Modern Languages
Entry requirements
A level
96-104 points, to include a minimum of 2 A levels.
96-106 Tariff points from the Access to HE Diploma.
Cambridge Pre-U score of 42-44.
GCSE/National 4/National 5
3 GCSEs at grade C or above to include English and Mathematics/3 GCSEs at grade 4 or above to include English and Mathematics.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
25 points from the IB Diploma, to include 3 Higher Level subjects.
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
H3,H4,H4,H4,H4-H3,H3,H3,H4,H4
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
96-104 Tariff points to include a minimum of 2 Advanced Highers.
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
T Level
UCAS Tariff
96-104 points, to include a minimum of 2 A levels, or equivalent.
96-104 points from the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate including 1 A level, plus the Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate.
About this course
**Overview**
On this BA (Hons) Modern Languages degree course, you'll study one language in-depth, immersing yourself in the culture, history and identity of the communities that speak it. In an increasingly global world, equip yourself with the ability to connect with millions of people in their native language.
You'll have the choice to work towards fluency in one of the following languages:
- French – spoken by 267 million people worldwide
- German – spoken by 135 million people worldwide
- Spanish – spoken by 543 million people worldwide
- Mandarin Chinese – spoken by 1,120 million people worldwide
Boost your language and cultural studies with a year abroad on a study or work placement, in a country or region that speaks your chosen language. Previous students have experienced life in Germany, Spain, China, Taiwan, Latin America and Senegal.
Wherever you choose to go, this course and the year abroad will transform your passion for language into practical multilingual skills you can use to build your career in any field – from teaching to international management and finance, or media and marketing.
**Course highlights**
- Take a work or study abroad placement in year 3, to fully absorb the history and culture of another country and develop the skills and experience you need to build a career across borders
- Put your language skills into practice in simulations, scenario exercises, television broadcasts and debates, so you’re ready to thrive in the wide world of work
- Choose to focus on the aspects of other countries that fascinate you – from their history and politics, through to economics and business
- Choose to mix and match optional modules, or tailor your course by selecting modules specifically within one of four specialisms: Teaching and education; Translation and interpreting; Culture and linguistics; Business and industry
**Careers and opportunities**
As early as 2014, UK Trade and Investment reported that the UK's lack of language skills was leading to a 3.5% loss in national income through trade. This highlights the need UK companies have for bilingual and multilingual employees.
Fast forward to a post-pandemic 2021, the opportunity to work remotely from anywhere in the world has dramatically increased and globalization of trade continues to grow (according to the DHL Global Connectedness Index). The professional language skills you develop on this course could set you apart in a global job market, whether you plan to work in the UK after graduation or pursue a career abroad.
What jobs can you do with a modern languages degree?
Roles you could go onto include:
- bilingual consultant
- multilingual project coordinator translator
- translator/interpreter
- diplomat
- journalist
- tourist guide
- market analyst
What areas can you work in with a modern languages degree?
This degree broadens your options so you can pursue almost any career. Learning a second language is useful in all sectors, including:
- marketing
- journalism and the media
- international management
- translation and interpreting
- teaching
- tourism
- finance
You could also continue your studies at postgraduate level with a Master's in a subject such as Translation Studies or Applied Linguistics and TESOL.After you graduate, you can get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability service as you advance in your career.
Modules
Year 1
Core modules in this year, alongside your language study, include:
- Investigating Language Practices
- Language, Learning and Teaching
- Nation, Language and Identity
- If you do the QTS route, you'll complete teaching placements, a professional practice teaching unit and a language research project.
Year 2
In your second year you'll continue studying the language or languages that you chose in your first year.
Optional modules in this year currently include:
- Business and Markets in a Global Environment
- Clinical Linguistics
- Comparative European Politics
- Development and Democracy in Latin America
- East Asian States and Societies
- Empire and its Afterlives in Britain, Europe and Africa
- Engaged Citizenship in Humanities and Social Sciences
- English Forms and Functions
- Forensic Linguistics
- France in the World: Global Actor or Global Maverick?
- Global Security
- Intercultural Perspectives on Communication
- Introduction to Professional Language Services
- Introduction to Teaching
- Introduction to Translation
- Language in Literature: Stylistics
- Language of Human Resource Management
- Managing Across Cultures (Fheq5)
- Modern Foreign Language
- Modernity and Globalisation
- Nationalism and Migration: Chaos, Crisis and the Everyday
- News, Discourse and Media
- Politics and Culture of the Hispanic World in 20Th Century Literature and Film
- Principles of Economic Crime Investigation
- Professional Communication in a Global Workplace
- Professional Experience
- Rethinking Nazi Germany: Politics, History, Society
- Second Language Acquisition
- Space, Place and Being
- TESOL (Teaching English To Speakers Of Other Languages)
- The Making of the German Nation
- Transitional Justice and Human Rights
- Trinity Certificate Teaching Practice
- Wildlife Crime: Threats and Response
- World and Transnational Cinema
The optional modules you can select may depend on which languages you've chosen.
Year 3
You'll spend your third year on this course abroad, either studying at a university or working through an arranged work placement.
Year 4
Optional modules in this year currently include:
- Creativity in the Language Classroom
- France in the World: Global Actor or Global Maverick?
- French General Language Grade 6
- Gender, Language and Sexuality
- German General Language Grade 6
- Holocaust Literatures
- International Security in the Asia-Pacific
- Interpreting 1
- Interpreting 2
- Introduction to Teaching
- Italian General Language Grade 6
- Language and Social Media
- Mandarin General Language Grade 6
- Politics and Culture of the Hispanic World in 20th Century Literature and Film
- Professional Development: Recruiters and Candidates
- Professional Experience L6
- Research Project
- Spanish General Language Grade 6
- Spoken Discourse in the Workplace
- The European Union: A Global Power in the Making?
- Translation Theory and Practice
- Written Discourse in the Workplace
We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies.
Therefore, some course content may change over time to reflect changes in the discipline or industry and some optional modules may not run every year. If a module doesn’t run, we’ll let you know as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative module.
Assessment methods
You’ll be assessed through:
- essays
- use of software including desktop publishing, podcasts, subtitling and web design
- case studies
- blogging
- examinations
- book reviews
- professional and business reports
- group and individual projects
- oral presentations
- portfolio of achievement
You’ll be able to test your skills and knowledge informally before you do assessments that count towards your final mark.
You can get feedback on all practice and formal assessments so you can improve in the future.
The way you’re assessed may depend on the modules you select. As a guide, students on this course last year were typically assessed as follows:
Year 1 students: 23% by written exams, 16% by practical exams and 61% by coursework
Year 2 students: 38% by written exams, 7% by practical exams and 55% by coursework
Year 3 students: 100% by coursework
Year 4 students: 7% by written exams, 3% by practical exams and 90% by coursework
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
University of Portsmouth
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
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.
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.
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.
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
£25k
£27k
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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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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