Celebrating our Centenary
October 2026 marks the centenary of the Faculty of English at Cambridge. While students were able to study Chaucer, Shakespeare, and other English authors within the Medieval and Modern Languages Tripos from as early as 1891, and the first third-year exams were sat in 1919, it was not until 1926 that the Faculty of English was established as an independent faculty and the English course took shape in a form recognisable today. A century later, Cambridge is ranked the world's leading institution for the study of English Language and Literature (QS World University Rankings).
Study with us
Study with us
We are proud of our commitment to teaching, and love working with our students as they develop their ideas. Read more about what it's like to study here.
BA in English
Our BA will help you become an independent and persuasive thinker, reader and writer. It is an exhilarating course offering unparalleled intellectual freedom within a structured framework.
MPhil in English Studies
This unified MPhil offers the best of both worlds: deep specialist study of literary periods alongside expansive critical frameworks that break down divides, fostering range, rigour and originality.
Our PhD
Cambridge is an outstanding place for doctoral research. PhD students benefit from supervision by scholars at the forefront of their fields, world-class libraries, and from a diverse and large PhD cohort.
Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic
The Faculty is home to the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic, a world leading centre for teaching and research in the history, literature and languages of the peoples of Britain, Ireland, Scandinavian and the associated insular world of the Middle Ages. It offers a BA, MPhil and PhD programme.
Faculty Latest
Within the Faculty
The Faculty also oversees the degrees of Cambridge Digital Humanities, an interdisciplinary research centre.
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Faculty Members
Find out who makes up the Faculty
Nearly one hundred scholars pursue teaching and research within the English Faculty and Colleges of the University with an exciting diversity of critical, historical, theoretical, and interdisciplinary approaches.
Careers
Discover where English could lead
Our degrees give graduates the skills most valued by employers with many career possibilities, the flexibility needed in a challenging world, and strong salary growth.
Research
Learn more about our research activities
The Faculty is one of the very best institutions in the world for the study of English. It is a vibrant and welcoming place for collaboration and cross-disciplinary work, with a lively postgraduate community.