BA

Cultural Heritage Studies: Libraries, Archives and Museums

BA Cultural Heritage Studies: Libraries, Archives and Museums Code V700 Attend an Open Day Attend an Open Day

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Key Facts

V700

  • UCAS Tariff

    120 - 96

  • Course duration

    3 years

Available for September start 2025

Further details on entry requirements

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The BA in Cultural Heritage Studies at Aberystwyth University seeks to introduce you to the cultural heritage aspects of the library, archive and heritage professions. If you are interested in any aspects of library, archive or museum work, including looking for information, helping others in information seeking, and how our heritage and knowledge is stored, shared and preserved - then this degree at Aberystwyth University is for you. 

The Cultural Heritage Studies degree has received professional accreditation from CILIP: the library and information association.


Course Overview

The Cultural Heritage Studies course has a strong history component and allows you to combine an interest in history with practical and theoretical understandings of how information is valued and utilised in all walks of life – historical, educational and social. Offered jointly by the Department of History and Welsh History and the Department of Information Studies, this degree draws upon our established strengths in professional training in information and library studies, archives and records management, alongside History and Welsh History. 

You will receive training in the management and use of information, heritage resources, archives and records in both digital and physical formats. You’ll also develop skills in the application of information technology in this field. This degree scheme promotes your ability to conduct research, to investigate and analyse, and to articulate your ideas. 

Opportunities for students of Cultural Heritage Studies at Aberystwyth include:

  • studying in a historically ‘information rich’ town that includes the National Library of Wales (one of only five copyright libraries in the UK, and home to the National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales, and a regular host of exhibitions relating to Welsh culture and heritage); the Welsh Books Council
  • the Royal Commission for Ancient and Historical Monuments, Ceredigion Museum, the University libraries and archives, and a range of other relevant resources and organisations
  • being taught by experts in their field.
Our Staff

Department of Information Studies lecturers are either qualified to PhD level or work in areas of the subject where professional practices are the focus. Many of the staff engage in research relevant to the theoretical and practical development of the discipline and the associated professions. To find out more about our staff, please visit our departmental staff page.

Staff in the Department of History and Welsh History are active researchers and experts in their field of History. Most are qualified to PhD level and hold PGCHE. To find out more about our staff, please visit our departmental staff page.

Modules September start - 2025

Please note: The modules listed below are those currently intended for delivery during the next academic year and may be subject to change. They are included here to give an indication of how the course is structured.

Core

Module Name Module Code Credit Value
Effective Communication IL10520 20
Foundations of Information Studies IL10120 20
The Archival Inheritance IL11120 20
The Cultural Heritage Landscape IL10320 20
Introduction to History * HY12120 20

Options

Module Name Module Code Credit Value
'Hands on' History: Sources and their Historians HY10420 20
Europe and the World, 1000-2000 HY12420 20
People, Power and Identity: Wales 1200-1999 WH11720 20

* Also available partially or entirely through the medium of Welsh

Careers

Graduates of this degree will be well prepared for a career within a cultural organisation, or in an administrative position which would include responsibility for record keeping. It would also be relevant to those considering work as a graduate archive assistant or postgraduate professional training in archive administration and records management, to name a few examples.

Teaching & Learning

What will I learn?

The breakdown below will provide you with an illustration of what you may study during the three year degree scheme.

In your first year you will discover: 

  • Foundations of Information Studies
  • The Cultural Heritage Landscape
  • Human Communication
  • The Archival Inheritance
  • Introduction to History.

In your second and third years you will explore: 

  • Information in a Changing World
  • A cultural history of record keeping
  • Resource discovery and digital information management
  • Collection management and heritage organisations
  • Making History
  • Local studies and community heritage.

Please note that during your second and third years, you will be able to choose from a range of optional modules that will complement your core modules. 

Typical Entry Requirements

UCAS Tariff 120 - 96

A Levels BBB-CCC

GCSE requirements (minimum grade C/4):
English or Welsh

BTEC National Diploma:
DDM-MMM

International Baccalaureate:
30-26

European Baccalaureate:
75%-65% overall

English Language Requirements:
See our Undergraduate English Language Requirements for this course. Pre-sessional English Programmes are also available for students who do not meet our English Language Requirements.

Country Specific Entry Requirements:
International students whose qualification is not listed on this page, can check our Country Specific Entry Requirements for further information.

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma or T-level qualifications, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas or T-levels as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.
Our inclusive admissions policy values breadth as well as depth of study. Applicants are selected on their own individual merits and offers can vary. If you would like to check the eligibility of your qualifications before submitting an application, please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for advice and guidance.

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