American studies is the very definition of a multidisciplinary course, giving you the chance to study a hit of literature, a bit of history and a bit of politics, with film and cultural studies and, possibly, some travel thrown in. In many ways and in many places, American studies is the archetypal modular degree course.

Archaeology is the study of the human past from the physical remains. It's a combination of the heady fresh air and excitement of an excavation and the forensic attention to detail needed to piece together the evidence uncovered. Put broadly, it is the study of human artefacts and remains (including the ruins and buildings) in an attempt to see how humans originated, spread across the world, developed tools and technology and lived and died over the past few million years - and understanding how human activity has developed and changed the environment around it.

If you're sure you want to be a field archaeologist, the BSc (Hons) archaeology meets the national professional requirements for membership of the Institute of Field Archaeology, and provides the background knowledge for such work.

If you are interested in the major of Architecture & Building, you should keep on reading this article because here is the top 20 institutions for this major.

The difference between architecture and building courses should be pretty obvious - one designs it, the other knocks it up, but there are many areas where the two overlap, hence the two cosying up in this chapter. Read on for more detailed information in the following article.

Most building-related courses are three- or four-year BScs; the range of degrees is so varied that few institutions offer exactly the same degree course. So make sure you understand what you're getting. Certain building courses also offer the opportunity to attain chartered engineer status.

Most art and design courses are in the new universities, but there are some in various "old" universities, higher education colleges and a few specialist art and design institutions. Check the entry level qualifications for the course, especially if you haven't done any work to foundation level - some will let you in on A-levels alone.

Drama Studies Drama - kind of cool, and very popular. With up to eight applicants for every university place, it's a fearsomely difficult course to get on to, but don't go thinking that it's some kind of highbrow Fame Academy.

In the following article, you'll find the top 20 institutions for drama, cinematics and photography courses in the UK in 2009. If you are considering studying this major in university, this article is right for you.

English is always a popular field of study because most of us start with the essential tool hardwired into us. English, that is. We speak it like natives. That's part of the reason, you may find your engineering or scientific friends looking down at you. They can read too (mostly) - and the idea that you spend your weeks immersed in novels is a seductive one.

There can be huge differences between the various choices of department on your UCAS form, if you're not careful. So look carefully at the prospectus for each of your selections. What you learn and how you learn it can be vastly different things in each institution, so think carefully.

It is no longer possible to separate history' from history of art. So you all have to gather round and get along with each other for a while. More than ever, you've also got to use the advice and league tables in these pages as a starting point. Read on to know more about this major.

If you're heading for the history of art, check if the department has its own slide library. They mostly do, but some are better and easier to use than others. And remember that those big art books are also hideously expensive and some of the less well-off institutions might be especially penalised in this subject above others in the humanities. Read on for more detailed information in the following article.

Before you pick a course, decide what you are hoping to learn. Do you want a literature-based course? If your main interest is in Italian art or Russian politics, does the course cater for this?

There used to be a split between music colleges (or conservatoires), which offered diplomas, and universities, which offered degrees. Much of that distinction is now gone and all the institutions offer degrees, but, generally speaking, among the conservatoires more emphasis is still placed on the practical aspects of music rather than the theory and history of the subject.

This article shows us the top 20 institutions for other modern languages courses in the UK in 2009. If you are interested in this major, read on for more details.

Philosophy is the perfect subject for those who wonder what on earth it's all about... why on earth taxpayers are paying good money for a whole heap of chin-strokers, that is. But when the sneerers move in, asking you to justify three years of hard thinking, and wondering whether you'd be doing that if you had to pay top-whack tuition fees, just let them know that philosophy in...

In this article, you'll find the top 20 institutions for theology and religious studies courses in the UK in 2009. It will be very useful for you if you are considering studying this major in university.

The teaching of religion at universities has been rapidly transformed in the last few years. Many courses have widened their remit to include a variety of religious traditions, while the profile of students arriving in theology and religious studies departments is very different from even 10 years ago. Read on for more detailed information in the following article.

Town and country planning might not have been a sexy subject in the past, but it is now. The subject covers a wide range of activities - advising on the design of new transport systems, tourist sites, conservation areas and, of course, of developments, great and small, in our towns and cities.