Standard, Minimum and Gateway entry requirements using academic entry explained and see which entry requirements you need to look at using the entry requirements indicator.
We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry on to our programmes, please see our entry requirements for more information.
For degrees combining more than one subject, the subject with the higher entry requirements determines the grades you need. You will also need to meet any further subject-specific entry requirements as outlined on their pages.
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- Standard entry grades:
- AAAB
- Minimum entry grades:
- AABB
- Gateway entry grades:
- Applicants who have narrowly missed the minimum entry grades, but meet the University's contextual criteria, may be interested in one of the University’s Gateway programmes.
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- Standard entry grades:
- AAB
- Minimum entry grades:
- ABB
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- Standard entry grades:
- 36 (HL 6,6,5)
- Minimum entry grades:
- 36 (HL 6,5,5)
General entry requirements
All applicants must have attained the following qualifications, or equivalent, in addition to the specific entry requirements for individual programmes.
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SQA National 5 (B) in English and one SQA National 5 (B) from the following:
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Computing science
- Geography
- Applications of Mathematics
- Mathematics
- Physics
- Psychology.
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GCSE (5) in English language or English literature, and one GCSE (5) from the following:
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Computing Science
- Geography
- Mathematics
- Physics
- Psychology.
Other qualifications
We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry on to our programmes. Please see our entry requirements for more information.
More information on how to apply via other entry routes or accreditation of prior learning and experience can be found on the University’s entry requirements web page.
Do I need to have studied this subject before?
No previous knowledge of comparative literature is required.
Alternative study options
Study abroad
Comparative literature students can apply to participate in the University-wide St Andrews Abroad programme. You may also have the opportunity to participate in the School Abroad exchange programme. For information about study abroad options, please see the study abroad site.
International applicants
If English is not your first language, you will need to provide an English language test score to evidence your English language ability. Find out more about approved English language tests and scores for this course.
Course details
The Comparative Literature Honours degree course is run by the School of Modern Languages.
In the first two years, you will gain awareness of different genres and themes as they appear in a range of literatures (typically including Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Persian, Russian, Spanish, Latin American, British and North American). You will address the issue of how to study literature comparatively, especially when reading in translation. This will equip you with the range of literary experience and critical skills necessary for a more in-depth study of specialist subject areas at Honours level.
Specialist subject areas include:
- adaptation and intermediality
- cultural memory
- digital media
- cultural studies
- postcolonial and decolonial literature
- influence, reception and the circulation of texts
- literary translation
- petrocultures
- literature and ecology
- world literature
Alongside comparative literature, in the first year of your studies, you will be required to study an additional two subjects. In the second year, you will usually carry on at least one of these subjects, sometimes two. Find out more about how academic years are organised.
The University of St Andrews operates on a flexible modular degree system by which degrees are obtained through the accumulation of credits. More information on the structure of the modules system can be found on the flexible degree structure web page.
Modules
In the first two years of your degree (known as sub-honours), you will take the required modules in comparative literature along with modules from other subjects.
Typically, you will take one comparative literature module per semester during your first two years, and two modules per semester during your third and fourth years (known as Honours).
Find out more about the modular Scottish degree system.
Students are required to take the following compulsory modules in their first year:
- The Nineteenth-Century Novel of Adultery: introduces the study of comparative literature through 19th-century novels, typically from France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain and the UK.
- Political Drama in the Twentieth and Twenty-first Centuries: introduces the study of comparative literature through plays written in the 20th and 21st century from a range of literatures, typically China, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Russia, Spain, the UK and the US.
Students are required to take the following compulsory modules in their second year (all texts are read in English translation):
- Good and Evil: examines a broad range of texts from a number of national literatures, periods and genres in which the theme of good and evil is explored in different literary, social, political and historical contexts.
- Journeys: explores a broad range of texts from different national literatures, periods and genres offering variants on the theme of journeys, explored in a range of literary, social, political and historical contexts.
If you decide to take comparative literature in your third and fourth years, as well as advancing your theoretical engagement with the discipline, you will choose from a wide variety of advanced options, each based on at least three national literatures and taught by a team of experts from Modern Languages.
Here is a sample of Honours modules which have been offered in previous years:
- Autobiography and the visual arts
- Bad books
- Crossing the Mediterranean
- Cultural memory and literature
- Experiences of exile
- Folk and fairy tales
- Great works and their adaptations
- Issues in cultural studies
- Literature and the Bible
- The Literary Canon
- The Short Story
In fourth year, students may also choose to undertake a 5,000 or 10,000-word dissertation on a topic of their choice, with individual supervision. This independent project enables you to develop key research skills which are desired by both prospective employers and by graduate schools offering postgraduate degrees.
The modules above are examples of what has been taught in previous academic years and may be subject to change before you start your course. Please see the module catalogue for more details of each module, including weekly contact hours, teaching methods and assessment.
Teaching
Comparative literature modules involve traditional lectures supported by small discussion seminars. Lectures provide information, stimulate thought, and suggest directions for further reading and personal study. Small group seminars allow you to work with your peers and your tutors to discuss texts, theories and methodologies in detail.
Sub-honours comparative literature modules are delivered through lectures (100 to 150 students) and small-group tutorials (10 to 15 students). At Honours level, lectures are replaced by seminars of 8 to 15 students.
When not attending lectures and tutorials, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. Typically, this will involve:
- reading set primary and secondary texts
- preparing for seminar discussions
- undertaking research in the library
- preparing coursework assignments and presentations
- preparing for examinations
Comparative literature sub-honours modules are assessed entirely through coursework. Assessment at Honours level varies, with most modules also being assessed entirely by coursework. Coursework covers a wide range, from traditional essays and commentaries to more creative modes (for example, writing and commenting on a short story, writing a censor’s report, devising your own syllabus).
Examinations are held at the end of each semester during a dedicated exam diet with revision time provided beforehand.
The Department aims to provide feedback on every assessment within three weeks to help you improve on future assessments.
Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews must achieve at least 7.0 on the St Andrews 20-point grade scale to pass a module. To gain access to Honours-level modules, students must achieve the relevant requisites as specified in the policy on entry to Honours and in the relevant programme requirements.
To find out the classification equivalent of points, please see the common reporting scale.
Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews must achieve at least 7.0 on the St Andrews 20-point grade scale to pass a module. To gain access to Honours-level modules, students must achieve the relevant requisites as specified in the policy on entry to Honours and in the relevant programme requirements. To find out the classification equivalent of points, please see the common reporting scale.
You will be taught by leading researchers in the field with an emphasis on research-led teaching. Postgraduate research students who have undertaken teacher training may also contribute to the teaching of tutorials and seminars under the supervision of the module leader.
You can find contact information for all Comparative Literature staff on the School of Modern Languages website.
In addition to your studies in the School of Modern Languages, optional academic support is available through practical study skills courses and workshops hosted within the University.
The University’s Student Services team can help students with additional needs resulting from disabilities, long-term medical conditions or learning disabilities. More information can be found on the students with disabilities web page.
Fees
Scotland
£1,820
England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands, Isle of Man
Following the decision of the UK Government to raise undergraduate tuition fees and maintenance loans in line with inflation from April 2025, we are reviewing the consequences of that decision for fees payable by students from the rest of the UK who have chosen to study in Scotland. We will update the information on this page as soon as possible.
EU and overseas
£31,670
More information on tuition fees can be found on the undergraduate fees and funding page.
Accommodation fees
Find out about accommodation fees for University accommodation.
Funding and scholarships
The University of St Andrews offers a number of scholarships and support packages to undergraduate students each year.
Joint Honours degrees
You can also take Comparative Literature as part of a joint Honours degree in which you will take core modules of your chosen subjects.
| Course name | UCAS code |
|---|---|
| Master of Arts (Honours) Ancient History and Comparative Literature | VQ12 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Arabic and Comparative Literature | Q190 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Arabic and Comparative Literature (With Integrated Year Abroad) | TV67 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Art History and Comparative Literature | VQ32 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Biblical Studies and Comparative Literature | VQ62 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Chinese Studies and Comparative Literature | CH03 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Chinese Studies and Comparative Literature (With Integrated Year Abroad) | CW03 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Classical Studies and Comparative Literature | Q890 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Classics and Comparative Literature | Q990 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and English | Q290 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Film Studies | QP23 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and French | QR21 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and French (With Integrated Year Abroad) | QR2C |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Geography | QF28 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and German | QR22 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and German (With Integrated Year Abroad) | QR2F |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Greek | Q291 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Hebrew | Q292 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and International Relations | QL22 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Italian | QRF3 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Italian (With Integrated Year Abroad) | QRG3 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Latin | Q293 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Management | QN22 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Medieval History | QV21 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Modern History | QVF1 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Persian | Q2T6 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Philosophy | QV25 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Psychology | QV26 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Russian | RQ27 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Russian (With Integrated Year Abroad) | RQ72 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Social Anthropology | QL26 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Spanish | RQF4 |
| Master of Arts (Honours) Comparative Literature and Spanish (With Integrated Year Abroad) | RQ4F |
Careers
The skills you gain through studying comparative literature are marketable in many career areas, and your capacity to process and assimilate complex material from a range of cultures will make you highly employable.
Recent graduate career paths include:
- business and commerce
- civil service
- IT development
- journalism
- marketing
- media and the arts
- publishing
Graduates may also go into postgraduate study, either at St Andrews or to other universities.
The Careers Centre offers one-to-one advice to all students as well as a programme of events to assist students to build their employability skills.
What to do next
Online information events
Join us for one of our information events where you can find out about different levels of study and specific courses we run. There are also sessions available for parents and college counsellors.
Undergraduate visiting days
We encourage all students who are thinking of applying to the University to attend one of our online or in-person visiting days.
Contact us
- Phone
- +44 (0)1334 46 2961
- modlangs@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Address
- School of Modern Languages
Buchanan Building
Union Street
St Andrews
KY16 9PH
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