We are renowned for our research and our welcoming yet rigorous academic atmosphere.

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Modern Languages at Leicester

Modern Languages at Leicester include French, Italian and Spanish and a wide range of degree programmes. These include Joint Honours, Honours degrees with two or three languages or three subjects including a language, European Studies, Modern Languages with Management, Modern Languages with Management and English as a Foreign Language, and French, Italian or Spanish and English or with Film Studies or History of Art.

Plans are also being developed to add a translation studies strand to our provision in Modern Languages. While all our courses normally last four years, there is also the possibility of completing them in three years where circumstances make this appropriate. French, Italian and Spanish can all be studied from Beginner's or Advanced level.

Why study at Leicester?

National Student Survey Ranking: 92% of French students satisfied with their course; 97% of Spanish students.
Research rating: 90% internationally significant
Position in 2012 Subject League Tables: Guardian 7th, Sunday Times 8th.
Places: 66
Applications: 430

French at Leicester was voted top in the country in the 2007 and 2008 National Student Satisfaction Survey. Spanish came top nationally in 2009. Modern Languages as a whole was voted second nationally in 2007 and came joint top in 2008. Italian was rated first nationally for student satisfaction in the 2008 survey run by the Independent.

As well as following core language courses, which lay great emphasis on communication and presentation skills, students can specialise in a range of cultural areas. With research-active staff whose interests underpin the modules offered, the School is particularly strong in the visual arts, including painting and film, as well as literature from the sixteenth to the twenty-first century. Other specialisms include interpreting, linguistics, gender and post-colonial studies.

Course Opportunities

Living and studying abroad: Summer schools

Leicester offers its first-year students the unique opportunity to attend a Summer School in one country, usually living with local families in Montpellier, Massa Marittima (Tuscany) or Santiago de Compostela. The Summer Schools are subsidised by the University and offer invaluable experience in the language, as well as preparation for the year abroad. For many students this is their first taste of living abroad and they remain in close contact with the academic staff at Leicester during this time. Most students also take advantage of the opportunity to make lasting friendships with their host families.

Living and studying abroad: the year abroad

Students spend the third year of their course abroad. Some work as language assistants, or find employment relevant to their course; others study at one or more of our many partner institutions in Europe, North America and Latin America, which include Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Salamanca, Granada, Bologna, Padua, Quebec and Puebla, Mexico. Students studying two languages usually split their year abroad between two countries.

If you study at a university under the Erasmus scheme, you will receive an Erasmus grant (approximately €365 per month). Students are supported by the School during their time away through e-mail contact. The year abroad offers you the opportunity to develop not only your language skills but also your social and cultural awareness. Our students find studying and living abroad an invaluable experience.

Teaching and Assessment

Language skills are taught in small groups, largely by native speakers. Our courses stress the importance of communicative ability as well as accuracy, and oral skills are highly valued. Cultural modules are taught through a mixture of lectures and seminars, where we encourage discussion and debate around prepared topics and texts. Our module Core Skills for Language Learners, which includes interactive training in essay writing and grammatical terminology, is facilitated through the use of online tutorials and exercises on Blackboard, the University's virtual learning environment.

Students are assessed throughout each year by a combination of formal examination and continuous assessment, which includes essays and seminar presentations. While final year work is most heavily weighted in determining the degree class, achievement during the second year and the year abroad is also taken into account.

Resources

We have state-of-the-art language laboratories which allow you to learn through interaction with a range of visual and aural materials from broadcast and internet sources. Satellite television and internet resources are also available in the Self-Access Centre. They are integrated into classroom learning and may also be used for further personal study.

Different Courses offered within the School

We offer Honours degree programmes in two or three subject combinations. Joint Degrees include any two languages offered within the School, as well as English and French, Italian or Spanish.

Modern Languages with Management is offered jointly with the prestigious School of Management at the University of Leicester as is the new degree Modern Languages with Management and English as a Foreign Language.

There is further inter-departmental collaboration on another two of our degree programmes, Modern Languages with Film Studies and Modern Languages with History of Art.

Languages are also offered as part of the BA in European Studies, taught jointly by the School of Modern Languages and the Department of Politics and International Relations.

Modern Language Studies is for those wishing to study three languages (or two languages and another subject) for the first two years, and then to specialise in two languages in the final year. The School also contributes to the very popular Law with French degree, run through the School of Law at the University of Leicester.

Skills Gained

As well as acquiring high-level language proficiency and interpersonal and intercultural skills, our graduates are flexible, resourceful and adaptable, all qualities vital for the modern workplace.

We encourage our students to develop their analytical, research, writing and presentation skills in a wide range of areas. Our graduates are enterprising, skilled communicators, well able to live and work in different environments in the UK, Europe and beyond.

Graduate Opportunities

Graduates in Modern Languages from the University of Leicester have excellent employment prospects. Many of our graduates enter competitive fields such as industry, business, marketing and PR, as well as the professions and the arts. Even in those areas where knowledge of a foreign language may not be a primary requirement, linguistic proficiency gives Modern Languages graduates a vital edge.

A substantial number of graduates each year go into postgraduate training to become interpreters and translators, or enter the teaching profession. Others proceed to further study on Masters and PhD programmes, and many go on to live and work abroad.

Full entry requirements

Opportunities to Visit and Further Information

Visiting departments is an important part of choosing the right university and course for you. You are welcome to visit and speak with our admissions team and some of the teaching staff of the School.

For details of our Open Days and Visit Days, or for more information about any of our courses, please contact:

0116 252 2032
modern.lang@le.ac.uk
www.le.ac.uk/modlang/

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