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Fees and Funding

UK & EU Fee

£9,000 (2013/14)

Overseas Fee

£14,750 (2013/14)

General Funding Notes

Details about financial support are available at: www.ucl.ac.uk/study/ug-finance

Specific Funding Notes

Four Ian Karten Scholarships of £1,000 are available to prospective graduate students in the Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies. The application deadline is 1st June.

Contacts

Admissions Tutor

Dr Lily Kahn

Email: l.kahn@ucl.ac.uk

Tel: +44 (0)20 7679 7171

Key Facts

Research Assessment Exercise

70% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
(What is the RAE?)

Departmental website

Hebrew and Jewish Studies

More Information

Prospectus subject entry

Hebrew and Jewish Studies

Prospectus faculty entry

Arts and Humanities

Other Related Programmes

Jewish History BA

UCAS Code: V290

This four-year BA introduces students to the history of diverse Jewish communities from antiquity to the present, in a wide variety of cultural, economic, geographical and political contexts, and provides training in the reading and interpretation of a variety of historical sources in their original Jewish languages.

Entry Requirements

A Levels

Grades ABB
Subjects Foreign language and History preferred.
AS Levels A pass in a further subject at AS level or equivalent is required.
GCSEs English Language at grade B, plus Mathematics at grade C. For UK-based students, a grade C or equivalent in a foreign language (other than Ancient Greek, Biblical Hebrew or Latin) is required. UCL provides opportunities to meet the foreign language requirement following enrolment, further details at: www.ucl.ac.uk/ug-reqs

IB Diploma

Points 34
Subjects A score of 16 points in three higher level subjects preferably including a foreign language and History, with no score lower than 5.

Other Qualifications

For entry requirements with other UK qualifications accepted by UCL, choose your qualification from the list below:

Selected entry requirements will appear here

International Qualifications

International Qualifications

In addition to A level and International Baccalaureate, UCL considers a wide range of international qualifications for entry to its undergraduate degree programmes.

Selected country's equivalent grades will appear here

University Preparatory Certificates

UCL offers intensive one-year foundation courses to prepare international students for a variety of degree programmes at UCL.

The University Preparatory Certificates (UPCs) are for international students of high academic potential who are aiming to gain access to undergraduate degree programmes at UCL and other top UK universities.

For more information see our website: www.ucl.ac.uk/upc

English Language Requirements

If English is not your first language you will also need to satisfy UCL's English Language Requirements. A variety of English language programmes are offered at the UCL Centre for Languages & International Education.

Degree Summary

Degree Benefits

  • We teach both classical and modern languages, including Classical Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Sumerian, Modern Hebrew and Yiddish, as well as courses in Jewish history, politics and culture.
  • UCL's Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies is the only one of its kind in the UK, and is highly regarded worldwide.
  • Access to a remarkable collection of Hebrew, Yiddish and Judaica books in the UCL Library; and to the special collections in the British Library, Wiener Library and the National Archives.
  • Spend your third year at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, following a tightly structured full-time programme. While in Jerusalem you can take up internships in fields such as archaeology or politics.

In the first year you follow a compulsory set of courses, providing an overview of the subject which allows you to identify your own areas of specialist interest for later study. In subsequent years you choose from our diverse range of courses encompassing a vast chronological and geographical span and also an array of disciplinary approaches, such as history, literature, philology, gender studies and politics. A minimum of three of your total 16 course credits must be language and text-based courses. Your third year is spent at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and you return to UCL for your final year.

Your Learning

The department uses a variety of teaching methods; classes are mostly small and intimate, encouraging active participation by the students. Modern language study includes language laboratory work, oral work, reading comprehension, listening comprehension and translation exercises. All other subjects are taught by lectures and seminars.

Assessment

Most courses are assessed by an end-of-year written examination, several essays and/or other types of coursework. Modern language courses are also assessed by oral examinations.

Degree Structure

In each year of your degree you will take a number of individual courses, normally valued at 0.5 or 1.0 credits, adding up to a total of 4.0 credits for the year. Courses are assessed in the academic year in which they are taken. The balance of compulsory and optional courses varies from programme to programme and year to year. A 1.0 credit is considered equivalent to 15 credits in the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS).

Year One

Compulsory courses

A Survey of Jewish History and Culture in the First Millennium B.C.E.
A Survey of Jewish History and Culture in the First Millennium C.E.
A Survey of Jewish History and Culture from 1000 to 1800 C.E.
A Survey of Jewish History and Culture from 1800 to the Present
Introduction to Classical Hebrew 1
Modern Hebrew for Beginners

Optional courses

All first year courses are compulsory.

Year Two

Compulsory courses

Lower Intermediate Modern Hebrew

Optional courses

You will select 3.0 credits from a wide range of optional courses in the following areas: Hebrew, Yiddish, and other Jewish languages; Jewish history and culture; literature; and politics. Alternatively, 1.0 credit can be selected from another subject area by arrangement with the relevant department.

Year Three

Year abroad at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Final Year

Compulsory courses

All final year courses are optional.

Optional courses

You will select 4.0 credits from a wide range of options in the following areas: Hebrew, Yiddish and other Jewish languages; Jewish history and culture; literature; and politics. A minimum of five optional courses taken must be language and text based courses across the four years of the programme.

Further details available on degree page of subject website:

Your Career

Skills such as critical thinking, oral and written communication and time-management are developed throughout the programme and are beneficial for any career.

A significant number of our graduates choose to pursue further study, either continuing within the field or to train in law or teaching. Others have taken up employment in diverse fields including the Diplomatic Service (British and foreign), the United Nations, the financial sector and in journalism.

Destinations

First career destinations of recent graduates (2009-2011) of this programme, and of related Hebrew and Jewish Studies programmes, include:

  • Charity Manager, The Big Give (2011)
  • Teacher, Yavneh College (2011)
  • Full-time student, Graduate Diploma in Law at BPP Law School (2009)
  • Personal Assistant, Liberal Judaism (2009)

Find out more about London graduates' careers by visiting the Careers Group (University of London) website:

Application

Your Application

In your application we will be particularly interested in your motivation to study Jewish history, and of your interest in broad matters of language, literature and culture. We will also be interested to learn of experiences you may have had relating to Jewish Studies, such as courses attended, museums visited, travel, and wider reading.

How to Apply

Application for admission should be made through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). Applicants currently at school or college will be provided with advice on the process; however, applicants who have left school or who are based outside the United Kingdom may obtain information directly from UCAS.

Selection

If your application is being actively considered, and you are resident in the UK, you will be invited for an informal discussion and a visit to the department including a tour of UCL. Applicants resident outside the UK are welcome to arrange a visit to UCL but are not required to do so.

The department strives to attract students from a diversity of backgrounds as our degree programmes represent a range of cultures, ethnicities and religions. Consequently, we do not require you to have any prior knowledge of Hebrew, nor are you expected to have a Jewish background.