As Wales develops as a vibrant bilingual country, there has never been a more exciting time to study Welsh at university level. In fields as varied as education, media and journalism, the civil service, the heritage industry, public relations and marketing there is a great demand for graduates who have competence in Welsh and the ability to work in a bilingual environment. The School of Welsh and Celtic Studies at Bangor has responded energetically to this demand by designing courses which are both academically rigorous and relevant to the needs of modern Wales. At Bangor you will have the opportunity to study rich and diverse literary texts extending from the tales of the Mabinogion to the dynamic literature, theatre and film of contemporary Wales. You will also follow practical language modules which will greatly enhance your career prospects.

You will be spend around 10 hours per week in lectures, seminars and small tutorial groups. This will be supplemented by private study. You will be assessed through examinations, essays, continuous coursework and oral presentations.

What will you study on this course?

Year 1

You will follow a variety of modules catering for the needs of both first-language and second-language students. Second-language students will follow a combination of modules with a particular emphasis on developing writing and aural skills. In order to ensure an integrated learning experience you will also follow a selection of modules with first-language students. First-language students will study a broad selection of texts – extending from the poetry and prose of the middle ages to modern Welsh classics and media literature. You will also be given a range of insights into the culture and history of Wales. There will also be an emphasis on advanced skills in oral and written Welsh.

Year 2 and Year 3

Both first-language and second-language students will follow the same Welsh degree scheme during their final two years. Additional tutorial support is provided for second-language students to ease the full transition to first-language provision. You will be able to choose your modules from a thematically broad and wide-ranging list of subjects such as:

Court Poetry; Early Welsh Saga Poetry; Tales of the Mabinogion; Dafydd ap Gwilym; Poets of the Welsh Gentry; Literature and Society 1500- 1740; Welsh literature of America; The Modern Welsh Novel; Modern Welsh Poetry; Kate Roberts’s Fiction; The Modern Welsh Theatre; Television Drama; History of the Welsh Language; Language Policy and Planning; Translation Skills; Philosophy and Literature; Practical Writing Skills/ Welsh in the Workplace; Dissertation.

If you wish, you can also select modules from our Welsh-medium creative writing provision: Poetry Workshop; Creative Prose Workshop; Cynghanedd; Script-writing.

Our graduates go on to careers in education, media/journalism, creative writing, the civil service, PR, marketing, the translation industry, language planning, the heritage industry and IT. Furthermore, this course will provide you with a range of rigorous analytical and presentational skills which will be vitally important in numerous other careers. Bangor also offers excellent opportunities at postgraduate level.

Our honours degrees offer a wealth of valuable experience whether you wish to study courses relating to Welsh as a subject, or the fields of theatre, journalism or the media.