Student review [#27151] for Arts
at University of Leeds

I just finished my second year studying a BA in English Literature and Theatre Studies at the University of Leeds.

What I like most about my program is that I get to experience both the theoretical and practical sides of the studies in Humanities. On the one hand, the on-campus libraries offer many resources to deepen my ever-growing interest in English Literature. Moreover, my English seminar leaders have always pushed me to become more vocal about my opinions and encouraged my passion for studying the writers of the romantic period (I find them fascinating and the module dedicated to them is outstanding). What is special about my double degree is that I have the chance to use the Theatre spaces provided by the University to put into practice the school’s teachings. I love to take part in practical performance workshops and observe theatre companies up close.

However, I must admit that the School of English at the University is very much underfunded and so many of our teachers take part in strikes. It is not that I do not agree with their motives, but our degree already has very few in-person sessions and the absence of our professors leads to many missed taught classes. This means that since Humanities relies on a lot of independent learning sometimes I need to teach myself entire sections of a module. While this unfortunate circumstance has helped me become more curious and self-sufficient (especially during the pandemic), I really wish that more attention would be provided by the teaching board to us students and our struggles.