Study location	United Kingdom, Colchester Campus
Type	Bachelor courses, full-time
Nominal duration	4 years
Study language	English
Awards	BA
Course code	LRF9

Tuition fee	To be confirmed

Entry qualification	High school / secondary education (or higher) The entry qualification documents are accepted in any language

Language requirements	English Accepted proof of proficiency: Cambridge English, IELTS, TOEFL or other equivalent IELTS: 6.0 TOEFL (IBT): 76 CAE: B2 with 52+ CAE (from Jan 15): 169+

Other requirements	At least 1 reference(s) must be provided.

More information	Expenses, accommodation, working etc. essex.ac.uk/..tercourse=UG00222&subgroup=1

Overview

Politics and political events dominate domestic and international news, impacting on our day-to-day lives as well as shaping the future. Beginning with an overview of international relations in your first year, from global political economy to studies of conflict of security, you then have a choice of topics to explore, such as:

- Comparative politics
- International political economy
- Political theory
- Politics of the Middle East

You also study up to two of French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Mandarin Chinese, completing at least one language to Mastery level. Each of these languages is widely used in the business world, and can take you to a level of near-fluency, and so many of our graduates go on to develop successful global careers with international firms looking for language specialists.

We are one of the largest and most prestigious language and linguistics departments in the world, a place where talented students become part of an academic community in which the majority of research is rated ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’, placing us firmly within the top 10 departments in the UK (REF 2014). We are also ranked among the top 30 departments on the planet according to the QS World [University] Rankings [2016] for politics and international studies.

If you want a global outlook, are interested in human communication, and want to study for a degree with real-world practical value in a world-class department, welcome to Essex.

Programme structure

Year 1

Introduction to International Relations
Introduction to Politics
Intensive Initial Spanish (Double Module) (optional)
Co-Operation and Conflict
Democracy: Forms and Futures
Careers and Employability Skills for Languages and Linguistics

Year 2

International Relations: Theories and Approaches
Conflict Analysis
Proficiency Level French (optional)
Advanced Spanish (optional)
International Organisations (optional)
Politics of the Middle East (optional)
Careers and Employability Skills for Languages and Linguistics

Final year

Mastery Level French (optional)
Proficiency Level Spanish (optional)
Political Parties in Britain and Europe (optional)
International Security Studies (optional)
Careers and Employability Skills for Languages and Linguistics

Career opportunities

Our graduates become teachers, translators, administrators and journalists. Their valued language skills have enabled them to work in diverse fields including banking, entertainment, media, education and tourism, as well as for a host of UK and international companies. In particular, a degree in modern languages lends itself to a career in education, translation, interpretation, trade, PR, communications, immigration or diplomacy.

For example, one of our recent graduates now teaches English for the British Council, whilst another works internationally with NATO.