German and Italian - BA (Hons)

This is an archived course for 2021 entry
2023 courses

Italian and German enables you to learn the language and culture of both Italy and the German-speaking world.

Overview

Italy is the cornerstone of European art, culture and history and Italian gives you the tools to explore this cultural richness, including Italy's Roman heritage, the Renaissance, modern architecture and fashion. Its influence is widespread in the arts and Italian is spoken not only in its home country, but also by over 15 million people in countries including Switzerland, North America and Australia. German is the most widely spoken language in Western Europe, and German history, science and culture have had a huge impact across the world.

Studying German and Italian gives you the opportunity to become proficient in two major international languages, and complement your language learning with a broad understanding of history, literature and culture. Fluency in the these two languages, combined with knowledge of political and cultural developments in German- and Italian-speaking countries, opens up international career opportunities.

Studying at our Canterbury campus gives you a fantastic opportunity to immerse yourself in both languages. There is a large community of French and Italian-speaking students on campus, and our proximity to airports, the Channel ports and the Eurostar terminals at Ashford and Ebbsfleet make it quick and easy to get to Paris, Brussels and Lille, and from there to the rest of mainland Europe.

A number of our staff are native speakers and our facilities include multimedia laboratories, which offer a variety of interactive language learning programmes and dictionaries, and access to audio, video and computer-assisted language learning.

You are required to spend a year working or studying abroad between your second and final year of study. In previous years, students have studied at our partner institutions in a country appropriate to their programme of study (for German and Italian this is usually six months in each country). You’ll develop your language skills, grow in self-confidence, gain a new academic perspective, and enhance your employability.

German and Italian is an ideal combination of subjects to enable you gain advanced language skills and a broad cultural understanding, and gives you the tools to embark on an international career.

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Entry requirements

Please also see our general entry requirements.

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    A level

    BBB including B in German or Italian

  • medal-empty Access to HE Diploma

    The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis. 

    If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above.

  • medal-empty BTEC Nationals

    The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances. A typical offer would be to achieve DMM plus an A-level in Italian or German at B. 

  • medal-empty International Baccalaureate

    34 points overall or 15 at HL, including German or Italian HL A1/A2/B at 4/5/5 or SL A1/A2/B at 5/6/6

  • medal-empty International Foundation Programme

    N/A

International students should visit our International Student website for further specific information. International fee-paying students who require a Student visa cannot study part-time due to visa restrictions.

English Language Requirements

Please see our English language entry requirements web page.

If you need to improve your English language standard as a condition of your offer, you can attend one of our pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes before starting your degree programme. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.

Course structure

Duration: 4 years full-time

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.  

On most programmes, you study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also be able to take ‘elective’ modules from other programmes so you can customise your programme and explore other subjects that interest you.

Year abroad

Going abroad as part of your degree is an amazing experience and a chance to develop personally, academically and professionally.  You experience a different culture, gain a new academic perspective, establish international contacts and enhance your employability. 

All Italian and German BA students are required to spend a year abroad between Stages 2 and 3, evenly split between two countries where the respective languages are spoken. You are expected to adhere to any academic progression requirements in Stage 2 to proceed to the year abroad. If the requirement is not met, you may have to postpone your year abroad.

The year abroad is assessed on a pass/fail basis and does not count towards your final degree classification. You spend the year working as an English language assistant or in approved employment, or studying at one of our partner universities. For a full list of our partner universities, please visit Go Abroad.

Fees

The 2021/22 annual tuition fees for this programme are:

  • Home full-time TBC
  • International full-time TBC

For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.

For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* 

Your fee status

The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.

Fees for Year in Industry

Fees for Home undergraduates are £1,385.

Fees for Year Abroad

Fees for Home undergraduates are £1,385.

Students studying abroad for less than one academic year will pay full fees according to their fee status. 

Additional costs

General additional costs

Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.

Funding

We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.

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University funding

Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details. 

Government funding

You may be eligible for government finance to help pay for the costs of studying. See the Government's student finance website.

Scholarships

General scholarships

Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.

The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence

At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence. 

The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of A*AA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.

Teaching and assessment

Italian

Teaching is by lectures and seminars. We have extensive technical facilities, including audio, video and computer-assisted language learning.

Depending on the modules you select, assessment throughout all stages of the course varies from 100% coursework, to a combination of examination and coursework, in the ratio 50:50, 60:40, 70:30 or 80:20.

German

Teaching is by a combination of lectures and seminars. You have regular teaching and conversation sessions with German native speakers.

Assessment at Stage 1 is by 100% coursework (essays, class participation) in the first half of the year, and a 50:50 combination of coursework and examination in the second half of the year. At Stage 2/3, depending on the modules you select, assessment varies from 100% coursework (extended essays or dissertation), to a combination of examination and coursework, in a ratio that will normally be 50:50, 70:30.

Contact hours

For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours.  The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Programme aims

For programme aims and learning outcomes please see the programmes specification for each subject below. Please note that outcomes will depend on your specific module selection:

Independent rankings

Of final-year German students who completed the National Student Survey 2021, 95% were satisfied with the quality of teaching on their course.

Italian at Kent was ranked 3rd in The Complete University Guide 2021

German at Kent scored 92% overall in The Complete University Guide 2021.

Careers

Modern Languages at Kent offer work-related modules and work placements including the Languages in the Classroom module, designed for budding language teachers, which combines traditional learning methods with practical teaching experience.

Students of German have successfully completed work placements at a variety of different companies, including international giants such as Siemens and Bosch.  Not only do such well-known names look great on a CV, but the fact that you were using your language skills every day also makes this work experience even more impressive for employers in the UK, Europe and further afield. Other recent examples of internships include: the Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen in Mainz, a translation agency in Berlin, an oil company in Munich, and the German Bundestag (parliament).

There are numerous employment prospects open to languages graduates, and popular choices include teaching, translation and interpreting, working in international organisations and going into the Armed Forces.  Further study options include a PGCE, TEFL, a PhD or Master's in various aspects of German or Italian language and culture, or another subject altogether.

Apply for German and Italian - BA (Hons)

This course page is for the 2021/22 academic year. Please visit the current online prospectus for a list of undergraduate courses we offer.

Contact us

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United Kingdom/EU enquiries

T: +44 (0)1227 768896

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International student enquiries

Enquire online

T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk

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