BA History and German (with a year abroad)
About this course
BA (Hons) in BA (Hons) History and German (with a year abroad), a German and History degree centred on historical investigation and linguistic study. Core topics include Research Methods. This four-year course includes a mandatory year spent abroad. The first year introduces foundational concepts through compulsory modules such as German Language and Cultures: Upper Intermediate, Understanding German-speaking Cultures and Societies, Knowledge and Beliefs in World History, and Evidence and Methods. In the second year, students build analytical skills with compulsory study including German Language and Cultures: Advanced and Historical Thinking, while choosing from optional topics like The Berlin Republic, The Scientific Revolution, 1500-1700, and Crime and Society in Britain and Ireland since 1750. The final fourth year features advanced linguistic training through German Language and Cultures: Proficient alongside a wide selection of optional modules covering diverse periods and themes, including Prussia and the Unification of Germany, 1815-1918, The First Islamic Empire, and Translation: Methodology and Practice, with the option to complete a History Dissertation.
Written by AI from the university's course page and module list. It can get details wrong, so check the official course page before you rely on it.
Entry requirements
A level: For post-A Level German: AAB including History/Classical Civilisation and German For ab initio route (for students not taking German at Advanced Level): AAB including grade A in History or Classical Civilisation IB: For post-HL German: 35 points including 6,5 in History and German at Higher Level (either way round) For ab initio route (for students not taking German at Higher Level): 35 points including 6 in HL History BTEC: DDD with an additional A Level or equivalent qualification in either History or Classical Civilisation at grade A
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Real offers for this course
Applicants have posted 2 UCAS decisions for BA History and German (with a year abroad) (R2V1) at the University of York for 2027 entry so far. The published offer is AAB at A level.
What students say
Based on about 195 final-year students who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Teaching on my course: 91%
- Learning opportunities: 82%
- Assessment and feedback: 78%
- Academic support: 94%
- Organisation and management: 78%
- Learning resources: 93%
- Student voice: 76%
Do students stay on the course?
Based on about 260 students who started, across similar courses at this university
- Continued on course: 95%
- Left higher education: 3%
- Moved to a lower qualification: 2%
What graduates do next
Based on about 70 graduates who answered, across similar courses at this university
- Working: 56%
- Working and studying: 21%
- Further study: 13%
- Unemployed: 4%
Most common jobs
- Teaching Professionals: 30%
- Sales occupations: 10%
- Information Technology Professionals: 10%
- Secretarial and related occupations: 10%
- Welfare and housing associate professionals: 10%
- Find their work meaningful: 85%
- Feel on track for their future plans: 65%
- Use what they learnt on the course: 35%
Where graduates work (5 years on)
Based on about 330 graduates, across similar courses at this university
- North East: 4%
- North West: 7%
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 20%
- East Midlands: 5%
- West Midlands: 5%
- East of England: 13%
- London: 27%
- South East: 10%
- South West: 4%
- Wales: 2%
- Scotland: 1%
Who gets in
Based on about 255 students who started, across similar courses at this university
- A levels: 99%
Accreditation & quality ratings
TEF 2023 (whole university): Gold overall, Gold for student experience, Silver for student outcomes.
Modules
- German Language and Cultures: Upper Intermediate
- Understanding German-speaking Cultures and Societies
- Intensive German Language and Cultures: Beginner
- Understanding German-speaking Cultures and Societies
- Understanding Language in the Real World
- Structure of English
- Knowledge and Beliefs in World History
- Evidence and Methods
- Political Communities in World History
- Societies and Economies in World History
- German Language and Cultures: Advanced
- Historical Thinking
- The Berlin Republic
- World Cinemas: Representing National and Transnational Societies and Cultures
- Teaching English as a Foreign Language I
- Teaching English as a Foreign Language II
- Plurilingualism, Multilingualism and Transnational Languages: Concepts, Strategies and Approaches
- Ancien Régime France, 1610-1789
- Bankers, Merchants, and Poets: Florence and the Roots of the Renaissance
- Before the Mongols: Nomadic Empires of Central Eurasia, 900-1200
- Black Radicalism
- Catherine the Great
- China: An Economic and Environmental History, 1870-1970
- Chivalry, Identity and Love 1350-1450
- Communist Europe: Crisis, Transformation & Memory after the Second World War
- Containing Multitudes: Inequality and the City in Britain and its Empire post-1800
- Crime and Society in Britain and Ireland since 1750
- Difficult Pasts and Haunted Presents: Memory and its Discontents c. 1945- c. 2010
- From the Global Shadows: Africa and the World since the 1950s
- Gender, Enlightenment and Revolution in Eighteenth-Century Europe
- Health for all? International Health from Colonial Medicine to Covid Vaccine
- Heterosexual Africa? Sexuality, Power, and Politics in Africa since 1900
- Historical Fictions and Frictions: Fictionalising the Past
- Kingship, Rule and Crisis in Medieval England
- Persecution and Toleration in Early Modern Britain
- Powerful Impressions: Culture and Politics in the Post-1945 United States
- Social Science and Modern Britain, c1880-c1970
- The Scientific Revolution, 1500-1700
- Using and Abusing the Past in Britain, 1835-2018
- Vikings and Historians: Historiographical Dialogues through the Ages
- German Language and Cultures: Proficient
- History Dissertation
- Translation: Methodology and Practice
- World Cinemas: Representing National and Transnational Societies and Cultures
- Modern German Language
- Independent Study in Languages and Cultures
- Independent Study in Translation
- Empires
- Violence
- Animals
- Commemorations
- Travel
- Beauty
- Communisms
- Black British History and Decolonisation
- Exiled Lives: English Nuns in Catholic Europe, 1600-1800
- Francis Bacon: Myth, Magic and Morals
- From Colonial to Post-Colonial States? The Twentieth-Century Caribbean
- Hong Kong: Decolonisation and Development, 1945-97
- Imperial Japan, 1890-1950
- Joan of Arc
- Mao and Maoism
- Ploughing the Sea? The Spanish American Wars of Independence, 1750-1830
- Popular Politics? The History of British Political Culture since 1945
- Possession: Objects and Ownership in Early Modern England, 1650-1750
- Poverty and the Welfare State in Post-War Britain
- Prussia and the Unification of Germany, 1815-1918
- Race, Place and Health in Britain and its Empire, 1880-1960
- Reading and Writing in Medieval England
- Rebellion and Revolution: Britain, 1637-1653
- Revolution in the Streets: Faith, Poverty, and Religious Ferment, c.1200
- Rome Reborn: Culture and Society c.1575-c.1655
- The First Islamic Empire
- The French Wars of Religion
- Thomas More: Learning, Politics and Religion in England, 1500-35
Questions about this course
How much do graduates of BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York earn?
The median salary is £29,000 after 15 months, £25,500 after 3 years, £32,000 after 5 years. After five years the middle half of graduates earn between £26,000 and £43,500. The £32,000 median after five years is £500 less than the UK median for German and Scandinavian studies.
What do graduates of BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York do next?
90% were in work or further study 15 months after finishing (Graduate Outcomes 2023-24).
Are students happy with the teaching on BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York?
91% of final-year students were positive about the teaching in the National Student Survey 2025-26.
What grades do I need for BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York?
The typical offer is AAB at A level, or 35 points in the IB. The average entrant had 154 UCAS points.
Does BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York include a placement year or year abroad?
The course has an optional placement year and a compulsory year abroad.
How many students continue on BA History and German (with a year abroad) at University of York?
95% of students continued into their second year, and 3% left higher education.