Course summary

Birmingham’s fusion of language and culture places employability at its heart, preparing you to live and work as an engaged citizen of the world. Our BA Modern Languages degree is flexible and you can choose to study one, two or three languages. One language - You can focus on one language as long as it is at Advanced level and you have studied that language at A Level (or equivalent): French, German, Italian, or Spanish. Russian is also an option at Advanced level but it can't be studied on its own so you would need to study another language at Advanced or Beginner level, or combined with International Relations. Up to three languages - You can study up to three languages at Advanced level or study a combination of Advanced and Beginner languages. You can even start two languages from scratch without taking an Advanced language, as long as one of these is French or Spanish. Languages offered from beginner level include French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Chinese and Japanese. Pathway options - you can also choose the options of Translation Studies or English as a Modern Foreign Language (for non-native speakers of English) alongside one or two languages. One of the most exciting elements of this degree in Modern Languages is the opportunity to spend your third abroad. Why study this course? Practice as a professional – Develop your skills with our state-of-the-art Interpreting Suite with Televic interpreting desks and sound proof booths at the same professional standard as the United Nations. More than fluent – Choose vocational modules in areas such as Translation, Language Teaching, Legal Culture, Business and more; leading into a wide range of career prospects with the help of our Careers and Employability team. Multicultural city – Learn in a vibrant city that is culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse. Join a number of language and culture-based societies to further enhance your skills including the multilingual Linguist Magazine. Becoming multilingual – Learn up to three languages with a wide range of languages to choose from. Develop your skills by splitting your year abroad across different languages and countries. Focused academic contact – We pride ourselves on competitive contact hours. These take place within small groups, encouraging active language learning through engagement with cultural material (beginners will receive more support in English, as appropriate). Top 100 for Modern Languages in the QS World Rankings by subject (2022) Top 25 for French in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide (2022)