Modern History and New Testament
Modern history and New Testament studies is an intellectually unusual and genuinely productive combination. Modern history examines the past five hundred years from a present-day perspective, asking how the political, economic, social, and cultural forces of modernity have shaped the world we inhabit. New Testament studies brings a very different analytical tradition to bear: the critical, historical, and linguistic study of the earliest Christian texts, their literary forms, their social contexts, and the ways in which they have been interpreted and argued over across the centuries.
The two disciplines share a commitment to rigorous evidence-based enquiry and critical reading, but they approach their materials with very different methods and questions, and the combination develops an unusual breadth of analytical skill.
At the University of St Andrews, this four-year programme carries a typical entry tariff of 200 points and includes a year abroad, reflecting the university's high academic expectations and its commitment to international experience as a part of serious intellectual formation. You will study modern history across a range of optional courses with broad chronological, geographical, and thematic coverage, developing the analytical skills to interpret historical events from multiple perspectives. The New Testament strand takes you into the scholarly study of Greek texts, literary forms, historical context, and the complex reception history of the earliest Christian writings.
St Andrews has distinguished research traditions in both modern history and biblical studies, and you will benefit from the depth of scholarly expertise available across both departments.
Graduates work in the civil service, education, theology, journalism, heritage, publishing, law, and a wide range of professions where the ability to read complex texts critically, construct careful arguments, and communicate clearly is valued. Postgraduate study in history, New Testament studies, theology, or related humanities disciplines is a natural progression.