Modern Languages and English Language
University of Birmingham
UCAS Code: RQ93 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
A level grade B or equivalent in your chosen Modern Language is required if you plan to take it at Advanced level. To study a language at Beginners level you will need to have studied a modern foreign language at GCSE with grade 6/B or above. A level in English Language, English Literature, English Language and Literature. 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 plus 32 points overall. You also require a Higher Level or equivalent in each modern language that you plan to study at Advanced level, plus HL 6 in English Language & Literature / English Literature / Modern Foreign Language.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
BTEC Extended Diploma: DDM, plus AB at A-level in the required subject/s mentioned above. BTEC Diploma: DD, plus AB at A-level in the required subject/s mentioned above. BTEC Subsidiary Diploma: D, plus AB at A-level in the required A-level subject/s mentioned above.
Accepted in place of a non-required A level with the equivalent grade.
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
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.
Studying a modern language from beginner or advanced level (French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish or Portuguese), alongside English is highly complementary and an exciting way to contextualise your knowledge in each discipline. At Birmingham, undergraduate language is taught through the lens of the target culture's literature, history, politics and society, and through total immersion on the Year Abroad. Please note that not all combinations are available due to timetable restrictions. Find out more about your chosen combination.
By studying Modern Languages as a Joint Honours degree with English Language, you will gain a thorough appreciation of the technical aspects of the English language and its social and political context and how it inteacts with other langauges. Finding out how a language works and how societies communicate, combines a unique intellectual challenge with significant practical potential. You will also have the chance to use new resources, such as computer-held databases of linguistic data and you will be encouraged to embrace theoretical and technological advances in the study of language.
**Why study this course?**
**More than fluent** – Choose vocational modules in areas such as Translation, Language Teaching, Legal Culture, Business and more! Talk the talk into a long list of career prospects with the help of our Careers and Employability team.
**Practice as a professional** – Develop your skills with our state-of-the-art translation suite, Televic interpreting suites and sound proof booths to the same professional standard at the United Nations.
**Multicultural city** – Learn and Live in a vibrant city that is culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse. Join a number of language and culture-based societies at the University of Birmingham to further enhance your skills.
**Do more than read books** – Take advantage of the wide ranging expertise within our academic community and delve into the study of social media, marketing, textual production, video games, comics, film and TV, music and art.
**Broad range of specialisms to explore** - Birmingham is internationally famous for its work in corpus linguistics, stylistics, the language of social media, figurative language and language learning and teaching. You can focus on traditional aspects of the subject such as grammar, pragmatics or historical linguistics, but you can also explore newer areas such as English used worldwide or English used in internet communication.
**Top 100 for Modern Languages in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2022**
**Top 30 for English in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2022**
**100% of our graduates are in work or further study with 15 months (Graduate Outcome Survey 2022)**
Assessment methods
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 Modern Languages
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)
Others in language and area studies
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
Others in language and area studies
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
This is a broad subject for a variety of European languages. No matter which you take, the general theme is that some graduates go to that country to work, often as English language teachers, some go into further study, often to train as teachers or translators, but most get jobs in the UK in education - most often as language tutors, unsurprisingly, or translators. Modern language grads can also be in demand in business roles where communication and language skills are particularly useful, such as marketing and PR, and in finance or law. But remember — whilst employers say they rate graduates who have graduates who have more than one language, you need to have them as part of a whole package of good skills.
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.
Others in language and area studies
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
£32k
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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This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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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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