Modern Languages and English Literature

Discover the stories, voices, and cultures that shape our world.

In a multilingual world, understanding how language and literature shape identity, politics, and culture has never been more vital. Our BA Modern Languages and English Literature degree invites you to explore the power of words, across centuries, continents, and languages, while gaining the skills and fluency to communicate confidently in an ever more interconnected and interdependent world.

This dynamic, interdisciplinary degree combines the richness of studying literature in English with the intellectual and cultural depth of a modern language.

This unique combination of literary study with language practice, allows you to open doors to careers within and beyond the UK, from translation and cultural heritage to international organisations, museums, and cultural industries and beyond. The flexibility of language broadens your employability horizons, enabling you to work confidently with global partners and institutions and to communicate across borders comfortably.

Whilst the literature part of the degree complements these pathways by deepening your analytical abilities and nurturing the empathetic and cultural insight essential for you to contribute meaningfully to an interconnected and evolving global society.

Why Modern Languages and English Literature at Swansea?
Based at our stunning Singleton Park campus, in parkland overlooking Swansea Bay on the edge of the Gower Peninsula;

Modern Languages at Swansea is ranked:

1st for Student Satisfaction (Complete University Guide 2026)
4th in the UK for Teaching Satisfaction (Guardian University Guide 2026)
5th in the UK Overall (Guardian University Guide 2026), and has
100% Overall Satisfaction* (NSS 2025)
*Assessed under ‘Linguistics’, (Q28, NSS 2025)

English at Swansea is ranked:

11th in the UK for Research Impact (REF 2021)
Top 15 in the UK for Teaching Satisfaction (Guardian University Guide 2026)
Top 25 in the UK for Student Experience (Times Good University Guide 2026)
Top 101-150 in the World (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025)
Our lecturers are internationally recognised writers, linguists, and translators whose work has been widely published, broadcast and performed. You will learn from research experts who specialise in subjects such as film, gender studies, literature, theatre studies and translation.

Your Modern Languages and English Literature Experience
This degree has innovation at it’s core, combining rich interdisciplinary features that draw together multiple academic fields and the diverse cultural and linguistic traditions embedded within the Modern Languages pathways. This programme explores the connections between these areas while highlighting their relevance to the wider professional landscapes associated with each pathway.

In Modern Languages, technology plays a key role in enhancing your learning experience. You’ll have access to innovative virtual labs and simulated environments that open the door to hands‑on learning, especially in areas like translation and language education. These tools help you connect what you study in class with real‑world practice, building the confidence and skills you’ll need in professional settings.

This programme includes opportunities to undertake a Year Abroad, spent at one of our partner institutions in the USA, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Germany or Austria, enhancing your learning and offering invaluable life experience.

This course also offers you the opportunity to spend a Year in Industry, in the UK or overseas, enabling you to gain valuable workplace experience. The University advocates for paid-only placements, which on average have a salary of over £20,000. Unpaid placements are considered on a case-by-case basis.

Your early studies will introduce you to topics ranging from medieval literature to contemporary gender studies. These will be complemented by appropriate language modules – either advanced (post-A level) or at beginners level, as well as cultural modules relating to the French, German or Spanish, with further options in teaching and pedagogy, translation, or additional languages such as Catalan, Italian, and Portuguese.

As you progress through your degree, you will be able to hone in on your interests with increasingly specialist modules in the larger subject areas of English Literature and language studies.

We offer a variety of assessment methods within our programmes. In addition to traditional examinations and essays, examples of alternative assessment include:
• Presentations
• Group Work
• Oral Examinations

Throughout your undergraduate Modern Languages and English Literature degree, you will develop excellent research and analytical skills and learn to present your ideas effectively both verbally and in writing.