How is BA Language and Society different from BA Applied Linguistics?

BA Applied Linguistics centres on the technical study of language in use — learning, teaching, assessment. BA Language and Society centres on the social life of language — identity, policy, power. There is shared methodological ground but a different research focus.

Do I need a second language to enrol in BA Language and Society?

Not required, but strongly recommended. A second language gives you richer fieldwork access and stronger data. The degree includes optional language strands through LSJHML's language departments for students who want to develop or maintain one.

Does BA Language and Society include UK community languages?

Yes. Modules on multilingual Britain cover the major community languages spoken in the UK — Polish, Urdu, Arabic, Cantonese, Romanian and others — and the policy and educational frameworks that shape their use.

Can I study BA Language and Society online?

Yes. The online route mirrors the on-campus syllabus with live seminars, recorded lectures and remote fieldwork support. Distance learners follow the same outcomes with milestone-based deadlines.

What sort of dissertation will I write on BA Language and Society?

A 10,000-to-12,000-word empirical or analytical study on a topic you agree with your supervisor. Past examples include ethnographic work on London faith communities, corpus studies of UK news framing of minority languages, and analyses of language policy in devolved nations.

BA Language and Society in London | LSJHML | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The BA Language and Society at the London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages (LSJHML) is a three-year UK honours degree for students fascinated by how language carries identity, power and belonging — in the multilingual UK, in the classroom, in the courtroom, online, and across the border crossings of a globalised world. The degree blends sociolinguistics, language policy and applied research, grounded in current University Council of Modern Languages and CIOL scholarship.

You graduate able to read sociolinguistic research with rigour, run a small empirical study on language in a community of practice, and write about language and society for academic or professional readers without slipping into either nostalgia or naive universalism.

Key Features

UCML-aligned curriculum covering core sociolinguistics and current language-policy debates.
Research methods training — qualitative interview, ethnography, corpus methods across all three years.
Multilingual London laboratory — fieldwork in one of the most linguistically diverse cities in Europe.
Language policy module — minority languages, multilingual education, English as a global language.
Optional language strand through LSJHML's language departments.
Final-year dissertation on a topic in language and society you negotiate with your supervisor.

What You Will Learn

The BA Language and Society is structured around the social life of language — variation, identity, contact, conflict, policy, technology. You graduate able to design a sociolinguistic study, analyse a body of language data with care, and write about language in society without losing either rigour or specificity.

Sociolinguistic theory — variation, change, identity, language and power.
Multilingualism — code-switching, translanguaging, language maintenance.
Language policy — minority languages, official languages, multilingual education.
Language and the media — discourse, framing, the news economy of language.
Language and law — courtroom discourse, forensic linguistics, language rights.
Research methods — qualitative interview, ethnography, basic statistics, corpus methods.
Language and technology — large language models, NLP, multilingual platforms.
UK and international language landscapes — Welsh, Scots Gaelic, BSL, community languages.

Who This Course Is For

School leavers with a strong interest in language, society and the human sciences.
International students seeking a UK honours degree in language and society taught in multilingual London.
Career-changers from teaching, translation or community work moving into a research-grounded language specialism.
Working language teachers and community workers formalising their practice with a degree-level credential.

Career Pathways

Graduates of BA Language and Society go into research, policy, education and language-services roles across the public, third and private sectors. Typical first roles include:

Languages Programme Coordinator (cultural body, local authority)
Language Policy Researcher (think tank, government department, NGO)
Bilingual Project Officer (charity, public body, international organisation)
Multilingual Content Strategist (publisher, technology firm, news organisation)
EFL or community-languages Teacher (with appropriate teaching qualification)
Editorial Researcher (academic publishing, longform journalism)

The degree is the natural prerequisite for an MA in Sociolinguistics, Applied Linguistics, Language Policy or a related specialism.

Entry Requirements

Three A-Levels at BBC or above (or international equivalent — IB 28 points, BTEC DMM, or accepted national qualification).
GCSE English Language at grade 5 or equivalent English proficiency test.
IELTS 6.0 overall (no band below 5.5) for non-native English speakers.
A short personal statement; some applicants are invited to interview.
Mature applicants (21+) without standard qualifications may apply with a portfolio and short interview.

Why Study at LSJHML

The London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London. Our programmes are designed in dialogue with working professionals — journalists, translators, civil servants, academics, broadcasters, editors, publishers and policy researchers — so what you learn in seminar on Monday is what your future employer is using on Tuesday. We deliberately keep cohorts small, give every student named tutor support, and treat employability as a structural part of every programme rather than an optional add-on.

London is the work — politics, courts, capital markets, theatre, broadcasting, publishing, public service, the global press. Your studies are taught in the same square mile where the stories you read about happen. Whether you join us on-campus, online or by distance learning, the city is your classroom and our industry network is your launchpad.