Courses in Classical Studies

About our courses | Courses listed by level | Course descriptions

Undergraduate and Postgraduate Courses

A219 Exploring the Classical World 60 points
A219 has been designed as a broad introduction to Classical Studies. This 60 point Level 2 course, as well as being of general interest, will act as a gateway to the other Classical Studies courses at Levels 2 and 3. It's not simply a survey course – rather than skim the whole field in a superficial way, it will investigate limited areas in some depth. Read a detailed description of this course online.
Go to A219's information website.

A275 Reading classical Greek: language and literature, 60 points
This course combines an introduction to classical Greek language with the study of classical Greek culture and literature in translation. It is intended for beginners in Greek and assumes no previous experience of language learning.
Watch a brief video introduction to this course. Read a detailed description of this course online.
Go to the Interactive Introduction to Ancient Greek page.

A297 Reading Classical Latin, 30 points
Like A296 Reading Classical Greek, the course is intended for absolute beginners and has been developed around an existing textbook, Reading Latin by P Jones and K Sidwell (C.U.P., 1986), (to be supplied to students as part of the course material) and takes the form of a Course Guide and audio cassettes. This course complements other Classical Studies modules, especially AA309. Read a detailed description of this course online.

A397 Continuing Classical Latin, 30 points
This is an intermediate Latin course, which will help you to build on and develop your knowledge of Latin grammar and vocabulary. In the first twenty weeks of the course you will work on grammar as well as reading texts from the Cambridge Latin Anthology including Catullus, Horace, Ovid, Tacitus and Pliny the Younger. You will spend the remaining twelve weeks studying the set text, Virgil’s Aeneid II, which recounts the fall of Troy. The course will develop the skills and knowledge you need for reading unadapted Latin texts on your own. The Preparatory Booklet will allow you to refresh your knowledge of the language, if necessary, and to decide whether the level of the course is right for you. This is available online. Read a detailed description of this course online.

AA309 Culture, Identity and Power in the Roman Empire, 60 points
This course focuses on the relationships between power and the diverse cultural traditions in the Roman World in the 1st-3rd centuries AD. The Roman World offers a wide range of case studies: the impact of Greek culture on Rome itself; the diffusion of Graeco-Roman culture across the Provinces of the Empire; the impact of other traditions (Celtic, Judaic, Near-Eastern, African etc.) This allows texts and themes to be studied in chronological and geographical contexts. Read a detailed description of this course online.
Go to the AA309 webpage. Go to the AA309 ROUTES page.

A330 Myth in the Greek and Roman worlds, 60 points (first presentation October 2010).
This Level 3 course is a broad interdisciplinary study of Greek and Roman myth in its social, historical, literary and visual context. It combines the detailed study of individual works of literature, art and architecture with an exploration of context, function and purpose. A particular aspect you will study is the reception of mythical ideas and images in later European culture. Interactive visual explorations of key ancient and modern sites, monuments and artefacts relevant to mythological themes are supplied on DVD-ROM – together with audio interviews with experts tracing the influence of myth on, for example, drama, science and medicine. Read a detailed description of this course online.

AA100 The arts past and present, 60 points
This course has a Classical Studies component including both Greek and Roman material, with units on Cleopatra, on Roman leisure and on Seamus Heaney's play The Burial at Thebes and its relationship to Sophocles' Antigone. Read a detailed description of this course online.

D31 Diploma in Classical Studies
To gain this undergraduate award you need to accumulate 120 points made up from any Classical Studies courses at Level 2 or Level 3 in the undergraduate programme (no credit transfer allowed). You can take this qualification for its own sake, or in the course of fulfilling the requirements for a degree. It also provides an opportunity for those wishing to update their Classical knowledge and skills. Read a detailed description of this diploma online.

BA (Hons) Humanities with Classical Studies
360 CATS points, of which 300 should be from Arts courses and should include at least 120 points from the Classical Studies undergraduate courses, with at least 60 points at third level (which may not be obtained by credit transfer). Read a detailed description of this degree online (scroll down the page to read the section on Humanities with Classical Studies).

Postgraduate Courses

MA in Classical Studies Line (2001 -2010)
This is part of the Arts Faculty MA in Humanities and can be studied either as a specialist line or as part of a broadly-based MA programme. Initially the specialist line will consist of a postgraduate foundation module, a subject module on the Greek Theatre and a dissertation module. The entry requirement is a BA Honours degree. Applicants without a formal Classics / Classical Studies qualification should consult the entry advice.
Go to the Classical Studies MA Line webpage. Go to the ROUTES pages for A860 and A861.

Contact us!

The Classical Studies Department and their highly valued and talented body of part-time associate lecturers (these are your lifelines, the tutors who will mark your assignments, run your tutorials and generally guide and motivate you in your study) will be delighted if you decide to take part in our degree programme. We welcome your feedback whether it is encouraging or critical. If you email us (Arts-Classics-Gen-Enquiries@open.ac.uk) or write to the Head of Classical Studies we’ll do our best to answer your questions and respond to your comments as promptly as possible.