Linguistics BA(Hons)

Course in brief

Linguistics is the scientific study of language, and as such it has a central role to play in exploring what it means to be human. As a linguistics student here at Brighton you will have the opportunity to first comprehend the prevalent nature of language and then explore it in all its weird and wonderful intricacies.

Throughout the course you will examine more closely the relationship between language and mind, explore how we acquire language, as well as learn about the nature of communication, how we as humans understand one another, and whether we as humans are ‘mind-readers’.

The degree will also help you to gain vital transferable skills, such as critical thinking and reasoning, independent research, teamwork, presentation and communication skills, all of which are essential tools for your future career.

The course provides good grounding for various industries such as teaching, publishing and editing, and offers excellent preparation for higher level study. There is also an opportunity to study abroad for a year.

Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

UCAS code Q100

Full-time 3 years
With year abroad 4 years

Book your open day place

Applying for 2018: read our guide

Entry requirements

A-levels or BTEC
Entry requirements are in the range of A-level BCC–CCC (104–96 UCAS Tariff points), or BTEC Extended Diploma DMM–MMM. Our conditional offers typically fall within this range.

A-levels must include English language or combined English language and literature.

We will generally make you an offer if your predicted grades are at the top of this range. If your predicted grades are towards the lower end of this range we may still make you an offer if you have a good GCSE (or equivalent) profile or relevant non-academic achievements.

International Baccalaureate
27 points.

Access to HE Diploma  
Pass with 60 credits overall. Humanities, history or politics courses preferred. At least 45 credits at level 3.

GCSE (minimum grade C or grade 4)
 At least English language and maths.

Foundation degree/HND  
May enable you to start the course in year 2.

For non-native speakers of English
IELTS 6.5 overall, with 6.0 in writing and a minimum of 5.5 in the other elements.

International equivalencies

International equivalencies by country

Albania
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bermuda
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burma (Myanmar)
Cameroon
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guyana
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kosovo
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liechtenstein
Libya
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malaysia
Malawi
Malta
Mexico
Moldova
Montenegro
Morocco
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palestinian National Authority
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Syria
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visit our language institute

For English language preparation courses.

Visit our International College

For academic preparation courses.

Course in detail

Why study with us?

Your tutors’ active research profiles keep course content at the cutting edge of advancements in the field. You’ll be part of a vibrant, research-active programme where our teaching team create a dynamic and supportive environment.
Taking option modules means that you can tailor your degree to your individual interests or career ambitions and create a unique pathway to suit you.
This degree provides good grounding for many different industries including publishing and journalism, speech and language therapy, teaching, and is a solid foundation for further study or research.
You’ll study the relationship between language and the mind, and language and society, going beyond the confines of your own discipline to help you see how linguistics relates to other fields.
In the first year you’ll ground your studies with an introduction to the three main sub-disciplines of linguistics: structure (morphology and syntax – the study of how words and sentences are formed); meaning (semantics and pragmatics – the study of linguistic meaning and meaning in use); and sound (phonetics and phonology – the study of the speech sounds and how the sound systems of different languages work).
You will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in another culture and observe linguistic diversity on an optional study abroad year.
Usual contact time is nine hours per week and course is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars and workshops. Tutors regularly offer small group and individual tutorials, and all modules are supported by the university’s online learning environment.

Year 1

In the first year, you will develop an understanding of the basic concepts and modes of analysis focusing particularly on the four structural approaches to linguistics: phonetics, phonology, morphology and syntax.

Studying language acquisition and development will give you an insight into the processes at work when we acquire our mother tongue. You will also be introduced to essential aspects of the study of semantics (meaning) and pragmatics (use), which then become the key building blocks of your degree.

Modules

General Linguistics 1: Phonetics and Phonology
General Linguistics 2: Morphology and Syntax
Introduction to Semantics
Introduction to Pragmatics
Language Acquisition and Development
The Structure and Grammar of English

Year 2

Year 2 introduces the study of meaning and different approaches to analysing grammatical structures. It will also provide you with essential tools in skills such as data gathering and analysis and professional knowledge through exploring linguistics as the scientific study of language and its link to psychology, the use of language corpora and the analysis of written and spoken discourse. You will also have an opportunity to address a range of theoretical controversies and evaluate language data in relation to theories.

Modules

Linguistics and Grammar: Concepts and Analyses
Semantics
Mind and Language
Deconstruction: Language, Theory, Society

Options*

Multilingualism
Sign Language Linguistics
Language, Identity and Power
Researching English Language Use
Image and Text: The Language of Comics and Graphic Novels
Regional Englishes
Introduction to Journalism
Modern Foreign Languages

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability

Final year

In your final year, you will have opportunities to critically evaluate linguistic theories in your areas of interest and specialisation. You will examine the content and explanatory potential of a number of theoretical frameworks that have been proposed to explain language use in context.

You will also be writing your dissertation on a chosen topic in linguistics which you will have had an opportunity to study in depth throughout your degree. This piece of work will be a culmination of your undergraduate experience and a reflection of your expertise in linguistics.

Modules

Language, Philosophy, Mind
Non-truth-conditional Semantics
Pragmatics, Meaning and Truth
Dissertation

Options*

Approaches to the Study of Meaning
English Language Teaching
Language, Culture and Ideology
Language of Gender and Sexuality
Media Ethics and Conflict
Foreign Language and Cultural Project

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability

Watch students talking about their experiences of the Community Placement module.

Staff profile

Dr Jelena Timotijevic Course leader

An expert in the fields of philosophy of language and contrastive linguistics, Jelena's teaching and research interests focus on contextualism as a philosophical movement within philosophy of language, as well as grammar and modality in English and German.

Careers and employability

Linguistics graduates gain a broad range of skills applicable to a variety of occupations. These include broadcasting journalist, Civil Service administrator, teacher of English in primary and secondary education, or as a foreign language or second language (PGCE or EFL), interpreter, translator, lexicographer, publishing copy editor, proof-reader and speech and language therapist.

Former graduates have also chosen careers in law, publishing, radio or TV, as well as undertaking postgraduate studies in linguistics or related areas such as English language, philosophy of language, creative writing, forensic linguistics and philosophy.

Fees and funding

Your fees

UK/EU (full-time) 9,250 GBP

International (full-time) 12,660 GBP

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2017–18.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full- or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

What's included in the fee?

When costs such as health or DBS checks, or use of specialist materials are incurred as a mandatory requirement of the course they are included in your tuition fee.

You may incur additional costs depending on the optional modules or activities you choose. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. Before you apply check with the school that provides your course using the contact details in the Find out more tab (at the end of this page) for advice about what is included and what optional costs you could face so you can budget accordingly.

See our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as further information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Location and living here

Location

About Brighton

Forward-thinking and welcoming, the city of Brighton & Hove is a community of creative and diverse people who share values like sustainability and inclusivity – just like its university.

Miles of pebble beaches, hundreds of bars, restaurants and clubs, a packed calendar of culture, music and sport and great independent and high street shopping attract visitors from all over the world. By the end of your course you’ll still be finding new things to enjoy about the city.

The Brighton Festival, England’s largest arts festival, takes place every May – as does the Great Escape Europe’s leading industry showcase for new music, 300 bands perform over three days at venues across the city. Major events celebrate Pride, digital culture, cinema, photography, food and the winter solstice. Our own Brighton Graduate show is a highlight, turning the university into the largest exhibition space in the south east as we celebrate the outstanding creativity of our students.

As a student here you’ll have a unique opportunity to experience what the city has to offer. Volunteering and placement opportunities enable you to play your part in the events, organisations and communities that make Brighton such a compelling place to be.

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Surrounded by the South Downs National Park and just five miles from the centre of Brighton, our Falmer campus has benefited from over £60million of investment over the past 10 years. 7,000 students are based here, studying subjects including English, education, social science, nursing and medicine.

Recent developments include the Falmer Sports Centre – with its fitness suites and sports hall – and the innovative Checkland Building, which has natural ventilation systems and an insulating green roof.

Falmer has also recently installed more than 600 solar panels, which reduce the campus’s carbon emissions by more than 80 tonnes. The renovation has made us one of the top universities in the UK for on-site renewable energy production.

Accommodation

Brighton

Our Brighton halls of residence are located across the city in Grand Parade, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

Grand Parade is in central Brighton and has one hall of residence, Phoenix Brewery, within walking distance.
Moulsecoomb is two miles from the city centre and also has one hall of residence, Moulsecoomb Place, on campus.
Varley Park offers the biggest choice of student accommodation with ten halls of residence.
Falmer campus has two halls of residence: Great Wilkins and Paddock Field.
Varley Park and Falmer are around four miles from Brighton centre; there are good public transport services nearby.

Aside from halls, you have the option of Unihomes, which we let out to our students on behalf of private landlords.

You can also choose to join the many students who live away from campus in private rented accommodation. We have a list of high-quality, university-endorsed private sector accommodation and can help you find housemates to move in with.

Find out more on our Brighton accommodation webpages and if you have any questions, our accommodation team will be happy to help. You can contact them by email at accommodation@brighton.ac.uk or by telephone on 01273 644100.

Paddock Field

Moulsecoomb Place

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Falmer campus and Brighton and Sussex Medical School map

Unistats

Unistats and key information sets

Unistats is an organisation that collects specific data about university courses in the UK which enables you to compare information that is important in your decision-making when choosing a university. All universities publish Unistats data on their online course pages.

Wherever we can we have provided extra information here to help put the data into context so that it is as useful as possible when you are making decisions.

Programme specification

The programme specification is the official university document for each course. They are updated each year, and give a very detailed breakdown of what your course might look like.

Programme specification

Find out more

Language, literature and linguistics news

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