BA Arabic and Russian

Use the links below to view lists of courses in related subject areas.

• Arab World Studies

ABB including Russian. This course is designed for students whose level of Arabic is beginners only.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

BBC including grade B in Russian for applicants who meet our contextual offer criteria. For further information and to check eligibility visit our Contextual Offers page.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

Contextual offers are available for applicants who:

• live in the UK and will be under the age of 21 on 1 September of the year they will start their course; and
• live in an area of disadvantage or with low progression into higher education; and
• have attended a UK school or college for their GCSEs or A-levels (or equivalent qualifications) that has performed below the national average over multiple years.

See our contextual admissions page for full details and to check your eligibility.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

UK refugee/care-experienced offers are available for applicants who:

• have been looked after in care for more than three months; or
• have been granted refugee status by the UK government or have been issued a UK visa under one of the Ukrainian schemes (Homes for Ukraine, Ukraine Family Scheme or Ukraine Extension Scheme).

See our contextual admissions page for full details and to check your eligibility.

34 points overall. 6,5,5 in Higher Level subjects including Russian

Applicants must demonstrate a broad general education including acceptable levels of Literacy and Numeracy, equivalent to at least Grade C or 4 in GCSE/iGCSE English Language and Mathematics. GCSE/iGCSE English Literature will not be accepted in lieu of GCSE/iGCSE English Language.

Please note that if you hold English as a second language iGCSE qualification, we may also require you to offer one of our acceptable equivalent English Language qualifications or achieve a higher grade in your iGCSE than the one stated above. Please contact the academic School for clarification.

We accept a range of qualifications from different countries. For these and general requirements including English language see accepted entry qualifications from your country .

All applicants to the University (from the UK and Overseas) are required to show evidence of English Language proficiency.

The minimum English Language requirement for this course is either:

• GCSE/iGCSE English Language gradeC/4 or;
• IELTS 7.0 overall with no less than 6.5 in any one component or;
• An acceptable equivalent qualification.

Please note that if you hold English as a second language iGCSE qualification, we may also require you to offer one of our acceptable equivalent English Language qualifications or achieve a higher grade in your iGCSE than the one stated above. Please contact the academic School for clarification.

The UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) requires that every student from outside the UK and the EU must show evidence of a minimum level of English Language in order to be granted a UK visa (Tier 4 visa) to study at undergraduate or postgraduate level. This level is often referred to as the 'B2 level'.

Additionally, our individual Schools may ask for specific English Language proficiency levels that are necessary for their academic programmes. In most cases these requirements are likely to be higher than the B2 level.

Further information about our English Language policy, including a list of some of the English Language qualifications we accept, can be found on our English Language requirements page.

Some English Language test results are only valid for two years.

Your English Language test report must be valid on the start date of the course.

Fees for entry in 2026 have not yet been set. For entry in 2025 the tuition fees were £9,535 per annum for home students, and are expected to increase slightly for 2026 entry.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

• Find out more from student finance
• Eligible UK students can apply for bursaries and scholarships
• Funding for EU and international students is on our country-specific pages
• Many students work part-time or complete a student internship

Residence abroad support

We offer dedicated financial support packages of up to £2,000 for residence abroad students, based on household income.

You will be automatically assessed for this, based on your Student Finance financial assessment - you just need to make sure you apply for a financial assessment in the academic year in which your residence abroad will take place.

If you have followed a non-standard educational route and have been, for example, educated at home, your application will be considered against the standard entry criteria of the course to which you applied.

You will be required to demonstrate that you meet the academic entry requirements as specified for the course.

We will also require a reference which should be written by somebody who knows you well enough, in an official capacity, to write about you and your suitability for higher education.

Please refer to UCAS for further information: UCAS reference guidelines

Mature students are some of our most well-equipped learners, bringing skills and attributes gained from work, family and other life experiences.

Students come from a whole array of backgrounds, study every kind of course, undertake full-time and part-time learning and are motivated by career intentions as well as personal interest. There is no such thing as a typical mature student at Manchester.

The application process is the same as for other prospective undergraduates. If you require further clarification about the acceptability of the qualifications you hold please contact the academic School(s) you plan to apply to.

Further information for mature students can be found on our How to apply page.

We welcome applicants who are looking to return to study and value their contribution to the departmental culture and social life.

Access courses are acceptable as an entry route to this course - please contact the UG Admissions Team.

Applications for deferred entry are considered equally to other applications up to the point of confirmation.

Deferred entry is granted on the discretion of admissions staff, and is normally granted for one year only and two years at the maximum.

Some English Language test results, such as IELTS or TOEFL are only valid for two years from the test date.

If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful you may apply again.

Your application will be considered against the standard course entry criteria for that year of entry.

In your new application you should demonstrate how your application has improved.

We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen course.

If you are applying for a place for the same year of entry through UCAS Extra, you should provide additional evidence of your suitability for the course.

If you are applying through clearing you are required to meet the clearing requirements.

In both UCAS Extra and clearing the places will be subject to availability.

You will study 60 credits from both subjects. 

The first year equips you with a range of important skills such as linguistic expertise, the ability to read and analyse material, skills in presentation, group work and independent language learning. 

First year study will concentrate on intensive language learning. It also features a core course unit on the contemporary Middle East and fosters the development of study and IT skills.

Arabic

• In Year 1, you learn Arab language from complete beginner level - or `ab initio'. Ab initio students have seven contact hours per week with their nominated mother-tongue teacher as part of a course specifically designed to build confidence in comprehension, writing, speaking and listening skills. 
• The Arab culture units offer a range of courses from the filmic and literary to the historic and religious, all of which reflect academic staff research interests.

Russian

• In Year 1 you develop crucial Russian language skills through dedicated grammar classes, oral practice with native-speaker lectors, language laboratory work, and a range of independent learning activities. Separate language pathways are offered for beginners, post A-level and more advanced students.
• Year 1 provides you with a solid base for your further studies, helping you to acquire and improve on important study skills and giving you a thorough grounding in concepts and debates crucial to an understanding of Russian society and culture.
• Topics and themes introduced in first-year content courses are explored in depth in optional content courses in the second and final years. As a result, these courses also help you to make informed choices for subsequent years of study based on your own interests. 

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

In the second year you will continue your language learning, increase your reading of authentic texts in both languages and choose from a wide range of optional units that cover the history, politics, literature and popular culture of the countries in question.

Arabic 

• In Year 2, the language component of the course includes three contact hours per week in addition to working on set assignments and undertaking private study.
• Various options are available ranging from Arabic literature, Middle Eastern cinema, gender and cultural studies to the anthropology of Modern Islam as well as history and politics of the Arab World. The units are largely assessed by coursework. 

Russian

• In Year 2, you continue with your intensive study of Russian language.
• You also choose from optional courses in a range of areas (such as Russian culture and thought, literature, Central European and Balkan history and culture, and Polish language).

In addition, you begin to prepare for your year abroad, through meetings and consultations with our Residence Abroad Tutor and with final-year students who have recently returned from the year abroad. 

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

Your third year of study is spent abroad under approved conditions.

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

The fourth year covers advanced language course units, a variety of specialised thematic course unit choices in the two chosen cultures, and an optional dissertation on an approved topic of your choice.

Arabic

• You will complete your Arabic language studies at a high level. There is also the opportunity to study Business Arabic as well as to choose from a variety of specialised final year course units covering the Arab world.

Russian

• The compulsory element of your studies consists of an advanced Russian language course, which focuses on oral proficiency, translation in Russian and composition in Russian.
• Optional courses in subjects including Business Russian, Soviet and post-Soviet cinema, Russian popular culture, Russian and Soviet politics and history and memory in post-socialist Eastern Europe round out your studies.