Media, Arts and Humanities (with a foundation year) BA (Hons)

Take your first step into university life with a Foundation Year that opens doors across the arts and humanities. Develop your voice, ideas and learn to thrive.

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This course is available in Clearing.

Key information

Why choose this course at Sussex?

  • Build essential skills in critical analysis, arguments and self-expression to enter your degree with a head start, preparing for diverse careers.
  • Delve into a variety of subjects to uncover what inspires you, helping you choose the right degree with confidence.
  • Prepare for a wide range of arts, media and humanities subjects with diverse electives, enabling you to tailor your course to your interests.

Our Arts and Humanities Foundation Year will prepare you to enter Year 1 of a Sussex degree with a head start. You’ll gain essential skills in critical analysis, developing arguments and self-expression through a dedicated programme of support and development.

Explore a range of subjects at university level – such as history, art history, philosophy and literature. You pick from the broad array of option modules to tailor your course to your personal interests.

Successfully completing your Foundation Year allows you to continue your studies in a wide range of subjects in the Arts and Humanities at Sussex.

Foundation Year courses are a brilliant opportunity for students to fulfil their potential while they’re learning the skills required by a top university like Sussex.”Chantal Irtelli
English and A-level Academic Leader

Campus tours

Join a campus tour this summer and get a feel for life at Sussex. With award-winning campus food, a National Park setting and buzzing Brighton on our doorstep, our location and facilities are hard to beat.

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On campus - in person

You’ll study for this degree on our campus, joining our academics and fellow students. With in-person contact time, digitally supported educational resources, library collections and independent study, this course is designed to give you an inclusive education. Your learning experience may also include work placements, field trips, studying abroad and internationalisation experiences.

Find out about our beautiful campus

Virtual tour

Want to learn more about life at Sussex?

Our 360° virtual tour has been designed to introduce you to life in our diverse, supportive and inclusive community. Join our students for an immersive experience as they reveal why Sussex offers a space to follow your passions, find your voice, and discover people and places that will inspire you.

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ResearchPlus

As a founding partner of ResearchPlus, a collaboration of research-focused universities, we engage with government, industry and civil society to support economic growth, prosperity and wellbeing across the whole of the UK.

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Core modules

Core modules are taken by all students on the course. They give you a solid grounding in your chosen subject and prepare you to explore the topics that interest you most.

Autumn teaching
Spring teaching

Options

Alongside your core modules, you can choose options to broaden your horizons and tailor your course to your interests. This list gives you a flavour of our options, which are kept under review and may change, for example in response to student feedback or the latest research.

While it’s our aim for students to take their preferred combinations of options, this can’t be guaranteed and will be subject to timetabling. Options may be grouped and if so, students will be able to choose a set number of options from the selection available in any particular group.

Autumn teaching
Spring teaching

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2026/27. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum. We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.

We’ll do our best to provide as much optional choice as we can, but timetabling constraints mean it may not be possible to take some module combinations. The structure of a small number of courses means that the order of modules or the streams you choose may determine whether modules are core or optional. This means that your core modules or options may differ from what’s shown here.

Entry requirements

Is a Foundation Year for you?

You will need to demonstrate your potential to do well on a demanding degree, including the potential to succeed in your chosen discipline.

The following sets out some of the most common academic qualifications. However, each application is reviewed on its individual strengths and merits.

Find your place in Clearing

This course will be available in Clearing. Explore your options at Sussex – right here, right now.

Fees

Note that your fees, once they’re set, may be subject to an increase on an annual basis. Find details on our Tuition fees page.

Home students

£9,790 per year

Channel Islands and Isle of Man students

£9,790 per year

On 19 March 2026 the UK Parliament set out that the tuition fee cap for 2026 entry will be £9,790. As the University of Sussex keeps fees for Home students and Channel Islands and Isle of Man students in line with UK Government-approved levels, fees will be £9,790 in 2026. In line with our terms and conditions, the University charges fees at the maximum levels set by the UK Government.

International students

£23,500 per year

If you’re an international student, note that fees for the foundation year are at standard lower rate but fees for courses you can choose to continue your studies can be at the lower or higher level. This means your fees could rise from lower to higher level after the foundation year, depending on your choice of course.

Living costs

We know the rising cost of living is on everyone’s mind, and affects us all in different ways. Our guide to living costs has been designed to help you plan and budget for life as a Sussex student.

Learn more about typical living costs

Scholarships

Our goal is to ensure that every student who wants to study with us is able to regardless of financial barriers, so that we continue to attract talented and unique people.

Please note: Foundation Year courses are not eligible for USA federal Direct Loan funds. Find out more about American Student Loans and Federal Student Aid

Next steps

Successfully completing your Foundation Year means you’re able to take a range of degrees at Sussex. The current list of courses available is:

Contact us

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Enquiries

Contact us with any questions about your course:

+44 (0)1273 876787
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Legal information

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision. We’ll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities described in this prospectus. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to government or regulatory requirements, or unanticipated staff changes, we’ll let you know as soon as possible.

Find out about our terms and conditions, including the student code of conduct and your cancellation rights

Find out about our complaints and appeals process

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