Students will immerse themselves in the culture of one country where the target language is spoken. They will be introduced to aspects of academic work, life as a student and day to day life of the host location. They will enhance their understanding of the host culture. By attending language courses when available as well as content courses, all linguistic skills (reading/writing/speaking/listening) will be enhanced as well as their understanding of their academic subjects and their own strengths and weaknesses in preparation for their career decisions after graduation.
The Department of Modern Languages will set out the course requirements and residency requirements for its students in its briefing material.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the module students should be able to:
Demonstrate improved linguistic competency by at least 1 level (i.e. from B1 to B2, from B2 to C1) through appropriate study.
Demonstrate a good understanding of the academic system of a country where their target language is spoken, normally by having completed successfully modules in relevant subjects as appropriate.
Demonstrate increased understanding of the target culture in general.
Where possible, make progress in other subjects as appropriate.
Assessment
Assessment Methods & Exceptions
The Year Abroad will be assessed on a pass/fail basis only.
Students need to take 30 ECTS (or equivalent) per semester.
Further information on assessing the Year Abroad can be found in the Code of Practice on Taught Programme and Module Assessment and Feedback.
Assessments: The student is expected to undertake assessment in accordance with normal practice at the host institution.
Alternative Assessment: An essay of 1500 words in the target language (or 825 Chinese characters or 1125
Japanese characters) on a topic to be set in agreement with the relevant language section with a view to assessing as much as possible the student's experience of the academic system abroad or an aspect of their studies, in relation with the module's learning outcomes.
Method of Reassessment:
An essay of 4500 words in the target language (or 825 Chinese characters or 1125 Japanese characters) on a topic to be set by the relevant language section.