Archaeology
Explore your curiosity
Archaeology, ancient history and anthropology encompass the study of humanity from our origins to the present. The Department has a strong offering of part-time learning opportunities in these subjects, offering students the chance for progression from a short course through to a part-time graduate degree programme.
Short courses for adult learners
Explore a new topic or revisit a favourite subject over the course of a few days, a few weeks or a term. Our short courses run in person or online, with some offered in both formats – so you can choose the study option best for you.
Many of our short courses, including short online courses (live and flexible), weekly classes in Oxford, and some summer schools, can be studied for credit, which means they can count towards a recognised qualification such as our Undergraduate Certificate of Higher Education.
Oxford qualifications and professional development
Upcoming courses
Online - live • Short courses • Professional development • Hybrid - in person or online
How can design codes support more popular and sustainable development? How can local character be used to enhance cities? This course explains the concept of design codes and gives practical advice creating successful codes. Join us online or in Oxford.
- Fri 28 Nov 2025
- 1 meetings
- 09:00- 16:30
Online - live • Short courses • Hybrid - in person or online
Examine how ordinary people in medieval England (1000-1550 CE) used religious and ritual objects in daily life in this hybrid lecture. Drawing on finds from the Portable Antiquities Scheme, learn how material culture shaped faith and community.
- Fri 28 Nov 2025
- 4:45 – 6:15pm
Short intensive • Short courses • Professional development
This course provides an introduction to the legal and ethical issues arising in the art and cultural heritage sectors today. Aimed at all those engaged in the art world, it will outline principles and practices, exploring cases from the UK and beyond.
- Tue 02 Dec 2025
- 9:30am – 5:00pm
Online - live • Short courses • Professional development • Hybrid - in person or online
Can we re-frame heritage loss? This transdisciplinary course will explore how to manage transformative change in the historic environment to generate both ecological and cultural benefits. Join online or in-person to stay on top of emerging ideas.
- Tue 09 Dec 2025
- 1 meetings
Short intensive • Short courses • Professional development
Planning ahead for the effects of climate change on heritage assets can seem mind-blowingly complicated. This workshop will give you the know-how you need to navigate the complexity and devise a visual plan for your own asset to take away to stakeholders.
- Wed 10 Dec 2025
Short intensive • Short courses • Professional development
Elevate your professional skills with our one-day course. Unlock the potential of recent advances in lidar technology to better understand how you can apply it in your job. Learn how to use and present lidar data for different purposes.
- Thu 11 Dec 2025
- 1 meetings
Award courses and related programmes
Cultural heritage training
Expert CPD tuition for those with a keen interest, professional or personal, in archaeology, historic buildings and cultural heritage.Undergraduate Certificate of Higher Education
A flexible, part-time route to an Oxford University qualification. Gain credit from flexible short online courses, weekly classes, and the Oxford University Summer School for Adults. Explore a wide range of subjects in this multidisciplinary programme.Undergraduate Certificate in Archaeology
An introductory part-time undergraduate course for adults with little or no previous experience of academic archaeology. Taught at first-year undergraduate level, this two-year course introduces ideas, approaches, sites and methods.Undergraduate Diploma in Archaeology (2027 entry)
Unearth humanity's past from a truly global perspective, with this two-year part-time undergraduate Diploma in Archaeology.Advanced Diploma in British Archaeology
This one-year part-time advanced diploma consists of a taught module on one of three periods of British archaeology and includes a 10,000-word dissertation. The course is taught at third-year undergraduate level.MSc in Applied Landscape Archaeology
The MSc in Applied Landscape Archaeology is a part-time modular course over two years.DPhil in Archaeology
The part-time DPhil programme was first offered in Archaeology in 2003 with several successful DPhil completions now having taken place.