Undergraduate study

Choose from seven single honours degrees, and over 100 joint honours degrees, in a University ranked 3rd in the UK for Modern Languages in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023.

Your learning at a glance

  • You can study nine European languages to degree level with us: French; Danish; German; Italian; Portuguese; Norwegian; Russian; Spanish; and Swedish. You can take them as single honours degrees, or jointly with one of a wide range of other subjects (both languages and non-languages).
  • You’ll complete a four-year MA honours degree, with your third year typically spent in full, or in part, in a country relevant to your chosen language(s). This is an excellent way to turn classroom learning into lived experience.
  • You’ll study your chosen language(s) and culture(s) across a range of periods and disciplines, with options in, for example, film, literature, politics and history. Whether you do single or joint honours, you’ll engage with a broad range of subjects in your first two years, and specialise thereafter.
  • You’ll be part of a large community of language learners in a School with lots going on in European Languages and Cultures, from its own creative writing magazine to film screenings and student-led plays.
  • You’ll typically be based at the heart of the University of Edinburgh, in the city’s historic centre, close to the Main University Library and the National Library of Scotland.

What can I study?

Single and joint honours degrees in French

Single and joint honours degrees in German

Single and joint honours degrees in Italian

Single and joint honours degrees in Portuguese

Single and joint honours degrees in Russian

Single and joint honours degrees in Scandinavian Studies: Danish, Norwegian, Swedish

Single and joint honours degrees in Spanish

 

QS World Rankings by Subject 2024

QS graphic on orange background, text reads #3 in the UK, World Top 10

The University of Edinburgh is ranked 3rd in the UK for Modern Languages.

We are ranked 4th in the UK in the broad subject area of Arts & Humanities.

Globally, we’re in the World Top 10 for Modern Languages (10).

The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings are based on research citations and the results of major global surveys of employers and academics.

They are International Ranking Expert Group (IREG) approved.

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