History

Tuition

The four Fellows and Tutors in History and one Fellow and Tutor in Ancient History form one of the largest establishments in the subject among the Oxford Colleges and regard themselves as heirs of a remarkable scholarly tradition in their subject in the College, represented in medieval studies by K.B. McFarlane, Karl Leyser, and Gerald Harriss, and in more modern fields by J.M. Thompson, A.J.P. Taylor, A.D. Macintyre, and John Stoye.

The Tutors in History (with their teaching areas) are:

Prof Laurence Brockliss (European and British history, 16th-18th centuries)
Dr John Nightingale (medieval European and British history)
Prof Nick Stargardt (19th and 20th century European history)
Dr Matt Houlbrook (19th and 20th century British history)

Their aim is to attract pupils from the widest possible range of backgrounds and to help them to fulfill their potential as historians. The tutors provide tuition within college for the papers on British history from the early medieval period to the late 20th century and for a wide range of periods of General (i.e. non-British) history. In addition, the tutors teach a large number of the specialist options based on primary sources. The tutors are particularly keen that the four subjects taken by undergraduates in their first year, leading to the first public examination (the Preliminary Examination in History, known as ‘Prelims’) are taught in College.

Course outline

a) History

For Prelims, undergraduates are required to study one of the seven periods of British history, one of the four periods of General history, an Optional Subject in British or General history, and one of a range of historiographical and skills-based courses. For the Final Honour School (second and third years), undergraduates study a self-chosen mixture of two papers, one in British and one in General history, a paper on Disciplines in History, and a Special Subject and a Further Subject. They also have to research and write a dissertation of about 12,000 words on a subject of their choice. The Special and Further Subjects are based on detailed work with primary sources, and a wide variety of options are available. It is possible also to submit an additional voluntary thesis. Although a foreign language text paper is no longer compulsory in either Prelims or Finals, the tutors at Magdalen encourage their pupils to consider taking one or more of these (for Prelims, a decent GCSE level standard is usually sufficient). They provide tuition in the medieval Latin, Italian, French and German historical text papers in Prelims and can arrange tuition in other language papers; they encourage History undergraduates in the active use of a foreign language or languages in their work, since this extends the range of their choice of options and greatly deepens the interest of the course.

b) Joint Schools of History with Ancient History, Modern Languages, and Politics

In addition to the course in History, there are three joint courses – Ancient and Modern History, History and Modern Languages, and History and Politics – which are enthusiastically supported and taught by the College tutors in Modern Languages, Ancient History, Politics and History. The standard of admission is neither higher nor lower in these joint courses than in History on its own. The syllabuses of these courses consist of a wide range of choices broadly taken from the syllabuses of the ‘parent’ Schools, details of which are set out in the University Undergraduate Prospectus and in the University Examination Decrees. In each of these joint courses, the balance of the course can be adjusted to suit individual tastes and talents. (For Ancient and Modern History, see separate entry.)

No. of students admitted per year

For History, the annual intake is approximately 12, so that there are at least 36 undergraduates reading History at any one time. This makes it the largest subject intake in the College and larger than that of virtually every other College in the University. For the joint Schools, intake depends on quality of applications, but there is always at least one place available for Ancient and Modern History, and History and Modern Languages, and at least two for History and Politics. (Those reading History and Modern Languages generally take the third year abroad in the same way as those reading Modern Languages.)

Entry requirements

The tutors do not wish to prescribe particular A2 or AS level combinations and are open-minded about different combinations, provided that, in normal circumstances, History is one of the subjects studied at A2. Applicants who have included one or more of the following in their combination of A2 and A/S subjects may find that they are able to develop these interests in the framework of a History Joint School: English, Mathematics, Modern Languages, Classical Languages, Politics, Economics and Sociology.


Entry procedure

All candidates in History and the Joint Schools applying to Oxford must take the University’s History Aptitude Test (HAT). Details, including information on how to register for the test, are available on the Undergraduate Admissions website at: HAT, and on the History Faculty’s website: http://www.history.ox.ac.uk/prosundergrad/applying/hat_introduction.htm

All candidates to Magdalen must also submit three copies of one recent school essay prepared in their own time which should reach the College by the 10th November. For candidates taking History at A2, this must be an A2-level homework essay. The essay should be written in English, even if the candidate comes from a country in which English is not the first language. The topic covered in the submitted work will provide a starting point for discussion in one of the two interviews candidates will receive in Magdalen. Written work copies should be secured with paperclips only and have a completed cover sheet. Neither interview will contain reference to the candidate’s performance in the History Aptitude Test. In both interviews candidates will also be asked to read a short passage or study a statistical table or illustration in the half hour prior to the interview. This will then be discussed with them in the course of the interview. Candidates will be evaluated on the basis of their GCSE results, their performance in the History Aptitude Test, their submitted essay, UCAS report and interview performance. Magdalen candidates are sometimes asked to come to Oxford for interview one day earlier than the officially announced date.

Deferred entry

By the test of experience, the tutors have found that deferred entry is not always in candidates’ best long-term interests. They are entirely ready to discuss possible deferred entry with a candidate, but will need to be convinced that clear and useful plans for the year have been made. Please note that applications for deferred entry cannot normally be considered in the Joint Schools of Ancient and Modern History, and History and Modern Languages.

Enquiries

The tutors welcome enquiries by letter from candidates or schools about all these courses and about the College. They strongly prefer to see candidates both individually and in groups during the annual Open Days; if there are exceptional reasons for being unable to attend them, they will do their best to see candidates individually but cannot guarantee to be able to do so.

The future beyond a History course

Judging by the variety and success of our pupils’ subsequent careers, e.g. in a wide range of commercial and industrial companies, both branches of the legal profession, teaching at all levels, the Civil Service and the EC, the arts, journalism, accountancy and banking, it is clear that employers in many different fields value the intellectual qualities required of historians: a clear and flexible mind, the ability to absorb and analyse widely differing kinds of information, imagination and linguistic skills.

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