BA (Hons) Russian and Modern Greek Bachelor's degree at Oxford University
BA (Hons) Russian and Modern Greek at Oxford University. Studying Russian and Modern Greek together brings two languages, histories and literary traditions into direct conversation with each other, rather than treating them as separate strands to be juggled.
About this course
BA (Hons) Russian and Modern Greek is a Bachelor's degree (BA (Hons)) at Oxford University, based in Oxford. It runs 4 years, studied full-time.
For Languages and area studies graduates from this provider, 86% were in work or further study 15 months after graduating, 75% in highly skilled roles, typical earnings around £31,000. (HESA Graduate Outcomes / LEO, via Discover Uni.)
For the typical curriculum, specialisations, career paths and graduate earnings for Modern Languages, see the sections below.
Course evidence score
The arithmetic mean of the official measures available for this course: NSS satisfaction, graduate activity and continuation.
Published threshold met NSS publication requires sufficient responses; small differences are not a rank. NSS mean of 7 published themes (Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Limited evidence Published sample: 25; treat comparisons cautiously. Cohort 2022-23. Graduate Outcomes work or further study 86% (2022-23; Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Published threshold met Discover Uni suppresses continuation data below its publication threshold. Cohort 2022-23. Continuation 100% (2022-23; Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Curriculum & modules
A typical UK Modern Languages degree builds from foundations to specialist options and a final project. An indicative structure:
| Stage | Module |
|---|---|
| Year 1 | Core Language I Intensive grammar, speaking and writing towards fluency. |
| Year 1 | Cultures & Societies History, film and literature of the language's cultures. |
| Year 1 | Linguistics Foundations How languages work: sounds, structure and meaning. |
| Year 2 | Core Language II Advanced production, debate, translation and register. |
| Year 2 | Specialist Cultural Studies Deeper study of periods, authors or media. |
| Year 2 | Translation & Interpreting Skills Professional technique between your languages. |
| Year 3 (abroad) | Year abroad Study or work placement immersed in the language, most four-year courses. |
| Final year | Advanced Language & Specialist options Near-native skills plus research-led cultural options. |
| Final year | Dissertation Research in the target language or on its cultures. |
Typical structure for this subject (indicative). Modules vary by university. Check the provider's course page for the exact curriculum.
Specialisations & pathways
Tip: click a specialisation → current jobs in that area.
Course in depth
What this course covers, who it suits and where it leads.
What you'll study
The course is built around sustained development in both Russian and Modern Greek, taught alongside the academic study of their literatures, cultures and linguistic structures. You'll cover core theory in language and literary studies, developing the analytical tools needed to read texts closely and think critically about how meaning is made across different periods and genres. Research and methods training equips you to work independently with primary sources, whether that's a nineteenth-century Russian novel or a modern Greek poem, and to situate your reading within broader historical and cultural debates. Applied practice runs throughout, with regular language classes, translation work and oral practice designed to build practical command of both languages to a high level. As you progress, specialist options let you follow particular interests, such as Russian cinema, Byzantine studies, or aspects of modern Greek society and politics, allowing the course to reflect your own developing preferences rather than a fixed path. An independent project gives you the chance to research a topic of your choosing in depth, drawing on the languages, texts and methods you've built up over the earlier years. Professional skills are woven in throughout, supporting the kind of independent thinking, writing and communication that carries over well beyond the course itself.
Who it's for
This course suits someone who enjoys the discipline of learning a language properly, grammar, vocabulary, the slow accumulation of fluency, but who also wants to think seriously about literature, history and culture rather than treat language as a purely practical skill. If you're someone who reads widely, enjoys puzzling over how languages work, and finds the idea of committing to two significant, structurally different languages exciting rather than daunting, this is likely to feel like the right fit. It will suit people who are comfortable with independent study and are prepared to spend real time on translation, reading and oral practice, since progress in both Russian and Modern Greek depends on steady, sustained effort rather than occasional bursts of enthusiasm. Many students drawn to this combination have an existing interest in Eastern Europe, Russia, Greece, or the Byzantine and classical worlds, and want a degree that lets them explore these interests in depth over four years rather than skimming the surface. You should be comfortable with uncertainty and complexity too, much of the value of studying two less widely taught languages together lies in the connections and contrasts that only emerge slowly, through sustained reading and reflection, rather than through quick conclusions.
Careers & job market
Nationally, Modern Languages graduates report a range of outcomes fifteen months after graduating, with starting salaries typically falling between £24,000 and £33,500. This tends to rise over time, with earnings after three years generally in the range of £25,500 to £36,000, and after five years between £32,725 and £46,200, figures drawn from national Graduate Outcomes and LEO data rather than specific to this university or course, and not a guarantee of what any individual graduate will earn. Across Modern Languages courses nationally, 85% of graduates are in work or further study fifteen months after graduating, and of those in work, 70% are in roles classed as highly skilled. Skills built through studying Russian and Modern Greek, advanced language ability, close analytical reading, independent research and cross-cultural understanding, are relevant to fields such as translation and interpreting, international relations, diplomacy, journalism, education, and roles within organisations working across Eastern Europe, Russia, Greece or the wider Balkan and Mediterranean regions. Continuation data also shows that 90% of students on courses like this continue past their first year, either still enrolled or having completed, suggesting that most people who start this kind of demanding, dual-language degree find a way to keep going with it.
University & format
This BA (Hons) is offered full-time over four years at Oxford University, a public, research-intensive Russell Group institution founded in 1096, with around 19,791 students in total. Teaching quality has been assessed as Gold under the Office for Students' TEF 2023, and the university was. The course is taught in English (alongside the two target languages, Russian and Modern Greek), and the degree awarded is a nationally recognised BA (Hons). Among recent accepted students, 90% held A-levels or equivalent on entry, with the most common UCAS tariff band among entrants falling between 144 and 159 points, this reflects typical entrant profiles rather than a stated minimum requirement.
Student satisfaction
How students on this course answered the National Student Survey, by theme.
Share of students responding positively.
Published threshold met NSS publication requires sufficient responses; small differences are not a rank. NSS mean of 7 published themes (Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Applicant information
The next application dates for this course, followed by facts the provider publishes.
- 2027 entryCompleted applications can be submitted
Your application needs a reference before you can send it.
- 2026 entryFinal date for 2026 applications
Applications must reach UCAS by 18:00 UK time.
- 2027 entryEarly equal-consideration deadline
18:00 UK time for Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses.
- 2026 entryLast day to add a Clearing choice
Check that this course still has a vacancy before adding it.
Provider-published requirement; check the linked course page before applying.
Entry & how to get in
Who gets in
What recently admitted students actually held, official admissions data, not a stated requirement.
UCAS tariff of entrants
Grades are the A-level equivalent of each points band. Tap a band to check your own chances below.
Qualifications held on entry
| Qualification | Share |
|---|---|
| A-levels or equivalent | 90% |
| a previous degree | 10% |
Entry & your chances
An honest read from the official entry data, plus your personal match.
Accepted students typically held strong UCAS tariffs. Check how your predicted grades compare and whether a contextual offer applies.
Will you get in? Plot your grades
Pick your predicted A-levels and watch your UCAS points land on the real spread of students admitted to this course.
Each bar is the share of admitted students in that UCAS-points band (lower → higher). Grades show the A-level equivalent.
Based on the official admitted-student tariff distribution. Many universities make contextual (reduced-grade) offers, so a result below the range doesn’t rule you out.
How to apply
Undergraduate applications go through UCAS. Here’s what matters for this course, the right deadline, the grades to aim for, and the steps in order.
- 1Register on UCAS Hub
Create your UCAS application and add this course. One application covers up to five choices.
- 2Write your personal statement
A single statement covers all your choices, so keep it broad enough for similar courses while showing genuine interest in this subject.
- 3Submit by 15 October 2026, 18:00 UK time
UCAS equal-consideration deadline for Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses. Source: UCAS 2027 dates.
- 4Sit any admissions test & interview
Courses with the October deadline often need an admissions test (e.g. UCAT, BMAT or a subject test) and interviews, register early and prepare.
- 5Reply to your offers
When decisions are in, pick a firm (first) choice and an insurance (back-up) choice with slightly lower grades.
- 6Results day & confirmation
On results day (mid-August) your place is confirmed if you meet the offer. Just missed? Talk to the university, or find a place through Clearing.
Fees & funding
What this course costs and how UK student finance covers it.
Tuition per year
Standard capped home fee at English providers (2026/27); Scotland, Wales & NI differ.
Check fees at Oxford University →For students who normally live in England
2026/27 Student Finance England figures. Maintenance support is means-tested and this two-point view is not an entitlement calculator. The course total uses its published length and home fee where both are available; a missing full-time fee uses the clearly labelled England-cap scenario, while part-time fees and unknown lengths are never guessed. Use the official calculator. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland use separate systems: SAAS, Student Finance Wales, and Student Finance NI.
Starting on or after 1 January 2027?
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement is a separate system. A new learner’s tuition entitlement is currently stated as £39,160 (about 480 credits at 2026/27 fee levels), subject to prior study and eligibility. Check the official LLE guide.
Paying for it
- Tuition Fee Loan: can cover eligible tuition up to the applicable limit and is paid straight to the provider.
- Maintenance Loan: up to £10,830/yr away from home outside London (England, 2026/27), means-tested on household income.
- Repayment: 9% of income above £25,000, nothing below it; written off after 40 years.
- Earn alongside: most students work part-time in term, part-time roles on the StudySmarter job board.
England figures shown; Scotland, Wales & NI run their own schemes, check gov.uk.
Scholarships & bursaries you could qualify for
That does not mean no funding exists. Check the university directory for current amounts, eligibility and application dates.
We only display a named award when its provider source identifies the award and who it is for.
Still deciding what to study?
StudyKit brings course choice, applications and funding together in one place, with a personal AI assistant. Find what really fits you and start your UCAS application step by step.
Careers & earnings
What Modern Languages graduates actually earn, from real outcome data, 15 months, 3 years and 5 years after graduating.
Graduate earnings: this course
| When | Median | Typical range | Graduates |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 months after | £31,000 | £27,000 – £38,000 | 25 |
| 3 years after | £32,000 | £26,500 – £43,000 | 240 |
| 5 years after | £42,500 | £31,500 – £60,000 | 250 |
Nominal earnings for graduates of this course/subject at this provider. Limited evidence. Published sample: 25; treat comparisons cautiously. Cohort 2022-23.
Graduate outcomes, 15 months on: this course
- 1Graduate roleFirst role after the degree · 0–2 yrs
- 2Specialist / PractitionerWorking in modern languages · 2–5 yrs
- 3Senior / LeadLeading work and people · 5–10 yrs
- 4Head of / ExpertSenior leadership or deep expertise · 10+ yrs
How pay grows: this course vs Modern Languages nationally
National figures for Modern Languages graduates, HESA Graduate Outcomes (15 months) and the Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) dataset (3 & 5 years). These are national, not university-specific; actual pay varies by employer, region, role and experience. Different cohorts, so the bars are not one group over time.
Work out your pay
Headline figures hide a lot. Calculate realistic take-home pay for this field by role, region and experience, then check your CV before you apply.
What happened to 100 students?
Choose an outcome to translate the published percentage into a simple 100-person view. Each dot represents one percentage point, not an individual tracked student.
were in work or further study
15 months after graduation
Source: Discover Uni, using Graduate Outcomes and continuation data. Cohorts: 2022-23. Limited evidence. Published sample: 25; treat comparisons cautiously. Cohort 2022-23. Each tab is a separate published measure; categories can overlap and should not be added together.
Value compared with similar courses
How this course’s 5-year median earnings compare with Modern Languages courses at the same study level.
Compared with 931 courses with compatible official earnings data. This is a course-value comparison, not a quality ranking.
UK occupations graduates enter
Published graduate destinations, joined conservatively to UK SOC 2020, ONS pay and Skills England demand.
- Teaching ProfessionalsSOC 2020 231 · 17% of published destinations · ASHE median £42,660
- Business, Research and Administrative ProfessionalsSOC 2020 243 · 12% of published destinations · ASHE median £48,746
- Artistic, literary and media occupationsSOC 2020 341 · 12% of published destinations · ASHE median £33,824
Discover Uni JOBLIST/JOBTYPE; ONS ASHE 2025 provisional, all employee jobs; Skills England Occupations in Demand 2025. SOC is shown only for an exact normalised label match; demand is shown only at exact four-digit SOC. Published sample: 205; response rate: 55%. Pay describes the occupation across workers, not a guaranteed graduate salary.
Job market & outlook
How Modern Languages graduates fare in the labour market, and how AI is reshaping the work.
How AI is changing the work
AI doesn't replace the profession, it shifts it: routine tasks get automated, while judgement, working with people and using AI well become more valuable.
What AI takes off your plate
- Routine information gathering
- First-draft writing and summaries
- Standard analysis and admin
- Repetitive processing tasks
More human than ever
- Judgement and original thinking
- Working with and leading people
- Owning and sense-checking AI output
- Ethics and accountability
The strongest graduates pair subject depth with the ability to use AI tools critically.
Roles & employers
Where Modern Languages graduates typically go, indicative destinations from graduate career data. Each role links to live openings on the StudySmarter job board.
Roles graduates go into
Where they work
- Translation agencies
- International businesses
- Government (FCDO)
- Tourism & education
Jobs after this course
Current roles from the StudySmarter job board that suit Modern Languages graduates.
Head of Modern Languages, Inspire, Lead & Develop MFLSuffolk County Council11 To 18 (Secondary) QTS Programme - Modern Languages (French, Spanish or German)Diversity DashboardHead of Modern Languages - Inspire & Lead GCSE FrenchCoast and Vale Learning TrustHead Of Department of Modern LanguagesSheringham High SchoolHead of MFL: Lead & Grow our Modern Languages DepartmentWayman Learning TrustModern Foreign Languages Assistant (French) 18 hrs p/w (temporary position)The Cherwell SchoolIs this course right for you?
The essentials UK applicants ask about: finance, outcomes, entry and quality.
Student finance
For comparison, the standard full-time England tuition cap is up to £9,790 per year in 2026/27; the actual fee varies by course and provider. If you normally live in England, eligible students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan, plus a Maintenance Loan for living costs. Under Plan 5 you repay 9% of income above £25,000, nothing below that, and the balance is written off after 40 years.
Where graduates go
86% were in work or further study 15 months after graduating, with a median salary of £31,000. See the full breakdown in Careers & earnings above.
Your entry chances
Use the UCAS points calculator above to see how your predicted grades compare with admitted students, and whether a contextual offer could apply.
Official-data snapshot
Averaging the official measures published for it, this course scores 8.9 out of 10: NSS 80.1% · in work or study 86% · continued 100%.
Who studies here and in this subject?
Provider- and UK subject-level context.
The University of Oxford
Language and area studies across the UK
HESA student record 2024/25. Counts are rounded.
Local crime-data context
A neutral snapshot around the published teaching location.
Around Oxford
1,622 street-level reports returned within roughly one mile across 2026-04 to 2026-06.
Police.uk street-level API. Approximate locations, not confined to campus. England, Wales and Northern Ireland; not Scotland.
Is Modern Languages right for you?
Tick what applies to you and see how good a fit it is.
International students
What applying to Oxford University from outside the UK involves: fees, English, visa, funding and living costs.
Tuition fees
International tuition is set per course by Oxford University; international fees are typically £12,000–£30,000/year for classroom subjects and higher for lab/clinical ones. You’re not eligible for UK Tuition Fee or Maintenance Loans, so plan for fees plus living costs upfront.
English language
Most UK undergraduate courses ask for around IELTS 6.0–6.5 (no band below 5.5–6.0), or an accepted equivalent. If you’re just short, most universities run a pre-sessional English course that counts towards the requirement.
Student visa
You’ll usually need a Student visa (Student Route). After you accept an offer the university issues a CAS; you then show funds for fees plus about £1,023–£1,334/month living costs and pay the Immigration Health Surcharge for NHS access.
Scholarships & funding
Many universities offer international/global scholarships (often £2,000–£6,000/yr), check Oxford University’s funding pages.
Living costs
Budget roughly £1,100–£1,400/month outside London and £1,400–£1,800/month in London for rent, food and travel; the figure also matters for your visa.
Working while you study
A Student visa usually allows up to 20 hours/week in term time and full-time in holidays, useful alongside study, though not something to rely on for fees.
Visa rules and fees change. Always confirm the current requirements with Oxford University and gov.uk before you apply.
Related courses
More at Oxford University
Common questions
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