American Studies and History

American Studies and History is a combination that examines the culture, politics, and global influence of the United States through an interdisciplinary lens, situating American experience within the broader histories of Britain, Europe, and the wider world. America Studies is concerned with what the United States has been and what it has meant, examining its literature, film, politics, popular culture, and social movements as cultural and historical phenomena. History provides the analytical framework and the evidential rigour to set those phenomena in context and to trace their causes and consequences across time.

At Swansea University, this three-year, full-time programme engages with some of the most urgent questions of our era, including globalisation, civil rights, racial and social justice, and the exercise of American power in the world. You will develop your understanding of American history and culture from the colonial period through to the present, reading primary sources and secondary scholarship across literary, historical, political, and cultural registers. The history strand broadens your geographical and chronological range, giving you the comparative perspective that allows you to situate American experience within the wider currents of modern world history.

Swansea's commitment to interdisciplinary work ensures that the two disciplines engage productively rather than running in parallel.

Graduates of American Studies and History work in journalism, education, research, policy, cultural organisations, international relations, and the media. The combination of critical cultural analysis and historical thinking is valued in any profession that requires understanding complex societies and the forces that shape them. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in American studies, history, cultural studies, or political science, building specialist expertise for academic or professional careers.

The degree also prepares you well for careers in which engagement with American institutions, markets, and culture is a professional asset.