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2025/26
2026/27

Languages and Cultures

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Students from our Department of Languages and Cultures share how their year abroad shaped them

There’s more to studying a language at the University of Reading than just learning grammar and vocabulary. It’s an opportunity for you to truly immerse yourself in another culture and develop your language ability to a near-native level.

You'll learn the language in the political, social, historical and cultural contexts of the countries in which it is spoken, giving you the excellent grounding required to achieve fluency. Our small language classes, which are led by native speakers, provide you with direct access to expert staff, ensuring you develop your written and spoken skills to the best of your ability. 

95% of our students said teaching staff are good at explaining things (National Student Survey 2025, 95% of responders from the Department of Languages and Cultures).

We offer a wide range of courses, meaning you can study a single language, two languages or a language alongside a completely different subject. Each of our courses provides you with plenty of choice in terms of optional modules, enabling you to tailor your degree to your own interests.

100% of our research is of international standing (REF 2021, combining 4*, 3* and 2* submissions – Modern Languages and Linguistics).

An increasingly connected world demands language skills, and well-qualified linguists are in short supply in the UK, so there has never been a better time to study a modern language. 94% of graduates from our Department are in work or further study within 15 months of graduation (based on our analysis of HESA data, Graduate Outcomes Survey 2022/23; includes first degree Languages and Cultures responders).

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The year abroad was honestly the best year of my life. I made some of my closest friends from countries all over the world and had so many amazing experiences. My language massively improved (much more than I thought it would) and it really gave me a sense of feeling European which I think is something that is very important. I saw and did so many things and I cannot stress how much I would recommend it!

Eithne King
Italian and Spanish

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