Department of Archaeology | BA Archaeology and Ancient Civilisations

BA Archaeology & Ancient Civilisations at Durham University

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Explore the archaeology, art and culture of ancient civilisations – from the Classical World to the Near East and beyond.

Have you ever wondered what it was like to live in an ancient civilisation? Are you fascinated by what the civilisations of the past can teach us about the present?

This course gives you a good overview of the world of archaeology, but also allows you to focus in particular on the great ancient civilisations of Europe, the Near East and Asia, including Ancient Greece and Rome, Egypt, India, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

This degree offers great flexibility, with options to take modules from other departments, including the Department of Classics & Ancient History. Depending on your module choices you may even be able to receive professional accreditation from the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists.

Using archaeological techniques and approaches, this course puts the heritage of Greece and Rome under the lens. Drawing on the latest research, it also provides a chance to explore Egypt and North Africa, as well as the lesser-known civilisations of the Near East and South Asia. The course provides an exciting mix of traditional scholarship and field-based skills.

The course offers an optional study abroad element, where you may spend the third year of a four-year course studying at an overseas university. You can also put your learning into practice by applying to add a placement year to your degree.

Our close links with industry specialists coupled with in-house archaeological facilities give you a taste of the industry from the beginning of the course. This experience helps develop a broad range of subject-specific skills from osteology, geochemistry and the conservation of archaeological objects, to survey and remote sensing techniques and applications for Geographic Information Systems.

Transferable skills include problem-solving, metadata analysis and information technology, as well as teamwork, presentation, project planning and management. These skills are valued across many industries. 

Our graduates work for organisations all over the world, from national and international heritage organisations, museums, environmental agencies, and commercial archaeological services to law and publishing, forensic science, teaching, tourism, and local and national government.

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