BA French and Japanese / Course details

French

• Over 70% of our staff are native speakers, teaching you in French in 'language' classes as well as most 'culture' classes.
• You will experience between three and six hours of French grammar and conversation every week (at post A-Level or beginners' level), in order to reach near-native precision and fluency. This will run in parallel with optional course units on French and francophone history, politics, literature, popular culture and/or linguistics, from the Early Modern period to the present.
• You will benefit from our long-established partnership with the Alliance Française de Manchester with cultural events throughout the year, such as film screenings, talks, plays, concerts, exhibitions and intensive language classes.
• You will also benefit from our collaboration with the Institut de Touraine in the Loire Valley, which hosts Easter and Summer French language classes that are appropriate for anyone from beginners to finalists.
• Our range and quality of courses are regularly cited for praise by external examiners and three colleagues have won University Teaching Excellence Awards.

Japanese

• You will follow a Japanese Studies curriculum through which you will learn about Japan-related topics in historical, linguistic, cultural, religious and other contexts, drawing on the wide range of research carried out by staff in Japanese Studies.
• The course centres on a core framework in Year 1 but some choice of course units from Year 2 onwards will enable you to focus on areas of interest in the study of Japan and East Asia.
• Japanese Studies at Manchester is taught by a diverse team of academic specialists in the field.
• The course gives you the opportunity to build on existing knowledge of the language or study it as a beginner.

• Provide you with a comprehensive grounding in French and Japanese language, literature, culture, history and linguistics, enabling you to become proficient enough to live and work effectively in a French or Japanese-speaking environment. 
• Develop your linguistic skills including speaking and writing accurately, understanding and analysing audio, video and written materials, using different registers, speaking to a group with confidence, and translating with appropriate sensitivity.

Residence abroad

You can study and/or work  for up to a year in a country or countries relevant to your chosen language(s) to improve your communicative language skills in a native-speaker environment.

Collaborations and partnerships

The University has links with language and cultural institutions across the city, including:

• HOME - international and contemporary art, theatre and film;
• Alliance Française - home of French language and culture.

Societies

The University is home to over 30 international and language-related student societies offering a breadth of cultural activities and experiences, including the Francophone Society and the Japanese Society.

You'll learn through a mixture of formal lectures, seminars and tutorials, spending approximately 12 hours a week in formal study sessions.

For every hour of university study, you will be expected to complete a further 2-3 hours of independent study. You will also need to study during the holiday periods.

The individual study component could be spent reading, producing written work, revising for examinations or working in the University's Language Centre .

Applicants should be aware that learning Japanese is very intensive and that a great deal of time is required for this throughout the course (extending through the summer period between Years 1 and 2, particularly for beginners).

The first few weeks may be particularly intensive for those who have not encountered Japanese script, and we strongly advise all applicants to ensure that they have learned at least the hiragana script prior to Week 1 of teaching; guidance on materials to help with this can be obtained from language tutors.

You will be assessed in various ways, including:  

• written and oral examinations; 
• presentations; 
• coursework (which may include library research, linguistic fieldwork and data collection, or web-based research); 
• in your final year, a dissertation based on a research topic of your choice.  

Assessment methods vary from course unit to course unit - see individual course unit listings for more information.

The University Language Centre is home to language resources, including a new interpreting suite, purpose-built recording rooms, and resources for more than 70 languages.  

The Centre also offers multilingual word processing, language learning software, off-air recording and AV duplication, multilingual terrestrial and satellite TV, and extensive support and advice for learners.  

Learn more at facilities