Ancient History with Philosophy

Ancient history and philosophy together form a pairing with deep intellectual roots, since philosophy as a discipline was born in ancient Greece, and many of the central questions it still wrestles with, about knowledge, virtue, justice, and the good life, were first formulated in the world that ancient historians study. Ancient history gives you access to the civilisations of Greece and Rome through their material remains, literary sources, and historical scholarship, while philosophy equips you with the conceptual rigour to analyse arguments, evaluate evidence, and think clearly about fundamental questions that have no straightforward empirical answer.

At Royal Holloway, this three-year full-time degree allocates approximately three quarters of your study to ancient history and one quarter to philosophy, giving you substantial depth in the classical world alongside a genuine grounding in philosophical method. You will study the history of Greece and Rome across the classical period, developing expertise in how ancient societies were organised, how they understood themselves, and how they shaped the world that followed them. The philosophy component introduces you to both ancient and modern philosophical traditions, connecting the thought of Plato and Aristotle with contemporary philosophical debates.

The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and work placement opportunities, giving you structured ways to broaden your experience alongside your academic studies. A typical entry tariff of 120 points applies.

Graduates combine the ability to work closely with difficult texts and fragmentary evidence with the capacity for rigorous argument and clear writing, making them attractive to employers across a wide range of sectors. Careers in law, teaching, journalism, heritage, public policy, the civil service, publishing, and the third sector are all well-trodden paths. Postgraduate study in classical studies, ancient history, philosophy, or archaeology is a natural next step for those who wish to develop their scholarship further.