English Language and Philosophy
University of Birmingham
UCAS Code: QV35 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
A level in English Language, English Literature, English Language and Literature or a Modern Foreign Language is preferred. We also welcome applications from candidates who can demonstrate an interest in and an aptitude for the study of language, so other combinations of complementary Humanities and Social Science subjects will be considered. Please contact us to discuss.
Accepted in place of A levels with the following grade equivalencies: D2 = A*; D3 = A; M2 = B. Combinations of A levels and Principle subjects are accepted. NB required subjects must be offered (see A level Section)
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
6,6,5 in Higher Level subjects, including the relevant subject mentioned above.
BTEC Extended Diploma: DDM, plus an A at A-level in the required subject/s mentioned above. BTEC Diploma: DD, plus an A at A-level in the required subject/s mentioned above. BTEC Subsidiary Diploma: D, plus AB at A-level, including an A in the required A-level subject/s mentioned above..
Accepted in place of a non-required A level with the equivalent grade.
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
Imaginative, persuasive expression in the study of English Language is a complementary pairing with different philosophical perspectives, as you discover how language has shaped society and how society has shaped language.
At Birmingham, you will have access to world-class talent in philosophical fields as diverse as metaphysics and epistemology, philosophy of language and mind, ethics and ethical theory. In your undergraduate Philosophy studies, you will explore the great minds of history and the present day, both learning what they thought and engaging with them critically. By studying Philosophy as a Joint Honours degree with English Language, you'll gain a thorough appreciation of the technical aspects of the English language and its social and political context. Finding out how a language works and how societies communicate, combines a unique intellectual challenge with significant practical potential. You'll also have the chance to use new resources, such as computer-held databases of linguistic data and you'll be encouraged to embrace theoretical and technological advances in the study of language.
**Why study this course?**
**Get a head start in the graduate market** - kick start your career with our employability modules, including options that provide a minimum of 70 hours' work experience within a sector you're interested in, assist organisations with developing, planning and pitching their business proposals and get involved with public engagement projects.
**Broad range of specialisms to explore** - Birmingham is internationally famous for its work in corpus linguistics, figurative language, language learning and teaching, the language of social media and stylistics. You can focus on traditional aspects of the subject such as grammar, historical linguistics or pragmatics, but you can also explore newer areas such as English used in internet communication or English used worldwide.
**Fantastic module variety** - the amount of optional modules on offer will allow you to specialise more as you progress through your degree course, so that you can study areas of the discipline that interest you the most. Some module examples include Minds, Brains and Computers: Issues in Philosophy of Cognitive Science, Reasons to Believe: Topics in Epistemology and Fantastic Beasts and How to Understand them and Topics in Philosophy of Biology.
**Take advantage of our exceptional resources** - including our archives and special collections in the Cadbury Research Library and the Library of Birmingham, Europe’s largest regional library.
**Outstanding student experience** - you'll have a variety of opportunities to enhance your student experience during your degree, including regular coffee mornings for staff and students, specialist lectures, visiting speakers and a variety of trips.
**Top 15 for English in the Complete University Guide 2023**
**Top 10 for undergraduate Philosophy in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023**
**1st the Department of Philosophy is top in the country for its performance in the latest Research Excellence Framework exercise 2021 based on Grade Point Average (Times Higher Education)**
Modules
First-year modules cover a broad base of the subject and are designed to introduce you to ways of studying at university. By the final year the modules you take will become more specialised and reflect the research expertise of the academic staff. More detailed module information can be found on the ‘Course detail’ tab on the University of Birmingham’s coursefinder web pages.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
University of Birmingham
Department of English Language and Applied Linguistics
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
English language
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Philosophy
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
English language
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Philosophy
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Although there aren't a lot of jobs around for professional philosophers, philosophy degrees are a relatively popular option, with more than 2,000 students graduating in a philosophy-related subject in 2015 - a little down on previous years, but still healthy. Nearly a quarter of philosophy graduates take a postgraduate qualification, and it's a relatively common subject at both Masters and doctorate level — so if you think academic life might be for you, think ahead about how you might fund further study. For those who go into work, philosophy grads tend to go into teaching, accountancy, consulting, journalism, PR, housing, marketing, human resources and the arts while a few go into the computer industry every year, where their logical training is highly rated.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
English language
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£19k
£25k
£29k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Philosophy
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£20k
£26k
£31k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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