Overview and entry requirements

The BA History Combined Honours Degree combines History with another discipline or language and takes 3 or 4 years depending on the subject involved.

From the Crusades to the contemporary Middle East; the Mughal Empire to Gandhi; slavery to Muslim societies in West Africa, History at SOAS offers its students a unique window on the world in order to develop your understanding of the fascinating histories relating to Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

Students will also engage in subject matters ranging from economics, religion and culture to frontiers, cities, and gender. The two-subject degree additionally allows you to create a specialist niche for yourself within a specific regional, cultural or disciplinary context.

See our School of History, Religions and Philosophies

Why study History Combined Honours at SOAS

• we are ranked 12th in the UK for history (QS World University Rankings 2022)
• allows you to develop a specialist niche alongside your History degree by utilising the global expertise of one of our other departments
• our unrivalled focus in the study of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East will help you shape a more critical understanding of history
• develop an in-depth understanding and appreciation of the history of Africa and Asia
• our academic staff are African and Asian history specialists
• we are specialists in the delivery of languages. Your command of a language from SOAS will set you apart from graduates of other universities

Explore 

• ‘Decolonising History’: A Student’s Perspective

Venue: Russell Square: College Buildings

Start of programme: September

Mode of Attendance: Full-time

May be combined with:

• Arabic+, TV61 BA/HA
• Chinese+, TV11 BA/HCH
• Global Development Studies, LV91 BA/HDVS
• East Asian Studies
• Economics, LV11 BA/HEC
• History of Art, VV13 BA/HisHAA
• International Relations, (LV22 BA/IRH)
• Japanese+, TV21 BA/JK
• Korean+, TVL1 BA/KOH
• Languages and Cultures 
• Law, MV11 BA/LWH
• Music, VW13 BA/MSH
• Politics, LV21 BA/POLH
• Social Anthropology, LV61 BA/SAH
• World Philosophies, V101 BA/HWP    

+ 4-year degree with (compulsory) one year abroad
++ 3 or 4-year degree with option of one year abroad

Key Information Set data

Click on a combined programme to load KIS data

Structure

Students take 120 credits per year composed of Core and Optional modules.

This Joint Honours programme enables students to design their own intellectual journey, whilst maintaining a strong grasp of the fundamentals of History. 

When selecting modules, some students choose to focus mainly on one region (Africa, Near and Middle East, South, Southeast or East Asia) or topic (e.g. Islam, violence and warfare, gender, modernity).

Others choose to range more broadly, exploring various topics and regions. Depending on the choice of the second subject, students will have the opportunity to develop an in-depth knowledge of one particular region or to put more emphasis on the exploration of particular themes and problems, exploring them in a comparative context.

Important notice

Teaching & Learning

Recommended pre entry reading

• JR McNeill and WH McNeill, The Human Web: A Bird’s Eye View of World History (2003)
• John Darwin, After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires (2007)
• CA Bayly, The Birth of the Modern World, 1780-1914 (2004)
• Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities (1991)
• John Iliffe, Africans: The History of a Continent (2007)
• Albert Hourani, A History of the Arab Peoples (1991)
• Barbara D and Thomas R Metcalf, A Concise History of India (2002)
• MC Ricklefs et al., A New History of Southeast Asia (2010)
• Charles Holcombe, A History of East Asia (2017)
• J Black and DM MacRaild, Studying History (2007)

Contact hours

Modules are taught through a combination of lectures and tutorials, usually one hour a week of each. Sometimes, one follows the other in a two-hour bloc. Sometimes, the tutorial is at a different time or on a different day than the lecture.

Tutorials are sessions in which students are expected to present reports and take a lead in discussions.

Depending on the size of the class, some intermediate and advanced level modules are less strictly divided between a formal lecture and a tutorial discussion, and instead, the topic is briefly introduced by the lecturer, followed by a seminar discussion. Advanced level modules, which are usually taught in one two-hour bloc, often take this format.

Introductory modules

These are assessed through a combination of essays, oral presentations on selected readings or topics and a three-hour examination, taken in Term 3. Introductory modules are not open to second- and third-year history students.

Intermediate level modules

These provide specialised study in the history of particular regions, building on the introductory courses. With the exception of the Group Study Project (see below), they are assessed by: (a) two or three essays, and (b) a three-hour examination, taken in Term 3.

For intermediate modules the weighting of assessment between essays and examination varies, with coursework essays counting for between 25 per cent and 60 per cent of the total mark. For the specifics of each module see the individual module unit listings. Group Study Projects are assessed on the basis of three written reports (see below).

Advanced level modules

These aim to introduce students to the reading and use of original historical documents, so-called ‘primary sources’. The 300 level modules are taught modules, assessed in the same way as intermediate level modules, i.e., a varying combination of essays and a final examination. For each 300 level module there is an attached 400 level module, for which there are no additional classes and which involves the writing of a 10,000-word dissertation on a topic arising from the content of the 300 level module. There is no final examination for 400 level modules; assessment is on the basis of the dissertation alone.

The Independent Study Project (ISP)

These can be taken by final-year students only. Like the Special Subject dissertation, its aim is to provide an opportunity for students to conduct original historical research on their own initiative, to engage in in-depth analysis of particular subjects and to use a range of primary historical sources. It too involves no formal classes and is assessed by a single 10,000-word dissertation (including notes but excluding bibliography).

Learning resources

SOAS Library is one of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, attracting scholars from all over the world. The Library houses over 1.2 million volumes, together with significant archival holdings, special collections and a growing network of electronic resources.

Tuition fees

Fees for 2022/23 entrants per academic year

Please note that fees go up each year. 

For full details of undergraduate tuition fees, see our Registry's undergraduate tuition fees page.

Scholarships

For further details and information on external scholarships visit the Scholarships section

Employment 

With specialised historical knowledge, an understanding of cultural sensibilities and skills in research and analysis, graduates from the Department of History are well respected by employers across private and public sectors.

Recent graduates from the Department of History have been hired by:

• Al Jazeera
• Amnesty International
• Bank of England
• BBC
• Blackstock PR
• Bonhams
• British Council
• British Library
• Dataminr
• Ernst and Young
• Goldman Sachs
• Google
• HSBC
• International Committee of the Red Cross
• KPMG
• Middle East Consultancy Services
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Cyprus
• Natural History Museum
• Publicis Media
• UNESCO
• United Nations Development Programme

Find out about the SOAS Careers Service

• How to Apply
• UCAS website
• Request a prospectus
• Got a question - use our enquiry form (opens a new window)
• Funding options
• English language requirements
• Tuition Fees
• Admissions Contacts