Modern Languages and History of Art BA (Hons)

University of Birmingham

Birmingham’s fusion of language and culture places employability at its heart, preparing you to live and work as an engaged citizen of the world.

The study of one or two Modern Languages (French, Italian, Russian and/or Spanish) alongside History of Art is highly complementary and an exciting opportunity to contextualise your knowledge in each discipline. Your linguistic fluency is strengthened with a simultaneous understanding and appreciation of your target culture's literature, history, politics and society. You can even start two languages from scratch without taking an advanced language, as long as one of these is French or Spanish. Travel opportunities in your degree course such as the Year Abroad and the History of Art European study trip will enrich your skillset as both a linguist and art historian.

You will have access to original works, a dedicated fine art library and collection of resources in the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, our acclaimed public gallery at the Univeristy. Here you will find a great collection of European art and works by famous artists such as Botticelli, Van Gogh, Monet, Magritte, Degas, Gwen John, Vigée LeBrun and Rodin.

Why study this course?

More than fluent – Choose vocational modules in areas such as Translation, Language Teaching, Legal Culture, Business and more! Talk the talk into a long list of career prospects with the help of our Careers and Employability team. Practice as a professional – Develop your skills with our state-of-the-art translation suite, Televic interpreting suite and sound proof booths to the same professional standard at the United Nations.

Multicultural city – Learn and Live in a vibrant city that is culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse. Join a number of language and culture-based societies at the University of Birmingham to further enhance your skills. The Golovine – An official blog for the Department of Art History, Curating and Visual Studies at the University of Birmingham. Students are encouraged to contribute to the blog regularly as part of the course. It gives our prospective students exclusive insight into what it’s like studying at Birmingham, alumni successes, research conducted and commentaries on art news. On-campus gallery – Teaching regularly takes place in our working gallery on campus, The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, which is home to a dedicated fine art library and world-class collection. Seminars and events are held here, which really help to deepen your understanding and expand your knowledge of the museum and heritage sector following our hands-on approach.

Top 90 for Modern Languages in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2022

6th for undergraduate History of Art in the Guardian University Guide 2022

80% of graduates in work or further study within 15 months of graduating (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2022)