French and Arabic

French and Arabic is a degree of remarkable intellectual range. French is the language of one of Europe's great literary and philosophical traditions, with a rich body of literature from Rabelais and Montaigne through Moliere, Balzac, Proust, and Camus to the contemporary novel, as well as a language spoken across Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean. Arabic is one of the world's major languages, with a classical literary tradition stretching back over a millennium, a vast body of philosophical, scientific, and poetic achievement, and a contemporary presence across the Middle East and North Africa that makes it one of the most strategically significant languages on earth.

This four-year full-time programme at the University of Oxford combines deep engagement with both languages and their cultural, literary, and intellectual worlds. With a typical tariff of 216 points, it is among the most selective language programmes available anywhere, drawing students who are already seriously accomplished and prepared for the intellectual demands of Oxford's tutorial-based teaching. You will develop high-level proficiency in both French and Arabic, working on language from the classical through to the contemporary, and engaging with literary and cultural texts that span centuries and geographies.

The tutorial system at Oxford means your learning is shaped by sustained one-to-one or small-group conversation with specialist scholars, a distinctive experience that develops intellectual rigour and the ability to form and defend independent arguments. Engaging with two such different linguistic and cultural systems simultaneously is itself a form of comparative education that sharpens your awareness of how languages construct meaning differently.

Graduates from French and Arabic programmes at Oxford move into careers in the diplomatic and civil service, international organisations, journalism, academia, policy, law, international business, and a range of roles in the Middle East, Francophone Africa, and North Africa where both languages are in active use. Postgraduate study in Arabic, French, comparative literature, or international relations is a well-trodden path for those who want to develop specialist expertise further.