What was J.K. Rowling’s university degree subject at the University of Exeter?

J.K. Rowling studied French and Classics at the University of Exeter.

Rowling enrolled at Exeter in 1983 and completed her degree in 1987. Her course combined French with the study of classical languages and cultures, subjects that later became visible in parts of the Harry Potter books. Many names, spells, and terms in the series draw on Latin or classical vocabulary.

She spent part of her university course studying in Paris. After graduating, Rowling worked in several roles, including jobs connected with research and bilingual administration. Her university education was therefore not a conventional creative-writing course, although her language studies became relevant to her fiction.

A common mistake is to identify English Literature as her degree subject because she became a novelist. Rowling did read widely and wrote from an early age, but the documented degree is French and Classics. The qualification also helps explain the deliberate use of classical references throughout the wizarding world.