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Welcome to the School of Modern Languages and Cultures

You can study Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hispanic Studies, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Visual Arts and Film with us at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Our undergraduate courses allow you to study one or more languages, or take a language alongside history, English or many other subjects. Studying here is transformative for your employment prospects.

We rank in the top 70 language departments globally.

Our Centre for Foreign Language Study offers language teaching to Durham students on other degree programmes and to the public.

 

Find out more about us
2nd for Italian Studies Sunday Times Good University Guide 2025
4th for Russian Studies
4th for Russian Studies Complete University Guide 2026
4th for Iberian Languages
4th for Iberian Languages Complete University Guide 2026
5th for French Studies Complete University Guide 2026

Ready for Your Year Abroad Adventure?

From Italy, Spain, all the way to Jordan, China, and Japan: Hear what our students have to say about their exciting time abroad.
Watch My Year Abroad videos
My year abroad heroes
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Scholarships in Modern Languages

Are you considering starting your undergraduate study with us in 2025? Thanks to generous gifts from our alumnae, we have scholarships to offer to talented students from low-income backgrounds.

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What's New?

MLAC Alumni Success: Matt Hilborn wins AHGBI award and Joss Morfitt contributes to BFI Flare 40th anniversary

Two MLAC alumni have recently achieved notable successes. Dr Matt Hilborn has won the Edgar Allison Peers Award (2025) from the Association of Hispanists of Great Britain and Ireland for the best early-career essay, while Dr Joss Morfitt will contribute to the 40th anniversary programme of the BFI Flare London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, including delivering a sold out public talk.
Flare poster march 2026

Conference: “World Literature and Epigenetics: Women Narrating Transgenerational Trauma” – 27 March 2026

An interdisciplinary workshop organised by MLAC and Durham’s Institute for Medical Humanities explores how literature and emerging research in epigenetics illuminate the transmission of trauma across generations. The event brings together scholars and the writer Igiaba Scego to examine women’s narratives of transgenerational trauma.
Conference poster: “World Literature and Epigenetics: Women Narrating Transgenerational Trauma” – 27 March 2026

Our research

The School's research community is organised through a number of interdisciplinary Research Groups and is home to some 60 postgraduate students pursuing research degrees.
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Cable car station, Innsbruck, Austria
QS World University Rankings 2024

World-leading status affirmed in QS World University Rankings 2026

Durham University has been named in the QS World University Rankings world top 100, a position it has achieved every year since 2010. The rankings have confirmed the University’s strong global reputation for employability (64th) and it is also 22nd in the world for sustainability.

Learn more about the QS World University Rankings

Get in touch

Find out more about our undergraduate and postgraduate opportunities at The School of Modern Languages and Cultures.

School of Modern Languages & Cultures

Durham University
Elvet Riverside
New Elvet
Durham, DH1 3JT

Questions about studying here?

Check out our list of FAQs or submit an enquiry form.

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