MA French
UCAS code: R120
Duration: 4 years
Delivery: Full-time
School: Literatures, Languages and Cultures
College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
Introducing MA French
French is a major world language spoken in Europe, Africa and Canada. At Edinburgh, you will study the language in the context of the many countries, cultures and societies in which French is spoken.
You will have the opportunity to acquire near-native fluency, while gaining the broad, cultural education prized by graduate employers.
French art and thought have played a central role in creating modern civilisation. We give you the chance to explore French culture, including Francophone literature and cinema, fascinating political history, social movements and philosophical ideas.
Our courses cover material from the Middle Ages to the 21st Century and include specialist options taught by leading experts in their field. Topics include post-colonial studies and gender studies, among others.
Why Edinburgh
We are unique in Scotland in offering students a full academic year abroad within the four-year honours programme, regardless of whether you spend the year studying or working.
Our language programmes are also extremely flexible. In Years 1 and 2, you will choose option courses from a broad list of disciplines in addition to French.
One of the most attractive characteristics of this programme is its flexibility.
In Years 1 and 2, you will choose option courses from a broad list of disciplines in addition to your core subject of French.
This may enable you to change the focus of your programme in Years 3 and 4.
Year 1
French
If you have a limited knowledge of French, you will take French 1A, an intensive language course that also introduces you to French culture.
If you have studied French beyond National 5 (SQA) or GCSE level, you will take French 1B. As well as developing your written and spoken language skills, this course focuses on modern French literature, culture and civilisation.
We will introduce you to the extraordinary richness and variety of one of the world's great civilisations by focusing on social and political events from the Second World War to the 21st century.
These include:
resistance and collaboration
the Fifth Republic
May 1968
feminism
colonisation and decolonisation
Option courses
You will also choose from a wide range of option courses. These include, but are not limited to, courses in:
business
politics
social policy
informatics
economics
history
classics
archaeology
philosophy
linguistics
divinity
Year 2
French
Year 2 language classes will develop your written and spoken language skills, to ensure that you are ready for your year abroad. They will also build on your knowledge of French and Francophone culture.
The focus shifts to exploring the 16th to 19th centuries, including world-renowned authors such as:
Molière
Montaigne
Baudelaire
These are studied alongside fascinating writers whose work has been considered marginal to French culture for reasons of gender or colonial politics.
Option courses
As in Year 1, you will choose from a range of option courses.
These include a great selection in European languages and cultures, allowing you to study literature, film and theatre in themed and comparative contexts. You will also have the chance to study French politics.
Year 3
If international travel restrictions allow, you will spend Year 3 in France or a French-speaking country, turning classroom learning into living engagement with Francophone culture.
We currently offer exchange places in a variety of different universities, including in France, Belgium and Switzerland.
Alternatively, you may be eligible to do a teaching assistant placement - or other work placement - instead.
Whether studying or working, our graduates have told us how much the year abroad has benefited their broader life experience and skills, as well as their understanding of French language and Francophone culture.
During your year abroad, we'll aim to ensure your experience is as beneficial as possible to your final year, as well as to your wider language learning, cultural awareness and skills development. For example, you'll take an e-learning course which will count as part of your Year 3 mark and prepare you for your Year 4 language courses.
If international travel is not possible, you will be offered an alternative means of engaging with French, enabling you to meet your learning outcomes and preparing you for your final year.
Year 4
You will develop advanced language skills in spoken and written French.
You will also choose from a wide range of specialist courses, taught by experts in their field. These cover topics such as:
French political thought
17th- or 19th-century theatre
French verse
French New Wave
French relations with former colonies
Dissertation
You will complete your dissertation in French.
This is your chance to focus on a subject of particular interest to you. It must involve independent research, and you will be supported by our academic staff.
Our facilities
Teaching takes place in and around the University of Edinburgh's Central Area, where we have excellent:
computing and audiovisual resources
support services
social spaces
Events and activities
There is plenty to see and do throughout the year, including events at the annual French Film Festival, and the nearby Institut français d’Écosse.
You can join the student-led French theatre society, Les Escogriffes, or contribute creative writing in French to our online magazine, Babble.
The city
Edinburgh is a world-leading festival city filled with cinemas, theatres, galleries, libraries and collections. This includes one of the best French collections in the UK in the National Library of Scotland.
Study abroad
If international travel restrictions allow, you will spend Year 3 (a minimum of 30 weeks) in a French-speaking country.
This is your chance to immerse yourself in Francophone culture. It will allow you to develop broader life experience and skills that you can use after university.
How will I learn?
Experienced lecturers and language instructors will teach through a combination of:
lectures
seminars
tutorials
computer-assisted learning
In Year 4, most courses will be taught entirely in French.
How will I be assessed?
You will be assessed by a combination of exams and coursework.
Programme details
Find out more about this programme's aims, what you will learn, how you will be assessed and what skills and knowledge you will develop.
To give you an idea of what to expect from this programme, we publish the latest available information. However, please note this may not be for your year of entry, but for a different academic year.
Studying languages and cultures to degree level, especially when you spend a year abroad, gives you a set of skills and life experiences highly prized by employers.
By the end of your programme, you will be able to speak a major language of international communication, one of the most widely spoken in the world. You will be able to work in the 29 countries where French is an official language.
You will also be able to find opportunities in the many multinational companies and institutions where French is a working language, such as the European Commission.
Sectors
Our employment statistics for language graduates are impressive, and you will have a remarkable range of career options available to you.
Our graduates can be found in every sector, especially those that require disciplined and imaginative thinking, from physical theatre to the top of the Civil Service.
Many of our former students are working in roles where language skills are of special value, such as:
education
translating
interpreting
politics
international business
Further study
There are also opportunities to continue studying at postgraduate level. Year 4 will help you to develop the research skills needed if you choose this path.
There are many graduate-level programmes available, particularly in the UK, US, France and the Francophone world.
Standard entry requirement
The standard entry requirement is:
- SQA Highers: AAAA-AABB by end of S5 or AAAA-AAAB by end of S6. BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6.
- A Levels: AAB - ABB.
- IB: 36 points with 665 at HL - 34 points with 655 at HL.
Minimum entry requirement
The minimum entry requirement for widening access applicants is:
- SQA Highers: ABBB by end of S6. BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6.
- A Levels: ABB.
- IB: 34 points with 655 at HL.
More information for widening access applicants
Required subjects
The grades used to meet our entry requirements must include:
- SQA: Highers: a language other than English at B. National 5s: French at B and English at C.
- A Levels: a language other than English at B. GCSEs: French at B or 6 and English at C or 4.
- IB: HL: a language other than English at 5. SL: French at 5 and English at 5.
Additional requirements
Language requirement
For degrees that have a subject requirement of a language other than English, students may not use their own native language to meet this requirement. In these instances, English or an alternative language other than native will be acceptable.
Find out more about entry requirements
International applicants
We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.
Mature applicants
We welcome applications from mature students and accept a range of qualifications.
You must demonstrate a level of English language competency at a level that will enable you to succeed in your studies, regardless of your nationality or country of residence.
SQA, GCSE and IB
For SQA, GCSE and IB students, unless a higher level is specified in the stated entry requirements, a pass is required in English at the following grades or higher:
- SQA National 5 at C
- SQA Standard Grade at 3
- SQA Intermediate 1 at A
- SQA Intermediate 2 at C
- GCSE/IGSCE at C or 4
- Level 2 Certificate Grade C
- IB Standard Level at 5 (English ab initio is not accepted for entry)
English language tests
We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:
- IELTS Academic module overall 6.5 with 5.5 in each component.
- TOEFL-iBT (including Special Home Edition) 92 or above with 20 in each section. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
- Cambridge English: Advanced or Proficiency overall 176 with 162 in each component.
- Trinity ISE: ISE II with a distinction in all four components.
We also accept a wider range of international qualifications and tests.
English language qualifications must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the degree you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, or Trinity ISE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.
This information is part of a government initiative to enhance the material that higher education institutions provide about their degree programmes.
It is one of many sources of information which will enable you to make an informed decision on what and where to study.
Please note that some programmes do not have Discover Uni data available.
Tuition Fees
Additional costs
If international travel restrictions allow, you will spend Year 3 abroad. Your costs will depend on where you decide to go, and how you spend your time.
Universities may charge you a fee for courses, but we will reimburse you for this as long as the course has been approved. You will be informed of costs as you plan your year abroad, during Year 2.
Funding
For more information on how much it will cost to study with us and the financial support available see our fees and funding information.
- Enquiry Management Team
- Email: futurestudents@ed.ac.uk
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