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Welsh and English Literature (BA)

Welsh students

Why study this course

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Follow your interests

Choose from modules across a range of areas in Welsh literature and language, and different periods and genres in English literature.

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Think for yourself

Critically and creatively engage with different types of texts in an independent and open-minded way.

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Adventure and exploration

Opportunities to study abroad in Europe and beyond, fostering independence and resilience.

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Welsh at work

Build your confidence and practical skills using Welsh in a professional setting on placement.

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Communicate effectively

Develop bilingual skills in shaping and presenting your ideas and arguments.

With our Welsh and English Literature (BA) programme, you’ll develop a thorough understanding of the Welsh language, its literature and culture, and engage with English literature from different periods and cultures, across the range of principal literary genres. You’ll achieve a high level of skill in written and spoken Welsh and English, key skills in collaboration and critical thinking, and well-developed employability and creative skills relevant to modern Wales and beyond. We’ll support you to engage critically and creatively with difficult problems in an open-minded and collaborative way, including on sensitive and controversial topics.

We welcome those who’ve studied Welsh either as a first or second language. If Welsh is a second language to you, you’ll be provided with specific modules in the first and second years to practice and enhance your communication and language skills. After this, first and second language students come together for the majority of second year, and all final year, modules. Module options allow you to explore topics such as historic and contemporary Welsh writing, language policy, and professional translation.

In English Literature, we are intrigued by the connections between literature and film, art, history, technology, language, and everyday life, and our teaching reflects these interests. You’ll learn how literature addresses social, environmental, and economic concerns with the aim of creating a better, more inclusive world and developing sustainable solutions for the future of the planet. In the final year of the programme, you can specialise in your preferred areas of study.

During your degree, you’ll have the opportunity to undertake a work placement in a workplace where Welsh is spoken daily, to develop your confidence and professional skills. You’ll also undertake a dissertation, in which you’ll design and carry out a research project on a topic of your choice related to Welsh language, culture or literature. A final year core module in English Literature gives you the opportunity to undertake a detailed examination of a single text across a whole semester and to use the experience and knowledge gained as the basis of a public-facing piece of work.

You’ll graduate with a range of professional skills, including collaboration, communication and critical analysis. You’ll also be aware of the linguistic and cultural challenges that face contemporary society and industry, and have the ideas and confidence required to solve them. The ability to use the Welsh language at a professional level is also extremely attractive to employers, which means that you have a unique opportunity to ensure an interesting and varied career where you can influence the linguistic, cultural, civic and economic future of Wales.

Subject area: English language and literature

Subject area: Welsh

  • academic-schoolSchool of Welsh
  • icon-chatGet in touch
  • Telephone+44 (0)29 2087 5594
  • MarkerColum Drive, Cardiff, CF10 3EU

Entry requirements

We accept a combination of A-levels and other qualifications, as well as equivalent international qualifications subject to entry requirements. Typical offers are as follows:

A level

AAB-BBB. Must include Welsh First or Second Language, and Creative Writing, English Language and Literature, or English Literature.

Extended/International Project Qualification: Applicants with grade A in the EPQ/IPQ will typically receive an offer one grade lower than the standard offer. Please note that any subject specific requirements must still be met.

  • Our grade range covers our standard offer and contextual offer. We carefully consider the circumstances in which you've been studying (your contextual data) upon application. Eligible students will be given an offer that is lower than the standard offer (usually the middle or lower end of the advertised grade range).
  • Where there is no grade range advertised and/or where there are selection processes in place (like an interview) you may receive additional consideration in the selection process.

Learn about eligible courses and how contextual data is applied.

International Baccalaureate

34-31 overall or 666-665 in 3 HL subjects. Must include grade 6 in HL English Language and Literature, English Literature,  or English Literature and Performance. You must also have a Welsh Language qualification equivalent to grade B at A-level.

Baccalaureate Wales

From September 2023, there will be a new qualification called the Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales (level 3). This qualification will replace the Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (Welsh Baccalaureate). The qualification will continue to be accepted in lieu of one A-Level (at the grades listed above), excluding any specified subjects.

You must have or be working towards:
- English language or Welsh language at GCSE grade C/4 or an equivalent (such as A-levels). If you require a Student visa, you must ensure your language qualification complies with UKVI requirements.

We do not accept Critical Thinking, General Studies, Citizenship Studies, or other similar equivalent subjects.
We will accept a combination of BTEC subjects, A-levels, and other qualifications, subject to the course specific grade and subject requirements.

GCSE

Grade C or grade 4 in GCSE English Language.

IELTS (academic)

At least 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each subskill.

TOEFL iBT

At least 90 overall with a minimum of 17 for writing, 17 for listening, 18 for reading, and 20 for speaking.

PTE Academic

At least 69 overall with a minimum of 59 in all communicative skills.

Trinity ISE II/III

II: at least two Distinctions and two Merits.
III: at least a Pass in all components.

Other accepted qualifications

Please visit our English Language requirements page for more information on our other accepted language qualifications.

You are not required to complete a DBS (Disclosure Barring Service) check or provide a Certificate of Good Conduct to study this course.

If you are currently subject to any licence condition or monitoring restriction that could affect your ability to successfully complete your studies, you will be required to disclose your criminal record. Conditions include, but are not limited to:

  • access to computers or devices that can store images
  • use of internet and communication tools/devices
  • curfews
  • freedom of movement, including the ability to travel to outside of the UK or to undertake a placement/studies outside of Cardiff University
  • contact with people related to Cardiff University.

Other qualifications from inside the UK

BTEC

D in a BTEC in Humanities or Social Science subjects, and grades AB-BB in A-level Welsh First or Second Language, and A-level Creative Writing, English Language and Literature, or English Literature

T level

Acceptance of T Levels for this programme will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Academic School. Consideration will be given to the T Level grade/subject and grades/subjects achieved at GCSE/Level 2.

Qualifications from outside the UK

See our qualification equivalences guide

Please see our admissions policies for more information about the application process.

Tuition fees for 2025 entry

Your tuition fees and how you pay them will depend on your fee status. Your fee status could be home, island or overseas.

Learn how we decide your fee status

Fees for home status

Year Tuition fee Deposit
Year one £9,250 None
Year two £9,250 None
Year three £9,250 None

The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees in the second and subsequent years of a course as permitted by law or Welsh Government policy. Where applicable we will notify you of any change in tuition fee by the end of June in the academic year before the one in which the fee will increase.

Students from the EU, EEA and Switzerland

If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss national, your tuition fees for 2025/26 be in line with the overseas fees for international students, unless you qualify for home fee status. UKCISA have provided information about Brexit and tuition fees.

Fees for island status

Learn more about the undergraduate fees for students from the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.

Fees for overseas status

Year Tuition fee Deposit
Year one £23,700 None
Year two £23,700 None
Year three £23,700 None

Learn more about our tuition fees

Financial support

Financial support may be available to individuals who meet certain criteria. For more information visit our funding section. Please note that these sources of financial support are limited and therefore not everyone who meets the criteria are guaranteed to receive the support.

Additional costs

Course specific equipment

You will not need any specific equipment.

Accommodation

We have a range of residences to suit your needs and budget. Find out more on our accommodation pages.

Living costs

We're based in one of the UK's most affordable cities. Find out more about living costs in Cardiff.

Course structure

This is a 3-year full-time degree, with 120 credits of study in each year. You will study 60 credits in Welsh and 60 credits in English Literature in each year of study.

The modules shown are an example of the typical curriculum and will be reviewed prior to the 2025/2026 academic year. The final modules will be published by September 2025.

Year one

The modules in year 1 introduce you to the key skills and areas of knowledge that feature throughout the degree.

In Welsh, you’ll explore aspects of Welsh language and literature in various contemporary, historical, and social contexts. Your choice of Welsh modules will depend on whether you’ve studied Welsh as a first or second language.

In English literature, you take 3 core modules that enhance your skills in critical reading and critical writing, by examining a range of literary genres and interpretative approaches. These modules lay the foundations for your academic development in literary studies in your second and final years. They also give you key writing, reading, research, and employability skills that you will use throughout your degree and beyond.

Module titleModule codeCredits
Reading Up CloseSE214920 credits
Ways of Reading: Literature, Culture, TheorySE215020 credits
Writing at University and BeyondSE626620 credits
Module titleModule codeCredits
Sgiliau Astudio LlenyddiaethCY151320 credits
Sgiliau IaithCY151520 credits
Y Gymraeg HeddiwCY151620 credits
Iaith ac YstyrCY160020 credits
Awdur, Testun a DarllenyddCY160120 credits
Y Gymraeg yn y Gymru GyfoesCY160220 credits

Year two

In year 2, you’ll take a core Welsh module that will help you develop your Welsh language skills within both an academic and a vocational context. This module includes a period of work experience in a workplace in which Welsh is used on a daily basis. You can choose 2 further optional modules on Welsh language, literature and culture, including several with direct relevance to specific fields of employment, such as language planning and the creative and heritage industries.

There are no core modules in English literature in year 2. Instead, you have the freedom to choose your modules from two different ‘baskets’ that have been designed to give you a coherent experience across periods, genres, and thematic areas. Basket A (‘Literary Periods’) covers the range of English literature from the medieval era to the present moment. Basket B (‘Themes, Forms, and Genres’) includes modules that address literature and the environment; film and visual culture; the history and future of the book; race and colonialism; feminisms; and the gothic. You will choose 2 modules from one basket and 1 from the other, with either 20 or 40 credits per semester, depending on the fit with your other subject. These second-year English literature modules build upon work undertaken in Year 1 and continue our commitment to allowing you to study literature alongside other forms of culture (such as film).

Module titleModule codeCredits
Yr Iaith ar WaithCY220520 credits
Module titleModule codeCredits
Cymraeg ProffesiynolCY221520 credits
Myrddin a MerlinCY235020 credits
Rhyddiaith DdiweddarCY241020 credits
Cynllunio Ieithyddol a Pholisi IaithCY261020 credits
Tu Hwnt i'r TudalenCY270220 credits
Canu'r Gymru Newydd: Barddoniaeth er 1990CY281020 credits
Caffael IaithCY291020 credits
Race, Empire and Nation: Are We Post Colonial?SE227020 credits
Seen and Unseen: Tracing the (In)visible in Film and Visual CultureSE228820 credits
The Versatile Text: Books/Objects/CollectionsSE233320 credits
Shakespeare's WorldsSE233620 credits
Twentieth-century Literature: Conflict, Crisis, ExperimentationSE234020 credits
FeminismsSE234120 credits
Literature, Science and EnvironmentSE234420 credits
Uncanny Encounters: Gothic and Culture from the 1760s to the PresentSE234720 credits
Victorian Worlds: Forms of TransformationSE235320 credits
Contemporary Literature and Culture: States of EmergencySE239920 credits
Medieval Worlds: Narrative and GenreSE264020 credits
Eighteenth-century and Romantic Poetry and ProseSE264120 credits

Year three

In your final year, you’re challenged to think more deeply about topics across Welsh and English literature.

In Welsh, you’ll undertake independent research in the form of either a 20-credit extended essay or 40-credit longer project work, which you’ll complete under the direction of a member of staff who is an expert in the relevant field.  This may lead to further research or provide an effective showcase for potential employers. You’ll also choose one or two 20-credit Welsh optional modules on themes such as translation, language and education, and contemporary literature.

In English literature, you take a single 20-credit core module that will give you the opportunity to undertake a detailed examination of a single text across a whole semester and to use the experience and knowledge gained as the basis of a public-facing piece of work. Optional modules engage with current issues in research and scholarship in relation to authors and literary texts, and historical topics and areas both well-known and possibly less familiar to you.

Module titleModule codeCredits
Literature for AllSE263920 credits
Module titleModule codeCredits
Cymraeg i Ymarferwyr AddysgCY301520 credits
Llenyddiaeth PlantCY331020 credits
Theori a Beirniadaeth LenyddolCY333020 credits
Ysgrifennu CreadigolCY336020 credits
Bywydau LlênCY342520 credits
TafodieithegCY345020 credits
SosioieithyddiaethCY353020 credits
Yr Ystafell DdosbarthCY366020 credits
Treftadaeth a ThwristiaethCY366520 credits
Cyfieithu ProffesiynolCY370520 credits
Blas ar YmchwilCY390020 credits
Ymchwilio EstynedigCY390540 credits
The Illustrated BookSE239520 credits
Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Women WritersSE247620 credits
DissertationSE252420 credits
Military Masculinities in the Long Nineteenth CenturySE259720 credits
Island Stories: Literatures of the North AtlanticSE259820 credits
Medieval Romance: Monsters and MagicSE259920 credits
Activist Poetry: Protest, Dissent, ResistanceSE262720 credits
Shakespeare's Fractured BritainSE263720 credits
Modern Utopia/DystopiaSE265320 credits
The Films of Alfred HitchcockSE265420 credits
Visions of Past and Future in Children’s BooksSE265520 credits
Brave New Worlds: Early Modern Encounters SE265620 credits
The Medieval Supernatural: Death, Demons and Ghosts SE265820 credits
Technology and Visual CultureSE265920 credits
Nature and Environment in North American Literature SE266120 credits
Gothic Literature: The Romantic Age SE266320 credits
Second-generation Romanticism: Nationalism, Music, and PoetrySE266420 credits

The University is committed to providing a wide range of module options where possible, but please be aware that whilst every effort is made to offer choice this may be limited in certain circumstances. This is due to the fact that some modules have limited numbers of places available, which are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, while others have minimum student numbers required before they will run, to ensure that an appropriate quality of education can be delivered; some modules require students to have already taken particular subjects, and others are core or required on the programme you are taking. Modules may also be limited due to timetable clashes, and although the University works to minimise disruption to choice, we advise you to seek advice from the relevant School on the module choices available.

Learning and assessment

 Research is central to the student experience at Cardiff University and all our teaching is informed by the latest findings.

Throughout the degree, our aim is to support you to become an independent thinker. You’ll learn through a wide range of teaching methods including interactive lectures, lively discussion-based seminars and workshops. Seminars and workshops offer a rewarding experience to engage critically with the key ideas and readings on a topic. They provide a valuable opportunity to explore ideas and work closely with your lecturers and to learn from other students. For Welsh, there is also an important role to be played by tutorials, workshops and language classes, especially if you’re following the second language route. You’ll have access to course materials through our electronic learning environment.

In this supportive environment, you’ll develop your abilities to closely analyse texts and arguments, evaluate evidence, collaboratively work through problems, construct your own arguments, hone your language skills, and present your ideas clearly to others.  

How will I be supported?

Your main sources of support are your module leaders and your Personal Tutors. You’ll be allocated a personal tutor in both Welsh and English Literature. Personal Tutors can advise you on academic matters, including study skills, careers, and your academic progress, as well as on pastoral matters and you'll be invited to meet them regularly during the academic year. Your module leaders are also available during teaching weeks if you have any questions about course materials or assessments.

The Writing Development Centre provides specialist support for academic writing across the programme. This includes access to online materials, workshops and one-to-one meetings about any aspect of academic writing to support you with your assessments.

Our Professional Services teams in both Welsh and English Literature provide academic and student support and are there to help you with information and guidance if you have any queries. In addition, the University offers a range of support services and events to help you plan your career, manage your emotional, mental and physical health, support you with financial issues, and provide assistance for students with disabilities. These services are co-located at the University's Centre for Student Life. Libraries, study spaces and other resource centres will all be available to you.

How will I be assessed?

Your assessments are designed to cumulatively develop key skills in communication, collaboration, critical analysis and reflection. These can include critical analyses of texts, essays, exams, critical reviews, presentations, group work and group discussion assessments, and reflective assessment of your own skills. In the final year, you’ll take part in a collaborative project in English literature that involves communicating your findings to a non-specialist audience. In Welsh, you’ll undertake an independent research project.

Optional modules can offer a wider variety of assessments, including commenting on an artwork or a media piece, or creative assignments.

You’ll receive regular feedback on your progress as you move through the degree. Oral feedback in lectures, workshops and seminars will help you assess your understanding of the course material and your critical responses to it. You’ll receive formative comments on essay ideas and draft work, and detailed feedback on all marked coursework.

What skills will I practise and develop?

The Learning Outcomes for this Programme describe what you will achieve by the end of your programme at Cardiff University and identify the knowledge and skills that you will develop. They will also help you to understand what is expected of you.

On successful completion of your Programme you will be able to:

Knowledge & Understanding:

  • Know the structures, registers and varieties of Welsh and use them flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes, as appropriate.
  • Critique the development of the Welsh language and its literature in different historical periods, from a linguistic, literary, and social context as well as an understanding of the attempts to restore and promote the language.
  • Systematically comprehend English and/or Welsh literature from different cultures and periods (including pre-1800) and the range of principal literary genres across prose, poetry, and drama.
  • Systematically comprehend the relationships between literature and other cultural forms, such as film, art, music, and material/digital cultures.
  • Systematically comprehend how culture, language, technology, and economics affect how, where, and by whom texts are produced and received.

Intellectual Skills:

  • Critically assess how meanings are created through language, and the affective power of language.
  • Develop and apply arguments that respond independently to linguistic and/or literary and critical sources. 
  • Critically evaluate texts, data, concepts, and theories relevant to the context of the Welsh language and Welsh literature, using the appropriate vocabulary and terminology.
  • Examine different kinds of linguistic data and/or literary and cultural materials closely and critically

Professional Practical Skills:

  • Communicate persuasively, conveying academic ideas and technical arguments to both specialist and non-specialist audiences, using written or oral techniques in Welsh and English
  • Apply knowledge, understanding and skills in a professional context.
  • Assess and solve problems independently, taking the views of others into account in a systematic and evaluative way
  • Compile and systematically evaluate complex information and diverse evidence.

Transferable/Key Skills:

  • Effectively use IT programmes, including Welsh medium software, to present and analyse materials.
  • Explain information and ideas clearly and professionally, applying advanced knowledge and skills to unfamiliar or wider world challenges or contexts
  • Develop initiative by taking responsibility for structuring and time-managing a research task, working in teams when appropriate.
  • Develop positive and effective working relations with others in teams, especially through constructive and collaborative dialogue and feedback
  • Develop creative, critical, and independent responses to problems or tasks

Careers and placements

Career prospects

Graduates from this programme possess a range of transferable skills and areas of knowledge that are sought after by many employers.

Our graduates are versatile, collaborative, and critically independent individuals who are able to communicate complex ideas effectively to diverse audiences. They demonstrate personal and professional integrity, reliability, and competence, and they have the ability to motivate themselves and others in meeting agreed responsibilities.

By studying language, literature and culture in different linguistic, social and cultural contexts, our graduates develop critical knowledge and awareness of cultural diversity and key bilingual communications skills that are highly valued for jobs and roles that require Welsh, in particular.

University services and schemes are also available to you, providing additional ways to increase your professional skills and confidence. The Cardiff Award provides a framework through which to develop your employability further, and Student Futures is on hand to provide career advice and support in gaining placements specific to your degree. You can also take advantage of programmes like Languages for All to improve your foreign language skills, while support from the Enterprise and Start Up team can help you to bring your ideas to life.

Due to the depth and breadth of their skills and knowledge, our graduates are now following careers in areas such as law, politics, media, performing arts, administration and education, or engaged in postgraduate study.

Placements

In year 2 you’ll undertake a period of work experience in a workplace where Welsh is used on a daily basis. This period of work experience is part of a programme of events designed to focus on developing employability and career skills. We also encourage you to undertake placements off-campus through Student Futures in order to further enhance your employability.

Studying in Welsh

Up to 50% of this course is available through the medium of Welsh. Please contact the Admissions tutor for more information.

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HESA Data: Copyright Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited 2021. The Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited cannot accept responsibility for any inferences or conclusions derived by third parties from its data. Data is from the latest Graduate Outcomes Survey 2019/20, published by HESA in June 2022.