History and Politics

Typical offer: A*AA in A Levels (or equivalent)

Subject requirements: History

Submittted written work requirements: see our Writtten Work webpage

Admissions assessment: No assessment

History and Politics (HisPol) offers subjects from our highly-regarded History and Politics & International Relations courses, together with bespoke papers that will allow students to explore the space between the two disciplines. Students will develop skills in analysing the operation of power and politics across histories, institutions, and societies around the world. Students will also be able to build strengths in understanding the nature of evidence, methodology, and approaches in both History and Politics.  They will be able to choose from a wide range of topics in British, European, American and World history and politics.

Cambridge is uniquely placed to teach History and Politics & International Relations together. Both Faculties are widely regarded as world-leading: the History Faculty  is one of the largest in the United Kingdom and is consistently ranked as the best in research and teaching assessments, with internationally recognised experts in all relevant fields of study; whilst the Department of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) is a medium-sized department with about 30 academics with a huge range of specialisms. It has particular research strengths in international politics, international history and international law, comparative politics and political thought. Staff in the Faculty of History and the Department of Politics and International Studies have a wide range of shared interests in political and international history, the origins of contemporary politics and international relations, and the history of political ideas. 

For more information about the History and Politics course at Cambridge, visit the University website.

Corpus is a thriving close-knit academic community, and a wonderful place to study History and Politics. For a start, the college itself is steeped in history. Founded in 1352 by the members of two urban guilds in the wake of the Black Death, the college possesses one of the finest libraries in the world, the Parker Library, which contains one of the oldest European books in existence, the St Augustine Gospels, and the first picture of an elephant ever drawn in Britain. 

Our internationally-renowned active fellows in History include Dr Shruti Kapila, a historian of modern India, imperial and global history; Dr Emma Spary, a historian of science, medicine and technology in eighteenth-century Europe and Dr. Charles Read, an economic historian. Our Master, Prof Christopher Kelly, is a historian of the Roman Empire; and Prof Barak Kushner, works on the history of Japan and China. We also have Prof Christopher Andrew, the official historian of MI6 and author of numerous works on spies and intelligence. 

In addition to this, HisPol undergraduates are automatically part of the College's History subject society. 

Applicants will have a variety of relevant subject qualifications, though not necessarily in both politics and history; they will be expected to demonstrate an interest in both subjects and will be assessed on their potential to succeed in them. As such, candidates should normally expect two interviews - one in each subject -  and should be prepared to discuss their relevant interests and potential directions they may wish to follow. 

It is important to note that Politics at Cambridge is not just learning about contemporary politics but also about in-depth analysis of political theories and philosophies. So whilst we expect candidates to have begun exploring what facets of contemporary politics they find particularly interesting, we also want to see candidates who have engaged with foundational political texts.  

• First and foremost we encourage students to read widely in their areas of historical interest before making an application.
• Essay competitions are a good way to develop your historical interests and structure your super-curricular reading.
• The Human, Social, and Political Sciences department reading list
• The BBC have some excellent history and history-related podcasts such as The History of the World in 100 Objects and In Our Time