My name is Kacey and I study Art History and English Literature at the University of Manchester. I think the reason I chose to study at Manchester can be summarised quite easily:

1. Few universities offered Art History and English Literature as joint honours courses.
2. The modules offered at all levels cover different areas of interest.
3. As I learned about the University and the city through the last year of my A-Levels, I fell in love with Manchester.
4. The career opportunities available really appealed to me.

I also found that one of the biggest benefits of studying at Manchester and being a joint honours student was that even in my first year I had a level of freedom when selecting my modules. For the Art History side, I had two mandatory modules which would cover an art timeline from Ice Age art to the present day. For English, I only had one mandatory module which was Reading Literature which covered anything from poetry to modern novels. These modules covered my whole academic year. However, the optional tutorial classes taught me the essential skills of academic writing through bite-sized areas of study. It was these tutorials for both art and English that helped me explore my interests as I headed into my second year.

The first year aimed at giving students steppingstones to grow from their previous level of study and into the world of academic writing. It gets interesting coming into the second year though as there are fewer mandatory courses allowing the second year to revolve around your academic pursuits. This year I get to study translation of Old English poetry, which follows nicely from my Art History Tutorial from my first year where we looked at medieval manuscripts. Moreover, this year I am going to study Renaissance and Baroque Architecture which again, continuing from the Art History modules in the first year. The variety offered to individuals at Manchester allows you to learn a breadth of knowledge before you dive into specific areas of interest.

Outside of the lecture halls, SALC offers a wide range of internships and opportunities that I would tell anyone to pursue. I volunteered as the SALC Employability Champion for Heritage Industries and managed to work for the university as a charity fundraiser. These opportunities led me to apply for an internship offered by the university with Castlefield Gallery as a curator, as well as becoming a student rep and a student ambassador. Through these roles, I also got to meet peers who are just as interested as I am in getting into heritage-based careers and that was exciting.

For anyone considering coming to the University of Manchester, studying Art History and English Literature, or wanting a career for themselves in the art sector, I would say come here. See what internships are available, see what societies there are, and read all those module outlines. The University of Manchester offered me exactly what I needed for both my studies and my career prospects, and I am sure it will offer so many people the exact same.

Written by Kacey Stonnell, a 2nd year BA Art History and English Literature student

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