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Modern Languages and Music

Entry requirements


A level

A,A,B

To include A level Music at grade A. You normally require an A Level grade B or above in the advanced language(s) you wish to study. If you do not have the relevant language A Level(s), please feel free to contact us to discuss your options.

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

32

6,6,5 in Higher Level subjects, to include Music. You normally require Higher Level language(s) at 5 or above in the advanced language(s) you wish to study.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DDM

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

136

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time with time abroad | 2024

Subjects

Music

Modern languages

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 an undergraduate modern language from beginner or advanced level (French, German, Spanish or Russian) alongside Music is highly complementary and an exciting opportunity to contextualise your knowledge in each discipline. At the Univeristy of Birmingham, language is studied through the lens of the target culture's literature, history, politics and society, and through total immersion on the Year Abroad. Find out more about your chosen combination. Some combinations we are unable to offer due to timetabling restrictions and German alongside Music is only offered at Advanced level.

Our Music department is over 100 years old, and is housed in our state-of-the-art Bramall Music Building. Your undergraduate Music studies will encompass musicology, composition and performance - including one-to-one instrumental/vocal tuition. Many students receive their practical tuition from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, with whom we enjoy close links.

**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 suite and sound proof booths to the same professional standard at the United Nations.

**Explore your niche** – The Department of Music houses a Balinese Gamelan and a large collection of Early Instruments, upon which it is possible to receive tuition. We are also home to the Centre for Early Music Performance and Research (CEMPR); the Centre for Composition and Associated Studies (COMPASS); and Birmingham Electroacoustic Music Studios (BEAST).

**Your spotlight awaits** – You will have access to a wide variety of choirs, orchestras, ensembles, music groups and musical theatre organised by the Department of Music, University Music Society and the Guild of Students.

**Birmingham: the city of music** – Get involved in running and promoting our ensembles as a member of the Music Society Committee and receive professional mentoring. At University of Birmingham you’ll work exciting performance and festivals - both on the stage and behind the scenes.

**Top 90 for Modern Languages in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2022**

**11th for undergraduate Music in the Complete University Guide 2022**

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

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University of Birmingham

Department:

Department of Modern Languages

Read full university profile

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.

94%
Music
59%
Modern languages

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.

Music

Teaching and learning

91%
Staff make the subject interesting
98%
Staff are good at explaining things
88%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
84%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

84%
Library resources
89%
IT resources
81%
Course specific equipment and facilities
61%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

95%
UK students
5%
International students
33%
Male students
67%
Female students
89%
2:1 or above
10%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
B

Others in language and area studies

Teaching and learning

80%
Staff make the subject interesting
88%
Staff are good at explaining things
73%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
70%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

81%
Library resources
86%
IT resources
88%
Course specific equipment and facilities
44%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

95%
UK students
5%
International students
24%
Male students
76%
Female students
93%
2:1 or above
8%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

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.

Music

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.

£15,968
low
Average annual salary
71%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

30%
Teaching and educational professionals
27%
Artistic, literary and media occupations
10%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

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.

£21,000
med
Average annual salary
100%
high
Employed or in further education
68%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

25%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
19%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
14%
Teaching and educational professionals

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.

Music

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£15k

£15k

£22k

£22k

£24k

£24k

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

£20k

£26k

£26k

£32k

£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.

Explore these similar courses...

Lower entry requirements
Bangor University | Bangor (Wales)
Music and Modern Languages
BA (Hons) 4 Years Full-time with time abroad 2024
UCAS Points: 96-128
Nearby University
University of Nottingham | Nottingham
Music
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time with time abroad 2024
UCAS Points: 104-141
Same University
University of Birmingham | Birmingham
Modern Languages and English Literature
BA (Hons) 4 Years Full-time with time abroad 2024
UCAS Points: 136

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here