BA in English Language and Literature (International applicants only)

What you will study?

Year 1 is designed to give you the foundational skills in both language and literature. Students will study the systems and structures of the English language: the fundamentals of our sound system, how these sounds combine to form words and how these words combine to form sentences. You will be introduced to the notion of language beyond the sentence, looking at how it functions in the real world (clue: very differently to how you might think). We also look at different approaches and digital applications used in the study of language. There are two foundational modules in English literature (digital and performance) that study poetry, prose (novel and short story) and drama. Finally, two specifically designed modules bring the worlds of language and literature together in an exciting learning environment.

In Semester 1 of Year 2, we aim to build on your digital and analytic skills by exploring key notions in the study of language such as style. The literature module studies 20th Century novels from Ireland and beyond, allowing you to examine how features of language identify a particular author’s writing style. In Semester two, we use language and literature to question the dominant value systems and ideologies present in everyday written and spoken language. We explore themes in contemporary language and literature, but also pay close attention to their history through an examination of issues such as politics, imperialism and globalisation. In Year 2, you will also have an extensive selection of elective modules to choose from, including teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL).

Year 3 is devoted to work placement and/or study abroad.

In Year 4, the final year, we investigate some of the major trends and advancements in language and literature in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries including forensic linguistics, human machine interaction and ecological, racial and gender-based theoretical models. We study the applied nature of these contemporary modes of thinking through a variety of text types using a variety of methodologies. Our primary focus is on the understanding of the meaning of texts that we encounter in our everyday spoken and written lives. Semester 2 features the capstone module of the programme, Language and Literature 4, which is a student-led module culminating in a day-long seminar designed to provide first-hand experience of an academic conference, complete with plenary speaker.

Career Opportunities

English is the first language of almost 400 million people and the second language of many others. It is estimated that around 1.5 billion people worldwide are learners of English. Increasingly, companies are using English as their corporate language globally to ensure good communication and collaboration with customers, suppliers, business partners, and other stakeholders (e.g. Airbus, Daimler-Chrysler, SAP, Nokia and Microsoft).

There is a global demand for graduates with cultural and critical expertise, who are highly adept at interpreting and producing texts and content and who have a high level of digital skills. Possible career opportunities include, but are not limited to:

• Administrative roles (e.g. Civil Service, Public Bodies, sales and marketing, arts administration, human resources)
• Communications
• Content Design (e.g. web content, blog writing, policy development, editorial assistant, content executive)
• Customer Service (e.g. Webcare)
• Digital Content Creation
• Publishing
• Roles within IT (User Experience (UX) design, production editor)
• Social Media
• Technical writing
• Teaching

The BA in English Language and Literature is designed to address the digital demands of everyday communication. This programme will also meet a strong need to equip graduates with up-to-date applied skills in the use of technology to analyse, arrange and showcase information in English so as to optimise communication.