About us

The School of Modern Languages and Cultures (SMLC) embraces the subject areas of Comparative Literature, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian/Slavonic Languages, Spanish, Translation Studies, and English for Academic Study.

The School seeks to foster a culture of excellence in research in each area of its activities, thereby fomenting an intellectual climate in which learning and teaching of the highest quality can be delivered. In doing so the School aims to participate fully in the University of Glasgow's mission which is to play a leading role in the intellectual, professional, commercial and cultural life of the local, national, and international communities to which it belongs and with which it interacts.

The School has around 50 members of academic staff teaching and researching (some of whom are native speakers) and is backed by native language teachers in all subject areas. Degree courses at Honours level are offered in Comparative Literature, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish, often in combination with other subjects and, together with Czech, Polish, Mandarin and Catalan, as single courses within another degree. There are taught postgraduate courses in Comparative Literature, Translation Studies and TESOL (jointly with the School of Education).

English for Academic Study offers a range of courses to support students' development of English language skills within an academic environment. Short courses in foreign languages are also available to support students intending to spend time abroad as part of their degree in another subject, or for other specific purposes.

All staff are located in the recently refurbished Hetherington Building in Bute Gardens. Student facilities in the building include a well stocked audio-visual library, computer cluster and student common room.

The School’s teaching is supported by the excellent and varied resources in the dedicated language library which is situated on the ground floor of the Hetherington Building.

The Language Resource Library provides a range of resources, in a variety of formats, to support learners of all levels and abilities.

Along with print based resources, often in collaboration with CDs and DVDs to enhance the learning experience, the LRL contains an extensive film and documentary collection in a wide variety of languages.  The Czech DVD collection, one of the largest in Europe, is of particular note along with a continually growing French DVD collection of almost 700 titles.

In conjunction with foreign languages the Library also supports the teaching and learning of English for Academic Study (EAS). A comprehensive selection of IELTS material is incorporated into the English section for use by both internal and external Library members.

Students can access the Library Viewing Room offering satellite viewing of overseas TV channels and DVD and VHS players along with student computers.

Recently installed, a state-of-the-art screening room provides small classes a self-contained area for film viewing and discussion.

Some 10,000 items are currently available in 60+ languages at levels from beginner to advanced. Basic language skills such as: listening, pronunciation and speaking are catered for along with languages for specific purposes such as telephone French, languages for specific professions such as law, commerce, medicine and engineering.