The Cambridge University Course
Classics at Cambridge is a flexible, multi-disciplinary degree, allowing students a wide range of choice while providing a secure grounding in core essentials. We believe it is essential for anyone studying a Classics degree to have first-hand experience of texts in Greek and Latin, and at the end of the course you should have the ability and confidence to read Greek and Latin on your own. However. Cambridge does not require students to have been taught Greek or Latin at school; the Faculty and the College provide a structured framework of language classes in order to enable all students to gain reading proficiency in both languages, whatever their previous experience. A four-year course in Classics is offered alongside the existing three-year course. Students who have done either Latin A-level or Greek A-level or Latin and Greek A-level take the three-year course. Students who have done neither Latin nor Greek A-level take the four-year course. If you are in doubt whether you should be taking the three-year or the four-year course it is best to get in touch directly with the Director of Studies in Classics (Dr James Clackson, jptc1@cam.ac.uk) c/o Jesus College, Cambridge.
The three-year course: In the first two years of the course (Part I) students follow a course of reading Latin and Greek texts which enables all students, whatever their level of linguistic achievement when they arrive at Cambridge, to gain experience and understanding of a wide range of different genres of ancient literature in their original form. Set texts in the first year are compulsory and include texts by Homer, Euripides, Plato, Virgil, Ovid and Cicero (those who have not done Greek A-level read shorter schedules, but cover the same authors); in the second year students are able to choose their texts from a range of different options, enabling some specialisation in different authors or genres. All students are also taught four different courses on specific aspects of the Classical World: Art and Archaeology; Philosophy; Linguistics and Philology; Ancient History. Students are encouraged to explore these different areas of Classics in their first year, but in their second they specialise in two of the subject areas. Students may also take optional courses in Greek and / or Latin prose or verse composition. Part IA exams take place at the end of the first year and Part IB at the end of the second year. The final year (Part II) offers even wider choice. In Part II, all students offer four papers from around twenty offered in six different subject areas: Greek and Latin Literature (including textual criticism); Philosophy; Ancient History; Classical Art and Archaeology; Classical and Comparative Linguistics; and Interdisciplinary Approaches to the Ancient World. One of the four papers may alternatively be taken from schedule of papers offered by a neighbouring discipline, such as English, Philosophy, Linguistics or History. Students may also substitute a 10,000 word thesis for one of their Part II papers. The only restriction on choice is that two of the papers (or one paper and the thesis) must fall in the same subject area. The variety of papers on offer and the wide range in choice make Part II a hugely enjoyable and rewarding course.
The four-year course: In the first year students concentrate on Latin language, and Roman literature and culture through the study of original Latin texts. In the second year students join those taking the three-year degree without A-level Greek in the Intensive Greek programme and continue with that course for the remaining three years. This means that after the first year you will take the three-year course described above. At Jesus we are particularly keen to attract students for the four-year course. If you are thinking of applying to Jesus College to take the four-year course you are urged to get in touch with the Director of Studies in Classics (Dr James Clackson, jptc1@cam.ac.uk) c/o Jesus College, Cambridge, for further details.
Further study: A BA in Classics in Cambridge is an excellent foundation for higher degrees. The very successful one-year MPhil Course in Classics is taken by 20-40 students each year, roughly half of whom have done the Cambridge BA. Students may take the MPhil on their way to the PhD or they may want to deepen their experience in the subject and undertake some of their own original research even though they do not plan to follow a career in higher education.
The Faculty of Classics at Cambridge is one of the world’s leading centres of research and education in Classics, and the undergraduate course is acknowledged as one of the most exciting and wide-ranging in the country. You can find further details about the Classics Faculty on the web-page at www.classics.cam.ac.uk.