BA Comparative Literatures and Cultures and Modern Languages
2026 entry
Course summary
Do you enjoy the adventurous and analytical work of interpreting texts? Are you keen to explore literatures and cultures in an unbordered way, so that national boundaries, disciplinary divisions and linguistic know-how are no barrier to where your curiosity and intellectual ambition might lead?
Our BA Comparative Literatures and Cultures and Modern Languages degree offers an unmatched opportunity to study international cultural production in both depth and breadth, while also studying French, German, Italian, Portuguese (beginners only), Russian or Spanish.
Comparative Literatures and Cultures takes you on a journey across and between cultures that will sharpen your analytical skills and equip you with a cultural agility fit for our globalized world. The programme challenges ideas of capital-L Literature or of ‘the canon’ and knocks down false boundaries between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture by exploring the diversity of literary and cultural production both across the globe and across the centuries. Through both core and optional units, our comparatists examine the long and fascinating history of interactions between literary works and other forms (portraiture, book illustration, film), media (video, digital literature) and disciplines (visual arts, philosophy, history, social sciences).
On the language side of your degree, you will follow a structured language course in your chosen language. You will also take a range of core and optional units that focus on topics such as the literature, history, cinema, religion, politics and visual art of culture(s) where your chosen language is spoken. Your third year is spent abroad, extending your language skills and cultural knowledge. To find out more, visit the Centre for Study Abroad.
Bristol's multilingualism and cultural diversity make it the ideal location for this degree. The city offers countless opportunities for you to take your cultural analyses from the seminar into the ‘real world’, be this through encounters with Banksy’s street art, with murals honouring the Bristol Bus Boycott's fight for racial equality or through work on how Bristol’s institutions have responded to decolonization.
The degree fosters qualities valued by employers: intercultural understanding, analytical and critical thinking, self-confidence and daring in communication, an aptitude for collaborative work, and creativity. It will instil habits of curiosity, openness, rigour, self-reflection, and evidence-based thinking, which will prepare you for a flexible career across a wide range of sectors.
Course structure
Your degree will be made up of a combination of core and optional units.
On the Comparative Literatures and Cultures side, core units will introduce you to the practices and debates of comparative literature and the study of visual cultures (e.g., photography, street art and film). These show how insights and methods from postcolonialism and decolonization, translation studies, multiculturalism, and multilingualism can throw new light on the comparative study of literatures and cultures. In the final year, you will do an independent research project. In all years, you will also be able to choose optional units based on the culture of a single language or a combination of cultures, or from other departments in Arts (for example, Classics, Art History, English or Theology).
On the language side of your degree, you will do core language units each year in your chosen language of study (reading, writing, listening, grammar and speaking). Alongside these, you will take a range of core and optional units relating to the culture/cultures in which your language is spoken. These will focus on topics such as literature, history, film, politics, linguistics or visual art.
The cutting-edge research interests and methods of our dedicated and dynamic staff inform our teaching, which takes place through lectures, seminars, workshops, and one-to-one project supervision. Assessments combine rigour and creativity and may include presentations, essays, exams, collaborative projects, debates and video essays.
Check back soon to view the programme catalogue containing further details on the course structure and modules.
Entry requirements
We accept a wide variety of qualifications and welcome applications from students of all backgrounds. Below is a guide to the typical offers for this course.
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Selection process
- Regulations and codes of conduct we abide by to create a positive environment for learning and achievement are found in the University admissions policies and procedures.
- If applying with extenuating circumstances please see our policy.
- Full information about our selection processes for Comparative Literatures and Cultures and Modern Languages can be found in the Admissions Statement:
Admissions statement - The admissions statement above relates to 2025 entry. The statement for 2026 entry will be available in summer 2025.