Course summary
About this Course This MA program provides specialist multicultural knowledge and skills by examining cultural and literary topics through the lenses of history, ethnography, and anthropology. It offers thorough training in the theory and research methods needed to critically understand global events and texts across regions including modern Europe, Latin America, Africa and the black diaspora, East and South Asia, and the Jewish diaspora. The flexible program encourages you to develop your own research interests in close collaboration with expert tutors. We are ranked 10th in the UK for Languages and Linguistics, Guardian 2026. Key Features and Structure • Interdisciplinary Research Focus: The course is enriched by events hosted by the multidisciplinary Centre for Transnational Studies and gives you access to several specialized research groups, including the Centre for Global Englishes and the Parkes Institute for the Study of Jewish/non-Jewish Relations. • Global Specialisms: You can take options that deep-dive into specific cultural areas, such as Encounters with Bodies in Lusophone Cultural Narrative (covering Portugal, Brazil, and African nations), Fragmented France: Cultures and Identities in Transition, or German-Jewish Writing Across the Twentieth Century. • Optional Language Acquisition: The Language Opportunity Programme allows you to improve your foreign language skills or pick up a new language from scratch in a variety of levels. • Module Flexibility: Optional modules extend into areas like Film, Linguistics, Translation, Creative Writing, and even Literary Industries and New Media. Career Prospects This degree's focus on global cultural understanding, critical research, and communication prepares you for a variety of careers in fields with an international or cultural focus, such as: • International Organizations • Cultural Policy and Management • Translation and Diplomacy • Further Study/Research (PhD level) Further Information • Duration: 1 year (Full-time). • Entry Requirements: A 2:1 degree in a humanities or social science subject. • Course Lead: Dr. Alexandra Krendel, a Lecturer in Applied Linguistics.
Modules
Compulsory modules include: Approaches to Languages and Cultures; Memory in National and Transnational Contexts; Narrative, Please, Identity; Dissertation. Optional modules include: Communication the Cultural Industries; After the Holocaust: Jews and Others after 1945; German-Jewish Writing Across the Twentieth Century; Encounters with Bodies in Lusophone Cultural Narrative. For a full list of modules please visit: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/courses/languages-cultures-masters-ma#modules
Assessment method
We'll assess your knowledge through: individual and group projects and presentations, through workshop activities, written assignments, and the dissertation.
How to apply
International applicants
If English is not your first language, you will need to demonstrate your English ability by meeting our Band C requirements: IELTS 6.5 overall, with a minimum of 6.0 in all components. For information on other accepted English language tests, please see our website.
Entry requirements
You’ll need a 2:2 in a humanities or social science subject.
English language requirements
| Test | Grade | Additional details |
|---|---|---|
| IELTS (Academic) | 6.5 | with no component below 6.0 |
All programmes at the University of Southampton are taught and assessed in the medium of English (other than those in modern foreign languages). Therefore, all applicants must demonstrate they possess at least a minimum standard of English language proficiency.
Find out more about the University’s English Language requirements
https://www.southampton.ac.uk/studentadmin/admissions/admissions-policies/language.page
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
No fee information has been provided for this course
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
Sponsorship information
A variety of scholarships, grants and bursaries may be available to help you fund your master’s study, both from the University and from other organisations. Please check the website for more information: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/courses/funding/postgraduate.page
Provider information
University of Southampton
Highfield
Southampton
SO17 1BJ