Study Portuguese at a UK Top 10 University*
*Complete University Guide 2025
Portuguese at the University of Exeter is an engaging research-active environment based within the vibrant learning community in the Department of Languages, Cultures, and Visual Studies. You will explore one of the most diverse cultures in the world and its literary, linguistic and artistic manifestations. Our dynamic researchers and educators support students through their studies, with highly flexible programmes structured around your interests or career-oriented pathways.
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Top 10 for Portuguese in the UK
10th in the Complete University Guide 2025 for Iberian Languages
Top 150 worldwide for Modern Languages
QS World University Subject Rankings 2024
Spend a year abroad on an International Placement
1st in the UK for research impact
Joint 1st for world-leading or internationally excellent research, REF 2021
Discover world-class Portuguese degrees at the University of Exeter
Portuguese is one of the six most widely spoken world languages, with over 200 million speakers in Portugal, Brazil, and African countries such as Angola and Mozambique. At the University of Exeter, we offer a friendly and spirited learning environment in which to learn Portuguese, with our teaching driven by our internationally-recognised research.
Our research and teaching examines not only the cultures and literatures of the Portuguese-speaking world, but also Portuguese linguistics: this includes established and emerging dialects of Portuguese, as well as the current sociolinguistic situation in Lusophone Africa and Creole societies. You will find modules and research scrutinising cultural and feminist politics, postcolonial migration and film studies, medieval to modern literature, linguistic to translation studies.
Students on one of our undergraduate courses have the option of spending their third year in either Portugal or Brazil. During your time abroad, you will either:
- Study at one of our renowned partner universities such as Coimbra and Porto in Portugal, or Santa Catarina in Brazil.
- Work abroad, gaining valuable employment experience and practical applied learning.
At the heart of our Department is our pioneering Language Centre, where community-driven learning opportunities such as the Languages Café and fantastic self-study resources and space are available. The Centre also provides credit-bearing modules for those studying outside of the Department.
Four pathways to study Portuguese at Exeter
Undergraduate Portuguese degrees
Through our BA Modern Languages programme, you can choose to focus on Portuguese and graduate with a BA in Portuguese, or study Portuguese alongside one or two other languages (eg, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Russian or Spanish).
Alternatively, you may choose to broaden your study with ancient and contemporary study of literature, film, and art from Portugal, Brazil, and beyond through our BA Comparative Literatures and Modern Languages programme, with the opportunity to focus on Portuguese and graduate with a BA in Comparative Literatures and Portuguese.
You can only begin Portuguese study from Beginners level. You will also be able to study modules from other disciplines outside of Modern Languages such as Politics and History.
Undergraduate combined honours degrees
Study a language alongside Arabic, Art History & Visual Culture, Classical Studies, English, Film Studies, History, International Relations, Latin, Politics, Philosophy or Sociology as part of one of our Combined Honours programmes. You may choose to focus on Portuguese and graduate with Portuguese in your degree title in place of Modern Languages.
You can also study Portuguese with a bespoke and tailored selection of subjects and modules as part of our Flexible Combined Honours programme.
Postgraduate Portuguese degrees
Postgraduate Portuguese degrees
You can study Portuguese through our Language Centre as part of your course on our MA Global Literatures and Cultures programme, while also exploring modules driven by our internationally recognised research such as Latin American Cinema: Race, Nation and Representation.
Students on our MA Translation Studies programme can focus on Portuguese, taking advantage of our expertise in the language to guide their studies. You can also enjoy and take part in research seminars and events through the University's Centre for Translating Cultures.
Portuguese PhDs and research degrees
We offer sector-leading research degrees in Portuguese, including MPhil or PhD Lusophone Studies and MA by Research Modern Languages.
Researchers in the Department of Languages, Cultures, and Visual Studies are actively engaged in cutting-edge projects across a broad range of research interests, including:
- Portuguese linguistics: language contact, variation and change; cognitive linguistics and construction grammar.
- Postcolonial, feminist and cultural studies in Portuguese-speaking contexts.
Our research-active academic staff, supported by a team of language teachers which includes native-speaker teachers, are highly successful in winning prestigious research awards from funding bodies including the AHRC, British Academy, EU, Leverhulme, and Marie-Curie.
Why choose the University of Exeter?
We offer world-class education and research with outstanding student satisfaction, committed to working with our students to make the world greener, healthier, and fairer. With beautiful, green campuses in Devon and Cornwall, we offer a unique opportunity to study in one of the most stunning parts of the UK.
As a member of the Russell Group, we are committed to maintaining the very best internationally recognised research, and translating our research into an outstanding teaching and learning experience. Our excellence is recognised by organisations worldwide, with Exeter graduates in the UK's top 10 for most targeted by leading employers*.
* The Graduate Market in 2024 report by High Fliers Research
