French and Linguistics, MA (Hons)

French is a prominent global language spoken across Europe, Africa, and the Americas. This adaptable programme enables students to study French while building a social scientific perspective on language, forming an ideal joint honours combination. It integrates the exploration of a modern language in its worldwide cultural context with the analysis of meaning creation. Relevant linguistics courses address the speech sounds, variations, structures, and histories of global languages.In French studies, participants can attain near-native proficiency and gain a comprehensive cultural education, valued by employers, through examinations of literature, cinema, political history, social movements, and philosophical ideas from the Middle Ages to the present. Expert-led options include post-colonial and gender studies. Linguistics delves into how language functions, including its everyday uses, societal variations, evolution, and acquisition by children, with opportunities to test hypotheses using advanced equipment.Edinburgh, a leading festival city, offers an excellent environment for this four-year programme, blending specialised skills and intercultural competence for global careers. Students select broad optional courses in the first two years, specialise later, and benefit from a full academic year abroad, unique in Scotland.