Our BA English Language and Linguistics (including Foundation Year) could be suitable for you if your academic qualifications do not yet meet our entry requirements for a three-year version of our social sciences courses and you want a programme that improves your skills to support your academic performance.

Open to UK and EU applicants, this four-year course includes a Foundation Year (known as Year Zero) which is delivered by our Essex Pathways Department followed by a further three years of study in our Department of Language and Linguistics.

During Year Zero you will study on our Social Sciences Pathway which will cover topics such as Analysing the Social and Political World, and People and Society. At the end of Year Zero all students who pass the Social Sciences Pathway will have a choice of which course to progress with. As well as BA English Language and Linguistics students on the Social Sciences Pathway could also study BA Linguistics or BA Sociology, amongst other courses.

From Year One of BA English Language and Linguistics you will study how to analyse linguistic sound systems, word structure, sentence structure, meaning and language use, and apply your knowledge to the analysis of English. You will then be able to make informed choices about areas of English or Linguistics you want to study in greater depth through study options, such as:

Varieties of English

Phonetics

Language, Mind and Communication

Conversation and Social Interaction

Child Language Acquisition

American Languages

We are 1st in UK for research impact in modern languages and linguistics (Grade Point Average, Research Excellence Framework 2021). You have an opportunity to study different kinds of linguistics from structural linguistics to applied and experimental linguistics.

Your future

Studying language and linguistics allows you to develop your research and IT skills by collecting and analysing linguistic data using state-of-the-art technology, and a combination of team-work and independent projects enhances your communication, problem-solving, and management skills.

Graduates of our department have gone on to have careers in a wide variety of fields, including teaching (in the UK and abroad), journalism, branding, advertising, marketing, travel, communications, publishing, speech and occupational therapy, interpreting, translating and media. Other graduates have gone on to work for a wide range of high-profile companies including:

The British Council

English in Action

Royal Bank of Scotland

Macmillan Publishers

Cambridge University Press

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Decisive Media Ltd

We also work with the University's Student Development Team to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.