Graduates with languages are very employable. In fact, a recent report by the Higher Education Funding Council for England indicated that after 3.5 years, the mean salary of language graduates is higher than that of graduates of Engineering, Mathematical Sciences, Physics, Astronomy and Chemistry.  

There are many different ways of studying languages in higher education. Firstly, you need to decide whether you want a degree purely in languages (which will normally mean studying two languages), or whether you want to do a joint honours and combine a language with a different subject, such as politics or business. A specialised degree in languages will have many different elements in addition to the learning of the language itself.  You will study your chosen language in its social, cultural and historical contexts, and the course is likely to have an element of translation. There are often specialist modules in literature or linguistics on offer, and the course will almost always include a year abroad, which could be spent working or studying in a country of your choice. It’s a hugely varied degree to pursue, and one that will not only develop your expertise and linguistic ability, but will also give you some great experiences along the way.

Alternatively, many students choose to learn a foreign language on a modular basis at university, by studying semi-independently in the university language centre. Obviously the level of proficiency you would achieve doing this would not be as high as if you were to study languages as part of your degree. But a third of employers say they are just looking for conversational language skills, so those not wanting to have languages as their main focus could still definitely benefit from a bit of part-time study.

Look through our factsheets and links to gather more information on your options.