German and Portuguese (with year abroad)

Through our required language modules you will attain a high level of proficiency in speaking, writing and reading the German language, whilst developing your knowledge and critical understanding of German culture and society. Our four-year language course is designed for your level of language competence, and to the internationally recognised Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Our curriculum reflects our commitment to innovative and research-led teaching. Staff acrsoss the Department contribute introductory and specialist modules that draw from their own research in German literature, culture and history. Our exceptionally wide range of optional modules covers literature of all periods, German film, German history, German philosophical thought, and German political and social theory. The Department of Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies offers a wide variety of courses on Lusophone studies covering Brazilian, Portuguese and Lusophone-African literatures, music and cultural histories as well as Brazilian and European variants of Portuguese language. In your first year you will acquire a broad introduction to the Hispanic world through the required module Global Iberias. You will explore an unrivalled range of topics covering literature, history, film, music and visual arts from the Hispanic and Lusophone worlds. The required language modules in every year will help students deepen the linguistic knowledge essential to all fields of study, and enable you to graduate with near native fluency. You can take this programme either with an A-level (or equivalent) in German or Portuguese, or as a beginner, in which case you will follow a specially-designed ab initio language course for one of the languages. For more about the departments of German and Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies, follow the departmental contact links. Teaching style Modules are taught through a combination of lectures, small seminars or tutorials, and one-to-one supervision by expert staff. Language classes involve in-depth work with different kinds of media, literary and academic texts. Teaching is in German and English, according to the subject area. Our teaching style is interactive; you will participate informally in small group discussions, in seminars or online discussion platforms, and formally through seminar presentations and oral assessments. Assessment You will be assessed in a variety of forms, including précis (written or spoken summaries) and oral presentation, work placement portfolios, longer academic essays in both English and German, and oral and written exams. Location Located in the heart of London, our Department can draw on unparalleled print, audio-visual and online resources, including the King’s Maughan Library and Senate House Library, the Institute of Germanic and Romance Studies, the British Film Institute and the British Library. All are within easy walking distance of the Strand Building. The Goethe-Institut and Austrian Cultural Forum also have extensive media and library holdings, and run lively programmes of films, readings, seminars and exhibitions which complement our Department’s internal film screenings, open seminars, exhibitions, and annual departmental play. Special notes If you take joint honours in German and Portuguese your year abroad will usually be split between a German-speaking country and a Portuguese-speaking country.