Cardiff will be only UK capital city not teaching foreign language degrees if cuts go ahead

Cardiff will be the only capital city in the UK to not teach foreign language degrees if proposed university cuts go ahead.

Cardiff University recently announced proposals for potential course and job cuts, which students have been notified could include the closure of the School of Modern Languages.

The university itself boasts that it has “one of the largest and most dynamic modern languages schools in the UK” on its website and the inclusion of MLang in the proposed cuts has “devastated” current students.

Nazaret Perez-Nieto, a lecturer in modern languages, said: “If this goes ahead, Cardiff would be the only capital city in the UK where you can’t study languages. Cardiff is by far the biggest provider in Wales and it could lead to the end of modern languages degrees overall.”

A number of students affected spoke to The Cardiff Tab about their feelings towards the proposals. Olivia, a modern languages graduate said: “I am angry and alarmed at the university’s proposal to axe MLang. It is a nonsensical and short-sighted decision that will have negative repercussions for the university in the long term.

“An institution which prides itself on its bilingualism deeming its Modern Languages department disposable is as ironic as it is deeply disappointing, and is an insult to its staff and students.”

Olivia also explained that MLang is often “overlooked and undervalued in education”, but noted that the study of international languages and cultures “has never been more important”.

She continued by saying that languages are a “bridge to the global community”, adding: “It is so frustrating that the university refuses to acknowledge the enormous power, value, and potential of Modern Languages – they foster intercultural collaboration and communication, encourage cohesion, and facilitate multilateralism.

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“Cutting the School of Modern Languages would be a massive loss and would send absolutely the wrong message; the proposal is absolutely at odds with Cardiff’s new 2035 strategy, and the university must recognise that modern languages will be central to achieving its aims. The UK is already the most monolingual country in Europe, and Wales’ only Russell Group University cutting languages from its curriculum will set a dangerous precedent that will encourage other universities to do the same.”

Olivia

When asked about her experience doing this degree and studying in MLANG, Olivia said: “I absolutely loved studying Spanish at Cardiff. The School of Modern Languages is a vibrant, diverse department full of warm, passionate, lovely people with a wealth of invaluable expertise.

“The infectious enthusiasm of the staff and the nurturing environment they create is what makes learning languages at Cardiff so special – it’s a truly safe space in which to develop your abilities. The lecturers are a credit to the university, and the way they have been treated recently is a disgrace.”

She finished by saying: “I am immensely proud to be an MLang graduate, and for others not to have the same opportunities I did would be a real loss for the students, Wales, and the wider community.”

Olivia also started a petition to save modern languages degrees, which has already reached 12,000 signatures. The petition asks for supporters to “sign now to stop MLang being axed and to show the university that Modern Languages are NOT expendable!”

The Cardiff Tab was also notified that an MLang team is currently creating a website to give visibility to the cause and inform people about what’s going on and the effect it will have on both staff and students.

There are further plans to write an open letter which will be sent to staff, students and alumni and to protest against the cuts.

Others have also had their say about the university’s plans, such as student Sophie who said: “We are all devastated, angry and deeply saddened by the university’s proposal. The proposed cuts are extraordinarily brutal and unnecessary and have come as a complete shock to us all.

“The UCU, staff and students all have a respect and appreciation for the university and are passionately generating viable ideas on how to combat and overcome the issues that the wider university faces. We don’t see the same respect and appreciation shown to us in these proposals.

“The proposed cuts eliminate our subjects along with our teachers’ livelihoods. No matter how they try to justify this, it’s hard to look at these plans ignore the fact that these cuts are a direct admission of the university’s measure of our ‘worth’.”

Sophie

She added: “As a Russell Group university, it is shocking that these courses are being phased out of existence entirely. These students are versatile and necessary to the world. As Professor Katherine Griffiths once told us students at our open day, any type of industry can teach us their trade, but they can’t teach us the accessibility and insight that we offer to their industry and the world. Students will be standing in solidarity with our staff.” 

Dominic, a final year student studying BA French and Spanish at the School of Modern Languages said he is “horrified” by the proposal and that it is a “complete step in the wrong direction”.

He continued by saying: “The Welsh secondary school system is struggling with international languages, Cardiff University, both as a Russell Group institution and the biggest university in Wales, should be leading the charge in fixing the situation. The UK is in desperate need of linguists, with studies indicating a £50m gap in the market due to a lack of language skills.

“The university’s vision of being a ‘global university’ cannot exist without a fully funded and backed international languages department.

We feel so deeply for all staff affected who give their all day-in-and-day out and are uncertain whether proposed strike action, which we fully support, could lead to a delay in graduation for us. We also feel let down by the university, who should have informed both the staff and the students at the same time.”

Dominic

Dominic said that MLang students were also given a 76 page document detailing the proposals.

He added that the “first page lead us to believe that Modern Languages will be merged with other departments, however, many pages later, it in fact states that they are proposing the cessation of language teaching at degree level. 

“We know things have to change in higher education settings, but these ruthless and heedless measures only serve to cut off the lifelines of Wales: languages, music, and health.”

A Cardiff University spokesperson previously told The Cardiff Tab: “It’s important to stress that these are proposals and there is still a great deal of detail to work through before any final decisions are made. In the short term there will be no immediate impact on [modern foreign languages] students or their ability to complete their studies.

“We are committed to delivering [modern foreign languages] degree programmes to the students starting in 2025.”

The petition can be signed here.