American Studies with a Placement Year (Hons) University of East Anglia

Overview

American Studies with a Placement Year (Hons) at University of East Anglia is one of the most established and highly regarded departments in the UK. It’s been taught here for over half of a century. You’ll learn with experts doing world-leading research on U.S. history, literature, and culture. Working through a variety of subjects, the course responds to your interests. Our four-year American Studies with a Placement Year degree allows you to tailor your studies around your interests. You’ll choose from a range of specialist modules. And you can also develop your own bespoke research project. On this version of the course, you’ll also have the opportunity to spend your third year in a work placement, gaining invaluable real-world experience. 

An American Studies degree provides tools to link the present with the past and the future. UEA is home to the Arthur Miller Institute, which hosts events throughout the year. Previous speakers to campus have included Norman Mailer, Joseph Heller, Toni Morrison, and Susan Sontag. We have partnerships with the American Library based in the Millennium Library, and host Congress to Campus visits where you can converse with US politicians. American Studies allows you to grapple with the key political and social issues of today and tomorrow. 

Placement Year

Want to graduate with professional experience? On this course, you’ll normally spend 9-12 months of your third year* in a placement, gaining invaluable work experience and employability skills in a relevant area of your choice. You’ll be expected to seek your own work placement and will be supported in doing so by UEA’s Career Central Service and your School. Support for you to find your placement will start early in the first year and will be tailored to the particular needs you'll have at various stages of the process.     

The field in which you’ll do your placement will depend on your own interests, and some of the preparatory workshops will help you have a clearer idea of what these are, what your values are, and which career they may lead to. American Studies graduates go into a wide range of sectors, and so placements can be done in fields such as heritage, business, the public sector, creative industries and many more. We'll, however, require that the tasks you’ll conduct as part of your placement meet the required learning outcomes and are complex enough to help you develop a range of skills that you’ll be able to translate and use during the final year of your degree and your post-graduation career.     

Career Pathways

Examples of careers you could enter include: 

• Creative and cultural industries 
• Law 
• Journalism 
• Teaching  
• Civil service 
• Marketing and advertising