Politics and Modern Languages & Cultures
University of Sheffield
UCAS Code: RL60 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
University of Sheffield
UCAS Code: RL60 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
typically including a modern foreign language
Access to HE Diploma
Award of Access to HE Diploma in a relevant subject, with 45 credits at Level 3, including 30 at Distinction and 15 at Merit
GCSE/National 4/National 5
GCSE Maths grade 4/C
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
typically with 5 in a Higher Level modern foreign language
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
H2 H2 H2 H2 H3 H3 typically including a modern foreign language
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
+ B at A Level typically in a modern foreign language
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
in a relevant subject + an appropriate modern foreign language qualification
Scottish Advanced Higher
typically in a modern foreign language + AABBB at Scottish Highers
Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (last awarded Summer 2024)
+ AB typically including a modern foreign language at A Level
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
By bringing together your study of politics and languages and cultures, you'll deepen your understanding of European culture and world affairs. Examine political issues from different cultural perspectives and set your study of languages and cultures in their broader political contexts.
**Deepen your understanding of European culture and world affairs through the study of Politics and Modern Languages and Cultures - while developing your chosen language or languages.**
Stand out by combining the study of politics with one or two languages and an in-depth exploration of the cultures of Europe and the wider world.
By taking a critical look at what is happening in the UK, EU and other political systems, you’ll delve into the political issues surrounding us from climate change to LGBTQ+ rights and immigration - whilst developing highly valuable language skills, and a sophisticated understanding of the countries where your chosen language or languages are spoken.
Splitting your time between both departments means you’ll have a wide range of optional modules to choose from. With politics, modules include British politics, comparative politics, international relations and security studies. And with the School of Languages and Cultures, follow your areas of interest with topics such as literature, film and, of course, politics.
**Why study this course?**
- **Combine the study of politics with one or two languages** - choose from 10 languages (German, French, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Czech, Catalan, Italian, and Luxembourgish) to enhance your understanding of world affairs.
- **Spend a year abroad** - the year abroad in third year enables you to immerse yourself in the language, culture and society of the language or languages you study before returning to Sheffield for your final year.
- **One of the top departments for politics** - Sheffield’s Department of Politics and International Relations is top 10 for international relations according to The Guardian University Guide 2024.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
University of Sheffield
School of Languages, Arts and Societies (Languages)
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score 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.
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)
Politics
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.
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.
Politics
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
The numbers of people taking politics degrees fell sharply last year and we'll keep an eye on this one - it can't really be because of graduates getting poor outcomes as politics grads do about as well as graduates on average. Most politics or international relations graduates don't actually go into politics - although many do, as activists, fundraisers and researchers. Jobs in local and central government are also important. Other popular jobs include marketing and PR, youth and community work, finance roles, HR and academic research (you usually need a postgraduate degree to get into research). Because so many graduates get jobs in the civil service, a lot of graduates find themselves in London after graduating. Politics is a very popular postgraduate subject, and so about one in five politics graduates go on to take another course - usually a one-year Masters - after they finish their degrees.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
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
£24k
£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.
Politics
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
£29k
£34k
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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Teaching Excellence Framework (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.
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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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