Classics

A classics degree develops your intellectual flexibility and analytical thinking skills. Discover the range of careers you could pursue

Job options

Jobs directly related to your degree include:

• Academic researcher
• Higher education lecturer
• Museum/gallery curator

Jobs where your degree would be useful include:

• Archivist
• Barrister
• Chartered accountant
• Civil Service fast streamer
• Editorial assistant
• Heritage manager
• Market researcher
• Marketing executive
• Museum education officer
• Newspaper journalist
• Secondary school teacher
• Solicitor

Remember that many employers accept applications from graduates with any degree subject, so don't restrict your thinking to the jobs listed here.

Work experience

Studying a classics degree provides you with skills relevant for a number of sectors, including museum and gallery work, legal, teaching and academia, media and broadcasting, film and television, banking, consultancy and marketing.

Undertaking work experience in the area you wish to work in can be particularly helpful for future job applications. This could be a structured work placement, a part-time job, a year out as part of your course, voluntary work or even a period of work shadowing. Use the time to develop your skills and to establish contacts within the industry.

Getting involved in student societies can also be a good way of developing skills related to your chosen career.

Search for placements and find out more about work experience and internships.

Typical employers

The breadth of your degree makes you attractive to many employers, including:

• art centres and theatres
• financial institutions
• heritage and cultural organisations
• local and national government
• legal firms
• libraries
• museums - these are a key employer for classics graduates wishing to use their subject knowledge
• the police
• publishing houses
• research and information organisations
• universities - sharing your expertise through teaching and research.

Find information on employers in the creative arts and design, marketing, advertising and PR, law and other job sectors.

Skills for your CV

Throughout your classics studies you acquire a range of subject-specific skills, including knowledge of the Greek and Roman languages and the political, social, literary and cultural history of the ancient world.

A classics degree also develops many valuable transferable skills, such as:

• the ability to research, collate and analyse materials, including written documentation and statistics
• critical evaluation skills and the ability to interpret resources
• effective oral and written communication skills
• the ability to formulate impartial and coherent arguments
• group working
• the ability to think logically
• self-management skills, including being able to meet deadlines.

Further study

Classics graduates may choose to study Masters or PhDs in classics or related subjects, such as classical archaeology, ancient history, and Greek and Latin languages and literature. Becoming a specialist in an academic discipline, particularly at PhD level, can be the first step towards getting an academic job as a lecturer/researcher.

Other classics graduates opt for more vocational courses, generally at Masters level, such as museum studies or records and archive management. Further training is also necessary for a move into professions such as law, teaching, librarianship or accountancy.

For more information on further study and to find a course that interests you, see Masters degrees and search postgraduate courses in classics.

What do classics graduates do?

The top ten jobs reported by classics graduates include sales, marketing and related associate professionals (8%), HR, training and other vocational associate guidance professionals (6%), business, research and administrative professionals (5%), teaching professionals (4%), media professionals (3%) and artistic, literary and media occupations (3%).

Find out what other classics graduates are doing 15 months after finishing their degrees in What do graduates do?

Graduate destinations data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.