History and a Modern Language

Our aim across both the School of History, Archaeology and Religion and the School of Modern Languages is for you to become a ‘global citizen’ who thinks critically, understands cultural diversity and has a wealth of transferable skills.

The 4-year History and a Modern Language (BA) programme will help you develop high-level communication and critical-thinking skills, and foster resilience and independence through time spent in immersive foreign language contexts.

The history side of the programme lets you shape your passion for history according to your interests, studying the past with a critical eye while making connections to debates in the public sphere.

Our expertise reaches an extraordinary breadth of societies, periods and places, spanning the British Isles, Europe (east and west), Africa, Asia, and the Americas. And through our exciting range of modules, you’ll have the opportunity to study both well-established areas, such as political, social, cultural and gender history, or explore areas that might be new to you, such as environmental history or digital history.

On the languages side of the programme, you can choose to study one of the three different languages we offer. These are Chinese, French, and Spanish.

We run two language pathways. Those with an A level or equivalent competence in a modern language will take our Upper Elementary pathway. Those with limited or no knowledge of a modern language take our Elementary pathway.

You’ll explore the language you’re studying and its social, political, historical and cultural contexts from a global perspective. We place a strong emphasis on cultural diversity, and our stimulating module selection celebrates cultural and linguistic mobility. Through a variety of language learning resources and materials, and range of student-centred learning activities, you’ll develop your reading, writing, oral, listening and mediation skills.

An integral part of this programme is the opportunity to spend time working or living abroad to experience life in the culture of the language you are studying. You’ll have the choice of either studying at a partner university or completing a work placement in each semester.

It’s important to remember that studying languages is not just about the language itself, it involves the integrated study of language, culture and society. As a History and Modern Language (BA) student, you’ll find that often there are complementary issues and perspectives that link these subjects.

Through this programme, you’ll develop a range of skills that are advantageous in our digital age - creativity, empathy, critical thinking, persuasive communication skills and the ability to challenge and question.

Distinctive Features of the Programme

A dynamic experience Learn from native and near-native speakers, with blended learning and digital technologies embedded in teaching and learning activities.

Rich in resources Explore some of the world’s oldest printed books in the university’s Special Collections and Archives.

Community and culture A vibrant programme of events – such as language cafes and student societies - supports your language learning and immersion into the culture.

Skills for the future A structured skills programme embeds academic, transferable and employability skills into learning from the very beginning.

Employability-focus Choose and optional of credit-bearing work placement and gain professional experience.

The world is your classroom Spend your third year studying or working in the country of your chosen language.