Music and a Modern Language (BA)

Why study this course

Our BA Music and a Modern Language programme is a 4-year degree, combining language, creative and practical skills, that will open doors to a variety of career paths.

Our aim at the School of Music and the School of Modern Languages is for you to become a ‘global citizen’ who thinks critically and creatively, understands and appreciates cultural diversity, and has a wealth of transferable skills.

You’ll develop high-level communication and critical-thinking skills, and foster resilience and independence through time spent in immersive foreign language contexts. You also have the opportunity to participate in creative and practical musicianship studies.

On the languages side of the programme, you can choose either French, Spanish or Chinese.

We run 2 language pathways. Those with an A-level or equivalent competence in a modern language will take an Upper Elementary pathway. Those with limited or no knowledge of a modern language take our Elementary pathway.

You’ll explore the language you’re studying and its social, political, historical and cultural contexts from a global perspective. Through a variety of language learning resources and materials, and range of student-centred learning activities, you’ll develop your reading, writing, oral, listening and mediation skills.

Home to the arts, Cardiff is a great location for the study of music. The city has a professional opera company, Welsh National Opera, and a professional symphony orchestra, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. The School of Music enjoys a fruitful relationship with both organisations that allows, for instance, our students to attend dress rehearsals and buy cut-price tickets for concerts. Cardiff is also home to a range of music and performance venues and a vibrant creative community.

As well as studying a range of academic modules, you’ll also be encouraged to take full advantage of school-led core ensembles, representing a wide range of musical repertoires and traditions, such as the Jazz Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, Symphony Orchestra, Gamelan Ensemble, Chamber Choir, Chamber Orchestra, Lanyi (West African Ensemble), Symphony Chorus and the Pop Collective.

An integral part of this programme is the opportunity to spend time working or living abroad to experience life in the culture of the language(s) you are studying. You’ll have the choice of either studying at a partner university or completing a work placement in each semester.

It’s important to remember that studying languages is not just about the language itself, it involves the integrated study of language, culture and society. As a BA Music and a Modern Language student, you’ll find that often there are complementary issues and perspectives that link these subjects.

Careers

Career prospects

We’re committed to helping you achieve your professional ambitions, providing you with the skills, curiosity, and confidence to make your mark in a competitive job market. Whether you have a clear idea of what you would like to do after university, or no idea at all, we have the tools and support to guide you.

Work experience and placements are great opportunities to enhance your employability and career prospects and can help you make decisions about your future career plans. The BA Music and a Modern Language programme includes placement learning as an integral element of your degree programme.

Each term, we also advertise On-Campus Internships, which are summer vacation opportunities for students to work under supervision on education innovation, professional services, and staff-defined research projects. These paid opportunities are ideal for developing key practical and professional skills. While the School of Music’s Business of Music modules are designed to help you better understand different branches of the music profession and provide an opportunity to undertake a short placement in a music-related or arts-related area.

Our graduates flourish in the job market. Their degrees lead them into a diverse and exciting range of careers which have included finance, international sport liaison roles, business consultancy, education, health, the media, politics, diplomacy, interpreting, translation, law and teaching.

Many graduates enjoy their year overseas so much that they take time out for more travel or go abroad on graduation in search of employment.  Of those who choose to remain in the UK, many pursue postgraduate study while others start work immediately. Our graduates go on to secure excellent careers Graduates have gone on to careers in international diplomacy, the Civil Service, teaching and business or with professional orchestras, heritage organisations and museums, arts organisations, charities and publishers.