Metadata
Title
English and MusicBA
Category
undergraduate
UUID
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Source URL
https://sheffield.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/2026/english-and-music-ba
Parent URL
https://sheffield.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/2026
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2026-03-23T16:31:17+00:00
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English and MusicBA

Source: https://sheffield.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/2026/english-and-music-ba Parent: https://sheffield.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/2026

2026-27 entry View 2027-28 entry

English and Music BA

School of English

School of Languages, Arts and Societies

The English and Music dual honours degree allows you to pursue your creative and critical passions across the arts. Through practical activities such as creative writing, music composition, and performance, you’ll develop your skills as both a writer and a musician. Through analysis of language, texts, theatre, film, scores, and recordings, you’ll gain a critical understanding of English and Music and how they work together.

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Course description

Why study this course?

Learn from the experts

You’ll be taught by a wide range of specialists whose world-leading (REF 2021) research is woven throughout their teaching, ensuring your learning sits at the cutting edge of your subjects.

Hone your talent

You’ll receive 18 hours of instrumental tuition with one of our distinguished professional teachers in your first year.

Get ahead with work experience

Gain practical industry experience while you learn with our 'Work in Music' module, and build a network of professionals who can advise you on your career. Outside of your studies, work placements with local and national companies can enhance your learning, build relationships with employers and give you a head start on your career journey.

Become a strong communicator

As you grow your understanding of the literary arts and the written word, you’ll have the opportunity to develop your own writing, and learn to present your work to a wide range of different audiences.

The English and Music degree is about understanding how we use language, literature, and music—not just as a means of communication, but as a way to express ourselves through creative practice, theory, and reflection.

Explore literature, language and music from a variety of cultures and time periods, delving into how the arts influenced culture and, in turn, how culture has influenced the arts.

You’ll have the option to pursue either an English literature or an English language pathway - studying a range of genres from literary fiction, journalism, theatre, film, everyday conversation, adverts, digital writing, to poetry and creative writing.

You'll study a variety of musical genres in cutting edge facilities, including purpose-built music practice rooms, recording studios and music psychology labs.

Develop your skills in everything from performance and composition to ethnomusicology and music technology, helping you forge a well-rounded career in the music industry.

Dual and combined honours degrees

Accreditation

The University of Sheffield is an All-Steinway School. This accreditation enables students to access pianos of the highest quality and places the University among a select group of international education institutions.

All-Steinway School

Modules

We're revising the curriculum of the course for this year of entry. Your first year modules are confirmed. For other years of study, the information here gives you an idea of the areas we expect the course to cover, although there may be changes before you begin. As you progress through your course, we’ll confirm additional details for the core and optional modules available to you.

Title: English and Music BA course structure\ UCAS code: QW33\ Years: 2026, 2027

First year

Second year

Third year

First year

The English section of the course can be split between two pathways: Literature and Linguistics. This pathway is decided in the first year and remains the same throughout the remainder of the degree.

English Literature Pathway

A maximum of 60 credits can be selected from English Literature modules, which includes 40 credits of core modules.

English Linguistics Pathway

A maximum of 60 credits can be selected from the English Language modules, which includes 40 credits of core modules.

Music

A maximum of 60 credits can be selected from the Music modules, which includes 40 credits of core modules.

English literature pathway core modules:

Renaissance to Revolution: Early Modern Literature : This module will introduce you to literary study at degree level by focusing on the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, a period of enormous innovation in English literature. You will study writers such as Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, Philip Sidney, Mary Wroth, John Donne, and Aemelia Lanyer, and you will develop close reading skills by analysing the ways in which these writers used formal and stylistic techniques. You will examine how the literature of the period related to the surrounding culture, society, and politics, and consider the different ways in which texts could be produced, read, and performed.

**20 credits**

Writing Revolutions: Restoration to Romanticism : 'Writing Revolutions: Restoration to Romanticism' starts with the literature of the second half of the seventeenth century (including Marvell and Milton) and moves through to the late eighteenth century (including writers such as Behn, Pope, Heywood, Gray, Equiano, and Burney). Building on the work you completed on 'Renaissance to Revolution: Early Modern Literature', you will continue to think about the relationships between literary texts and the social, cultural and political contexts in which they were produced. You will also explore the evolution of forms and genres through the period.

**20 credits**

English literature pathway optional modules:

Contemporary Literature : This module introduces you to a diverse range of texts in English (prose, poetry, and film) with a focus on texts published since 2000. Texts will be chosen to provoke thinking and debate on urgent and controversial topics that might include: globalisation and neoliberalism; ecology and animal lives; artificial intelligence and the posthuman; political activism and social justice; migration and displacement; state violence and armed conflict. We will discuss formally and conceptually challenging works, raise ethical and philosophical questions and begin to discover how current critical and theoretical approaches can help us to engage with contemporary texts.

**20 credits**

Hybrid Forms: Reading Genre : This module gives you the opportunity to study developments in comedy and tragedy from classical antiquity to the present day. This focus on genre enables you to take a comparative approach to literary analysis, setting works of classical antiquity alongside those of the early modern, modern, and contemporary worlds. As such, the module equips you to draw connections between periods studied separately at different points of your degree and between disparate forms, e.g. drama and the novel. Over the course of this module we will consider questions such as: what is genre, and why is it important? How does genre reflect or respond to historical change? Is there any such thing as a 'pure' genre or is hybridization a defining feature of genre itself? We will answer these questions by reading texts by authors such as Angela Carter, Noel Coward, Plautus, Arundhati Roy, Shakespeare, Sophocles, and Michaela Coel.

**20 credits**

Wonders, Warriors, and Werewolves: Intro to Medieval Literature and Language : This module is of particular interest to anyone who wants to know more about the first c.900 years of English literature and language. We will analyse a wide range of the earliest English literary texts (c. 600-1500), including the oldest known English poem and the first autobiographical work by a woman, covering texts that are well known (e.g. Chaucer's Canterbury Tales) and texts that you will probably never encounter elsewhere. You will look at Old English texts (in translation) and Middle English texts (in translation or in the original with notes and glosses as appropriate).\ \ We will open up discussions around issues that preoccupied the English of the time, from glorious monster-slaying to the first expressions of love and desire, from religious devotion to comedy, from the power of insults to the status of English in a multilingual society. You will investigate medieval English literature in an international context, explore medieval worldviews and how they might differ from modern ones, query what it means when we say something is medieval, and explore some medieval afterlives.\ \

**20 credits**

Reading Theatre and Film : This core module explores the development of theatre and film from 1900 to the present, tracking that journey through a series of canonical and counter-canonical examples from each medium. These two art forms have much that connects them as representational, performance-based and commercial cultural practices, but also much that separates them as human, technical and technological spectacles. The module offers a practical introduction to theatre and film criticism, theory and interpretation that will help to interrogate such medial distinctions as well as their common ground. By means of weekly lectures and seminar-workshops, you will encounter a wide range of plays and films, located in their original historical, ideological and aesthetic contexts but equally considered for their afterlife, relevance and currency today.

**20 credits**

Myth, Scripture and Story: Biblical and Classical Sources in English Literature : The Bible, Greek and Roman mythology, represent some of the central sources for European literary imaginations. In this module you will explore the range of literature indebted to biblical and classical literature, themes, and characters. Featuring a range of lecturers from across the School of English, the module will help you learn to think critically about biblical and classical themes such as divine destruction, love, gender, homecoming, colonialism, nostalgia, and empire, and read a variety of authors, from Amelia Lanyer and Shakespeare to Derek Walcott and Margaret Atwood. When we understand the ways in which biblical and classical writers shaped their narratives, and how creative authors revised, resisted or radicalised their themes, we have several important keys to unlock crucial facets of English literary tradition.

**20 credits**

The Creative Writing Lab : The aim of this unit is to help you to develop your expressive and technical skills in writing poetry and prose and to improve your abilities as an editor and critic of your own and other people's writing. You will be guided in the production of new work and encouraged to develop an analytical awareness of both the craft elements and the wider cultural and theoretical contexts of writing. This module explores poetic and prose techniques for creating new poems and narrative techniques for generating some prose work through the critical study of published examples, imaginative exercises, discussion and feedback on your own writing. This exploration will help you develop your own creative work while sharpening critical appreciation of published poetry and modern and contemporary fiction. The course is designed to give you the experience of being workshopped as well as to establish basic creative writing techniques at Level 1 in preparation for the challenges of Creative Writing Level 2 and/or 3.

**20 credits**

Darwin, Marx, Freud : This course is structured around the writings of Darwin, Marx, Freud. We will consider selections from all three philosophers' writings, such as, for example, Darwin's The Origin of Species; cover key concepts from Marx's work—commodity fetishism; alienation—and investigate Freud's philosophy of the subject through selected readings from his writings. We will dismantle cultural prejudice and engage with, and in, revolutionary thinking. This course will prepare you for modules like Critical and Literary Thought but, most importantly, it will help you become critical, potentially revolutionary, thinkers.

**20 credits**

Linguistics pathway core modules:

Sounds and Structures of English : This module is an introduction to the subdisciplines of linguistics known as phonetics and phonology (sounds), and morphology, syntax, and semantics (structures). The module is designed to provide you with an understanding of the key concepts and terminology necessary to describe and explain sounds and structures of English, and of other languages. Lectures will cover major topics in the formal descriptions of speech sounds and morpho-syntax. Seminar activities will help equip you with the practical skills necessary to accurately describe and transcribe speech sounds, and to analyse word and sentence structure and meaning. The module serves as an essential basis for more advanced study across linguistic subdisciplines.

**20 credits**

Linguistic Theory : This module explores how language is structured by examining central issues in linguistic theory, building upon the concepts introduced in EGH122 Sounds and Structures of English. Students will be instructed in (1) foundational theories and concepts in areas such as phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, (2) the linguistic evidence that informs these approaches, (3) the analytical techniques required to apply these theories to language data, and (4) the relevance of such theoretical models for the wider study of language. This inclusive module will develop analytical tools and problem-solving skills in using linguistic theory, training students to think critically to interpret data from any language within theoretical frameworks.

**20 credits**

Linguistics pathway optional modules:

History of English : What is English? Taking this question as a point of departure, this module introduces you to the exceptionally dynamic linguistic history of English. Moving chronologically from pre-history, through medieval Englishes (Old and Middle) and into modern varieties (including post-colonial Englishes like American), you'll track changing linguistic forms and functions (words, sounds, grammar) and learn to contextualize these within their historical moments. We will discuss language external social dimensions, such as language contact (with Celtic, Norse, French and other languages), imperialism and racism, and engage with these critically using linguistic knowledge gained through detailed analysis of historical examples. You will also learn valuable skills in using online resources for linguistic study and how to handle complex data in a digital age. To be clear: this is not just a module about old forms of language (although there is plenty of that!) - it's about gaining historical linguistic perspective on current Englishes (including related Creoles) and their place within a much bigger story.

**20 credits**

Early Englishes : This module is of particular interest to anyone who wants to know more about the first 1000 years of English language and literature. Early Englishes works backward over a whole millennium of English, 1600 to 600. Each week's lectures and seminar focus on one century and one text representative of that century (for example, Margery Kempe's Book, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, and Beowulf). We will use a variety of techniques - literary, linguistic, anthropological, cultural-historical - to analyse each text, thereby opening up discussion of issues that preoccupied the English of the time, from glorious monster-slaying to the first expressions of love and desire, from religious devotion to comedy, from the power of insults to the status of English. We will investigate international influences on English language and literature, explore medieval worldviews and how they might differ from modern ones, and query what it means when we say something is medieval. No prior knowledge of Old or Middle English is necessary; students will be given the opportunity to examine texts in the original language but where necessary translations will be provided.

**20 credits**

Language and Creativity : Creativity is a core property of human language use. Speakers of English and all other languages can use their knowledge of the language to produce endless utterances that have never been heard before. What's more, listeners can understand these utterances, despite the fact that they are completely new. In this module you will learn about the creative dimensions of human language through a series of practical experiments, writing and rewriting texts and reflecting on what that process teaches us. You don't have to be 'good at creative writing' to do this. The focus isn't on producing wonderful poems and stories but rather on learning about language through creative experimentation - through a process of doing and then thinking about what you've done. We'll look at creative language use in a range of everyday contexts and we'll think about popular forms of writing like comics, interactive digital narratives, science fiction, and children's literature.\ \ Learning by doing is an important aspect of many jobs, especially the ones that English graduates often go into, and so the experience this module offers will stand you in good stead for later life. The creative properties of language use are also important for the communication of identity and there will be plenty of opportunity to think about this in relation to aspects of identity that are important to you.\ \ By taking this module you will learn more about language by actually using it, a process that is both rewarding and fun

**20 credits**

Living Englishes : Discover the extraordinary diversity of English today! This module explores varieties of English in Britain and worldwide, shaped by expansion, colonialism, and globalisation. You'll analyse spoken and written language using linguistic tools, gaining insight into sociolinguistic and ideological issues. From local dialects to global Englishes, you'll engage with language in real-world contexts while developing key transferable skills in communication, analysis, and reflection. Perfect for students excited to explore language variation and its impact on society.

**20 credits**

Style in Language : This module introduces students to stylistic variation in language, exploring the varied ways in which linguistic choices contribute to meaning and effect. We will examine a wide range of different text types, including literary narratives, journalism, advertising, political speeches, poetry and song lyrics, drama and screenplays. We will move beyond basic grammatical analysis to consider the functional, contextual, and generic dimensions of language use. We will apply relevant linguistic concepts and theories to the study of stylistic phenomena including register, sentence structure, deixis, lexical choice, parallelism, narrative structure, transitivity, and metaphor. Students will be equipped with the practical tools necessary to investigate the relationships between style and effect in a rigorous, retrievable, and replicable way, and gain hands-on experience using their analytical, critical, and interpretative skills.

**20 credits**

Core music modules

Digital Skills for Music : The module aims to develop your confidence and technical expertise with a range of technologies of value to academic and professional practice. Lectures will introduce fundamental principles and specific technologies for use in researching, creating and producing music. These technologies will then be applied in the production of a collaborative project, helping students to develop team work and interpersonal skills that will serve them in subsequent levels of study and professional practice. \ \ Indicative areas of study include audio recording and production, sound design, computational literacy, data analysis, the ethics of artificial intelligence, effective group work, research management and productivity.

**20 credits**

History of Western Music : This module provides an overview of some of the key issues in the history of Western art music, as well as the historical context surrounding them. A range of approaches to the study of music history will be considered, giving you an introduction to the discipline of musicology. The module will also develop your ability to write about music and use primary and secondary sources to inform critical discussions.

**20 credits**

Optional music modules:

Composition : In this module you will develop your composition skills, practice writing music in staff notation, and learn to write effectively for different instrumental and vocal forces. Drawing on the models of a diverse range of classical composers of the 20th and 21st centuries, we will focus on techniques for writing inventive melodies and rhythms, and employing wide-ranging approaches to harmony. The module aims to give you a foundation in composition and increase your confidence in preparation for further study.

**20 credits**

Popular Music Studies : This module provides an introduction to the academic study of popular music. You will explore key approaches to studying popular music in its socio-cultural contexts, investigating major issues and debates. Lecture materials and in-class tasks will engage with approaches to the analysis of popular music and media, issues of representation, authenticity, identity, technology and industry. The module is delivered via lectures and group tasks to encourage interaction and collaboration between students. Assessments are designed to allow you to apply key analytical and theoretical frameworks to music of your own choosing, testing both your individual skills and knowledge alongside group work and collaboration.

**20 credits**

Music in a Global Context : Whatever kind of music study you decide to specialise in, you'll do it better if you see it in the context of music as a phenomenon common to all humanity. You'll understand what's different about your own chosen field but also how the music you love derives from diverse cultural sources. In this module we examine how any music uses specific ways of organising sound to serve particular cultural purposes. You'll learn to recognise and describe diverse musical styles, research them through scholarly sources, present an analysis using appropriate audio-visual technology, and take control of the transferable skills you're developing.

**20 credits**

Performance : In this module you will develop the musical and intellectual abilities appropriate to solo performance. The theoretical background is considered, focusing on the aural and analytical skills essential to performance at an advanced level. An awareness of style and interpretation, as well as effective preparation and communication are built into teaching. You will receive one to one tuition in addition to attending whole class performance lectures.

**20 credits**

Music Analysis : This module aims to introduce, develop and refine ways of thinking, listening and writing about western music.  You will learn to listen to and analyze harmonic, tonal, motivic, thematic, melodic, rhythmic, textural and formal features of a range of western music genres, such as Common Practice harmonic principles, Medieval counterpoint, jazz standards and rock'n'roll.  By using analytical techniques to reveal distinctive structural characteristics across multiple styles of music, this module not only prepares you for western-music-based modules at FHEQ levels 5 and 6  but also provides new models of approaching music that can be applied in wider creative and empirical contexts.

**20 credits**

Psychological Foundations of Music : Music Psychology offers insights, ways of thinking, reflective tools and methods to understand the foundations of musical behaviour, learning and thought. This module offers the foundation to students to be able to engage with the literature, knowledge and underpinning techniques in this area. Learning about psychology of music will help you engage with some of the most provocative questions about musicality, such as what enables our capacity for music, why we respond emotionally to music, whether music makes us smarter, and what underlies therapeutic applications of music for health and wellbeing?

**20 credits**

Try a new subject: The flexible structure of your first year at Sheffield means that you also have the chance to experience modules from outside of English and Music - you can choose up to 40 credits of modules from a list approved by the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. A final guided module list is made available to new students when you select your modules as part of registration.

Second year

In your second year, you'll deepen your understanding of both English and Music. For English, you'll continue to specialise in either Linguistics or Literature, building on the foundational knowledge you gained in your first year. Across both subjects, you'll engage with materials in greater detail and further develop your research skills.

Example core modules:

You’ll also have the opportunity to enhance your knowledge through a range of optional modules, such as Performance and Improvisation, Shakespeare, Phonology and Sociolinguistics.

Third year

In your third year, you'll hone your skills and become an expert in your chosen English pathway (either Linguistics or Literature) and Music, putting what you’ve learnt into practice with your final project.

Example core modules:

You’ll also have the opportunity to enhance your knowledge through a range of optional modules, which may include: Sound and Moving Image, Renaissance Literature, Modern Crisis, Historical Pragmatics, TESOL, Orchestration and Arrangement and Psychology for Musicians.

The content of our courses is reviewed annually to make sure it's up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn. This is in response to discoveries through our world-leading research; funding changes; professional accreditation requirements; student or employer feedback; outcomes of reviews; and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change we will inform students and take reasonable steps to minimise disruption.

Learning and assessment

Learning

You'll learn through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops, interactive classes and tutorials, and you'll be expected to carry out independent study, assignments and instrument practice.

Instrumental lessons are available in your first year and throughout the rest of your degree if you choose to take assessed performance modules.

We invest to create the right environment for you. That means outstanding facilities, study spaces and support, including 24/7 access to our online library service.

Study spaces and computers are available to offer you choice and flexibility for your study. Our five library sites give you access to over one million books and periodicals. You can access your library account and our rich digital collections from anywhere on or off campus. Other library services include study skills training to improve your grades, and tailored advice from experts in your subject.

Learning support facilities and library opening hours

You'll be taught by world-leading experts in both departments. Our staff are researchers, critics, and writers, as well as passionate, dedicated teachers who work tirelessly to ensure their students are inspired.

Staff research directly informs the content of our degrees and we bring our expertise and ideas into all our teaching, so you’ll benefit from being introduced to the latest discoveries at the forefront of English and musical research.

Assessment

In addition to writing essays and more traditional exams, we use a range of innovative assessments that can include

Entry requirements

With Access Sheffield, you could qualify for additional consideration or an alternative offer - find out if you're eligible.

Standard offer

The A Level entry requirements for this course are:\ ABB \ including Music

A Levels + a fourth Level 3 qualification : BBB, including Music + B in a relevant EPQ

International Baccalaureate : 33, with 5 in Higher Level Music; 32, with 5 in Higher Level Music, and B in a relevant extended essay

BTEC Extended Diploma : DDD in Music

BTEC Diploma : DD in Music + B at A Level; DD + B in A Level Music

Scottish Highers : AAABB including Music

Welsh Baccalaureate + 2 A Levels : B + AB, including Music

Access to HE Diploma : Award of the Access to HE Diploma in a relevant subject, with 45 credits at Level 3, including 30 at Distinction and 15 at Merit

Routes for mature students

Other requirements

Access Sheffield offer

The A Level entry requirements for this course are:\ BBB \ including Music

A Levels + a fourth Level 3 qualification : BBB, including Music + B in a relevant EPQ

International Baccalaureate : 32, with 5 in Higher Level Music

BTEC Extended Diploma : DDM in Music

BTEC Diploma : DD in Music + B at A Level; DD + B in A Level Music

Scottish Highers : AABBB including Music

Welsh Baccalaureate + 2 A Levels : B + BB, including Music

Access to HE Diploma : Award of the Access to HE Diploma in a relevant subject, with 45 credits at Level 3, including 24 at Distinction and 21 at Merit

Routes for mature students

Other requirements

English language requirements | 

You must demonstrate that your English is good enough for you to successfully complete your course. For this course we require: GCSE English Language at grade 4/C; IELTS grade of 7.0 with a minimum of 6.5 in each component; or an alternative acceptable English language qualification

Equivalent English language qualifications

Visa and immigration requirements

Other qualifications | UK and EU/international

Pathway programme for international students

If you're an international student who does not meet the entry requirements for this course, you have the opportunity to apply for an International Foundation Year in Business, Social Sciences and Humanities at the University of Sheffield International College. This course is designed to develop your English language and academic skills. Upon successful completion, you can progress to degree level study at the University of Sheffield.

If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the school.

Graduate careers

Our graduates have gone one to find success in a number of different industries including:

School of English

The academic aptitude and personal skills that you develop on your degree will make you highly prized by employers, whatever your chosen career path after university:

Our graduates are confident and articulate. They have highly developed communication skills, equipping them for a wide range of careers in journalism, the charity sector, marketing and communications, theatre and television production, PR, copywriting, publishing, teaching, web development, accountancy, and speech and language therapy, among other fields.

Many of our students go on to postgraduate study, research, and an academic career.

Your career - the School of English

School of Languages, Arts and Societies

The musical excellence and academic aptitude you develop on your course makes you highly valued by employers. In addition to a rich stream of specialized technical skills, you'll develop your time management, critical thinking and interpersonal communication in order to present yourself with confidence and collaborate effectively.

There are lots of opportunities to get work experience. Hands-on projects are integrated into several academic modules and every year our Concerts team provides internships while the Careers Service can help you find placements. You can lead a music project or workshop in a local school through our student-led volunteering organisation Music in the City. All of these experiences will help you build a compelling CV.

Our graduates work with prestigious orchestras and music institutions within the UK and globally, in roles ranging from performing and conducting to administration and education. Sheffield music graduates have also forged successful careers in other fields, from audio programming to marketing and management.

Graduate job roles include:

[Say yes to every music making opportunity you can while at university, even if it’s something a little out of your comfort zone

George Morton

Department of Music, \ BMus Music, MMus Composition and Performance](https://sheffield.ac.uk/las/postgraduate/student-profiles/george)

School of English

Creative, critical, community-minded, and collaborative, the School of English at the University of Sheffield is one of the largest English departments in the UK.

We're a research-intensive school with an international perspective on English studies. 90% of our research is rated as world-leading (REF 2021).

During your time with us, you’ll have the opportunity to join a vibrant student community and get involved in hundreds of societies, including our English Society.

You'll study in our Jessop Building, Soundhouse, and Performance facilities, which are specially designed for cutting-edge research and teaching.

Based at the heart of the campus, you'll have access to multi-purpose ensemble and practice rooms, technology labs and recording studios. The University also has a suite of performance venues which provide a platform for bands, solo recitals and public events.

School of English

\ \

School of Languages, Arts and Societies

1st in the Russell Group for academic support and student voice

National Student Survey (NSS) 2025

3rd in the UK for music

The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024

Ranked 6th nationally for the quality of our research environment

Research Excellence Framework 2021

An All-Steinway School

The University of Sheffield is proud to be an All-Steinway School

Our school ethos combines high achievement with a sense of community and a shared passion for music. Our internationally recognised research informs our high-quality teaching and our student experience is second to none.

Sheffield is celebrated as one of the UK's leading music cities, with dozens of major venues from the City Hall, the Crucible, the Lyceum, the Lescar, the Greystones and the Foundry, covering all music genres. This brings with it a host of opportunities for our students to get involved in professional music-making of the highest quality.

You can also enjoy events from University of Sheffield Concerts which hosts concerts and masterclasses from touring professional musicians throughout the year.

Music students study at the heart of the campus in our Jessop Building, Soundhouse and performance facilities. We timetable teaching across the whole of our campus.

Facilities

Specially designed for music study, our £8.5m facilities provide the ideal environment for our diverse and cutting-edge teaching and research.

The University of Sheffield are proud to be an All-Steinway School, which places us among a select group of international education institutions. This accreditation means that you'll have access to pianos of the highest quality.

The Jessop Building houses study and rehearsal rooms, with dedicated specialist spaces including our historical instruments collection, ethnomusicology space and collection, music psychology lab and music technology lab.

The Soundhouse is our purpose-built facility for instrumental lessons, practice, small-scale rehearsals and sound recording, and houses the internationally-renowned University of Sheffield Sound Studios for recording and electroacoustic composition.

The University of Sheffield is also home to a suite of performance spaces, including the beautiful 380-seater Firth Hall, set in the stunning Edwardian Grade II listed Firth Court and home to the University’s multi-genre Concert Series.

School of Languages, Arts and Societies

University rankings

A world top-100 university\ QS World University Rankings 2026 (92nd)

Number one in the Russell Group (based on aggregate responses)\ National Student Survey 2025

92 per cent of our research is rated as world-leading or internationally excellent\ Research Excellence Framework 2021

University of the Year for Student Experience\ The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026

Number one Students' Union in the UK\ Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2024, 2023, 2022, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017

Number one for Students' Union\ StudentCrowd 2025 University Awards

20th in the UK targeted by the largest number of Top 100 Employers in 2025-26\ High Fliers 2026

Student profiles

[The variety and flexibility leads to an enriching course

River Ciccone

First-year student, \ BA English and Music](https://sheffield.ac.uk/english/undergraduate/student-profiles/river-ciccone)

Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees

Fee status help

Additional costs

The annual fee for your course includes a number of items in addition to your tuition. If an item or activity is classed as a compulsory element for your course, it will normally be included in your tuition fee. There are also other costs which you may need to consider.

Examples of what’s included and excluded

Funding your study

Depending on your circumstances, you may qualify for a bursary, scholarship or loan to help fund your study and enhance your learning experience.

Use our Student Funding Calculator to work out what you’re eligible for.

£2,500 per year scholarships for international students

We're offering automatic scholarships worth up to £10,000 to overseas fee-paying students starting their studies in September 2026 - no additional application required.

Additional funding

The School of Languages, Arts and Societies offers a number of music scholarships. These can include scholarships in partnership with local music organisations, giving you a chance to gain advanced work experience within the music sector while studying.

Alternatively, we can offer bursaries donated by alumni to help support you with your studies. Both single honours BMus students and dual honours students with music are eligible to apply. For a full list of scholarships and prizes available, please visit our scholarships page.

Placements and study abroad

Placement

You may have the opportunity to add an optional placement year as part of your course, converting the three-year course to a four-year Degree with Placement Year.

A placement year will help you to:

There are other opportunities to get work experience, with hands-on projects integrated into several of our academic modules. You can join our student-led volunteering organisation, English in the City, and take part in activities that bring topics in English studies to local school children.

In addition, you could lead activities with local schools through Music in the City, or release music through our department record label, Octagon Records. The University of Sheffield Concert Series also offers internships training you in music management skills.

All of these experiences will help you build a compelling CV.

Study abroad

Spending time abroad during your degree is a great way to explore different cultures, gain a new perspective and experience a life-changing opportunity that you will never forget.

You can apply to extend this course with a year abroad, usually between the second and third year. We have over 250 University partners worldwide. Popular destinations include Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.

Find out more on the Global Opportunities website.

Visit

University open days

We host five open days each year, usually in June, July, September, October and November. You can talk to staff and students, tour the campus and see inside the accommodation.

Open days: book your place

Online events

Join our weekly Sheffield Live online sessions to find out more about different aspects of University life.

Sheffield Live online events

Subject tasters

If you’re considering your post-16 options, our interactive subject tasters are for you. There are a wide range of subjects to choose from and you can attend sessions online or on campus.

Upcoming taster sessions

Offer holder days

If you've received an offer to study with us, we'll invite you to one of our offer holder days, which take place between February and April. These open days have a strong department focus and give you the chance to really explore student life here, even if you've visited us before.

Campus tours

Our weekly guided tours show you what Sheffield has to offer - both on campus and beyond. You can extend your visit with tours of our city, accommodation or sport facilities.

Campus tour: book your place

Apply

Make sure you've done everything you need to do before you apply.

How to apply When you're ready to apply, see the UCAS website:\ www.ucas.com

Not ready to apply yet? You can also register your interest in this course.

Contact us

Start a conversation with us – you can get in touch by email, telephone or online chat.

Contacts for prospective students

School of English

The awarding body for this course is the University of Sheffield.

Recognition of professional qualifications: from 1 January 2021, in order to have any UK professional qualifications recognised for work in an EU country across a number of regulated and other professions you need to apply to the host country for recognition. Read information from the UK government and the EU Regulated Professions Database.

Any supervisors and research areas listed are indicative and may change before the start of the course.

Our student protection plan

Terms and Conditions upon Acceptance of an Offer

2026-2027

Make sure you've done everything you need to do before you apply.

How to apply When you're ready to apply, see the UCAS website:\ www.ucas.com

Not ready to apply yet? You can also register your interest in this course.

The English and Music dual honours degree allows you to pursue your creative and critical passions across the arts. Through practical activities such as creative writing, music composition, and performance, you’ll develop your skills as both a writer and a musician. Through analysis of language, texts, theatre, film, scores, and recordings, you’ll gain a critical understanding of English and Music and how they work together.

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