By learning French and Italian you give yourself the tools to explore a rich cultural and artistic heritage and open up career opportunities in the many countries and international organisations where these languages are spoken.
Studying French and Italian gives you the opportunity to become proficient in two major international languages, and complement your language learning with a broad understanding of history, literature and culture. Fluency in the these two languages, combined with knowledge of political and cultural developments in Italian and French-speaking countries, opens up international career opportunities.
French is native to France, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada and the French Caribbean, and is an official language in much of Africa and Asia. Italy is a cornerstone of culture, art and history across Europe, and you cannot help but be inspired to learn its language. Italian is spoken not only in its home country, but also by over 15 million people in Switzerland, North America and Australia.
Studying at our Canterbury campus gives you a fantastic opportunity to immerse yourself in both languages. There is a large community of Italian and French-speaking students on campus, and our proximity to airports, the Channel ports and the Eurostar terminals at Ashford and Ebbsfleet make it quick and easy to get to Paris, Brussels and Lille, and from there to the rest of mainland Europe.
A number of our staff are native speakers and our facilities include multimedia laboratories, which offer a variety of interactive language learning programmes and dictionaries, and access to audio, video and computer-assisted language learning.
You also have the opportunity to take part in a mentoring scheme for secondary school pupils. By helping them to increase their ability to speak, read and write fluently in a foreign language, you will gain valuable work experience for future careers in education or leadership roles in any field.
You are required to spend a year working or studying abroad between your second and final year of study. In previous years, students have studied at our partner institutions in a country appropriate to their programme of study (for French and Italian this is usually six months in each country). You’ll develop your language skills, grow in self-confidence, gain a new academic perspective, and enhance your employability.
French and Italian is an ideal combination of subjects to enable you gain a broad cultural understanding and to embark on an international career.
Dr Wissia Fiorucci, Modern Languages Co-ordinator and Director of Education, talks about the challenges and rewards of learning languages.
The University will consider applications from students offering a wide range of qualifications. Typical requirements are listed below. Students offering alternative qualifications should contact us for further advice.
Please note that meeting this typical offer/minimum requirement does not guarantee an offer being made.Please also see our general entry requirements.
If you’ve taken exams under the new GCSE grading system, please see our conversion table to convert your GCSE grades.
BBB including French or Italian grade B
The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis.
If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above.
The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances. A typical offer would be to achieve DMM plus an A-level in French or Italian at B.
34 points overall or 15 points at HL, including French or Italian HL A1/A2/B at 4/5/5 or SL A1/A2/B at 5/6/6
The University welcomes applications from international students. Our international recruitment team can guide you on entry requirements. See our International Student website for further information about entry requirements for your country.
However, please note that international fee-paying students cannot undertake a part-time programme due to visa restrictions.
If you need to increase your level of qualification ready for undergraduate study, we offer a number of International Foundation Programmes.
For more advice about applying to Kent, you can meet our staff at a range of international events.
Please see our English language entry requirements web page.
Please note that if you are required to meet an English language condition, we offer a number of 'pre-sessional' courses in English for Academic Purposes. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.
Duration: 4 years full-time
The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.
On most programmes, you study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also be able to take ‘elective’ modules from other programmes so you can customise your programme and explore other subjects that interest you.
Going abroad as part of your degree is an amazing experience and a chance to develop personally, academically and professionally. You experience a different culture, gain a new academic perspective, establish international contacts and enhance your employability.
All Italian and French BA students are required to spend a Year Abroad between Stages 2 and 3, evenly split between two countries where the respective languages are spoken. You are expected to adhere to any academic progression requirements in Stage 2 to proceed to the Year Abroad. If the requirement is not met, you may have to postpone your Year Abroad.
The Year Abroad is assessed on a pass/fail basis and will not count towards your final degree classification. You spend the year working as an English language assistant or in approved employment, or studying at one of our partner universities. For a full list of our partner universities, please visit Go Abroad.
The 2020/21 annual tuition fees for this programme are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Full-time tuition fees for Home and EU undergraduates are £9,250.
For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.*
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
Full-time tuition fees for Home and EU undergraduates are £1,385.
Full-time tuition fees for Home and EU undergraduates are £1,385.
Students studying abroad for less than one academic year will pay full fees according to their fee status.
Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.
You take compulsory language modules, including small-group work with a native speaker. We also make extensive use of computer-assisted language-learning packages and audio and video materials. Culture and literature modules typically involve a weekly two-hour seminar plus essay supervision. We employ French language lectors to help students improve their fluency.
At all stages, assessment is based 100% on coursework (essays, oral presentations) in the first half of the year, and a combination of coursework and examination in the second half of the year. Credits from your year abroad count towards your final degree.
Teaching is by lectures and seminars. We have extensive technical facilities, including audio, video and computer-assisted language learning.
Depending on the modules you select, assessment throughout all stages of the course varies from 100% coursework, to a combination of examination and coursework, in the ratio 50:50, 60:40, 70:30 or 80:20.
For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours. The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules. Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.
Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules. Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.
For programme aims and learning outcomes please see the programmes specification for each subject below. Please note that outcomes will depend on your specific module selection:
Italian at Kent was ranked 2nd in The Times Good University Guide 2020 and 3rd in The Complete University Guide 2021. In The Guardian University Guide 2020, over 87% of final-year Modern Languages and Linguistics students were satisfied with the overall quality of their course.
French at Kent was ranked 8th for graduate prospects and scored 92% overall in The Complete University Guide 2021.
The ability to speak two European languages other than English is a key asset in the global employment market, and companies view a graduate with overseas experience as more employable. Through your studies, you also acquire many of the transferable skills considered essential by graduate employers. These include the ability to work independently and as part of a team, the confidence to offer creative solutions when faced with challenges and the ability to express your ideas with clarity and passion.
There are numerous employment prospects open to languages graduates, and popular choices include teaching either French or Italian, or teaching English as a foreign language; translation and interpreting; working in international organisations; and joining the armed forces. Further study options include a PGCE, TEFL, a PhD or Master's in various aspects of language and culture, or further study in another subject altogether.
British Council Teaching Assistantships are available to students spending their Year Abroad in Italy or France. The French department also has places for Kent graduates to teach English at various universities in France.
This course page is for the 2020/21 academic year. Please visit the current online prospectus for a list of undergraduate courses we offer.
T: +44 (0)1227 768896
T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk
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