BA Chinese Studies

Potential candidates are expected to demonstrate why they have chosen this particular degree in their personal statement and express why the course interests them.

Applicants submitting mitigating circumstances

If you are submitting information about mitigating circumstances that have affected, or are likely to affect, your academic performance, you should include this in the referee's report.

We cannot usually take into account information that is supplied after an adverse decision has been made on an application by the admitting school.

(Examples of mitigating circumstances include family illness, problems with school facilities or an unusual curriculum followed by your school of college.)

You will study Chinese language throughout BA Chinese Studies. The core language teaching in Chinese enables you to develop various linguistic skills, including:

• speaking and writing accurately;
• understanding and analysing audio, video and written material;
• using different registers;
• speaking to a group with confidence;
• translating with appropriate sensitivity.

At the same time, you can choose China-related topics in:

• literature;
• film;
• cultural studies;
• politics;
• history;
• linguistics;
• economics;
• development studies;
• business.

You will draw on the wide range of research expertise in Chinese Studies across the Faculty of Humanities, tailoring the course according to the development of your interests.

You will benefit from excellent teaching, student support and cutting-edge study facilities, as well as from the vibrancy and cultural diversity of Manchester itself, Western Europe's most multilingual city.

With placement options available at partner universities in China and Taiwan, a compulsory third year abroad will give you an unforgettable and invaluable personal and professional experience.

Although language units may show here as optional, they are a mandatory part of your modern languages degree and you will take the units relevant to your level of language in each year of study.

It is compulsory to study language at all levels of your modern languages degree.

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:

• Instituto Cervantes - a centre for Spanish culture;
• HOME - international and contemporary art, theatre and film;
• Manchester China Institute - promoting mutual understanding in UK-China relations through research, teaching, and activities;
• Alliance Francaise - 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.

You will 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 .

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 on our Facilities page.

A degree in Modern Languages and Cultures paves the way for a broad range of careers. You will develop intercultural awareness and enhanced communication skills - both highly valued by employers.

You will also acquire transferable expertise at the very heart of language learning, including enhanced powers of perception and interpretation and advanced decision-making and multitasking skills.

You will develop independence and self-confidence during your residence abroad, and your intercultural communication skills will make you a strong contender for media, journalism and PR roles.

Many of our graduates go straight into business services, marketing, advertising, management, banking or communications.

Others pursue postgraduate study or further vocational training to become accountants, lawyers, teachers (both in the UK and overseas) or to enter the Civil Service.

The University of Manchester is the second most targeted university in the UK for top graduate employers (High Fliers Research, 2024).

Employers who have taken on graduates of our Chinese courses in the past include Nova (Kyoto), Berlitz, The University of Manchester, The Confucius Institute, Hamburg Sud, Skin SN, Dell, DISCO, Christian Dior Couture, JET and London LEA.

The University has its own dedicated Careers Service that you would have full access to as a student and for two years after you graduate.

At Manchester you will have access to a number of opportunities to help boost your employability .