English Language and Linguistics

Reasons to study English Language and Linguistics

The course explores how writers persuade, inform, instruct, advise and entertain different audiences through a range of texts. Alongside this, you’ll discover more about spoken language and how it differs from the written texts you have studied previously, as well as examining how sociolinguistic factors such as gender, ethnicity, social class and occupation influence what we say and how we say it. You’ll also explore how the English language has changed over the centuries, including the impact of texting and social media. Throughout the course, there is a strong focus on developing crucial academic writing skills, while also giving you the opportunity to flex your creative muscles through original fiction and non-fiction writing.

English Language and Linguistics offers you the opportunity to explore language in the ‘real world’. You’ll hone your understanding of texts written for a variety of purposes, as well as explore spoken transcripts from real-life scenarios such as political speeches, podcasts and stand-up comedy routines. Units such as Child Language Acquisition and Language & Identity allow you to get involved in discussions about the sociological and psychological aspects of language, whilst Historical Variation uncovers the origins of words we use every day - and looks at those which have fallen out of fashion (usually led by young people such as yourselves).

Careers including law, teaching, business, marketing, advertising, journalism, publishing and speech therapy. A-Level English Language is accepted for entry onto a wide range courses at university, including those within the Russell Group and at Oxbridge.