Exchange programmes

If you are currently studying overseas then you can join Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences for a semester or a year. You will experience student life at the University of Birmingham, whilst enjoying the interdisciplinary approach of our prestigious course.

Why Study Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences at the University of Birmingham?

The University of Birmingham is a top British research university, a member of the prestigious Russell Group and one of the founding members of Universitas 21, thereby allowing you to experience the best of Higher Education in England.

Students hosted by Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences at the University of Birmingham will find a gateway to the University's breadth of teaching and research expertise, whether your interests are for Arts, Business, Society, Law, Science, or a combination of them all.

We will offer you an individual, thought-provoking and rewarding student experience with:

  • Tailored programmes - Our students have the utmost flexibility to create a programme of study in more than one subject area. To understand our flexibility, you can view these examples of real student pathways.
  • Interdisciplinary compulsory modules – As well as giving you access to subjects across the University, we also offer our own interdisciplinary compulsory modules which bring together all Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences students to study exciting topics from a variety of perspectives.
  • Dedicated Personal Tutors - Our intensive system of Personal Tutoring gives you a dedicated advisor from the Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences faculty for regular one-to-one consultation. You will be taught by a wide range of subject-experts, but one committed team will manage your programme of studies and provide Welfare and Timetabling support.
  • Cultural programme - Our unique Cultural Programme benefits from close proximity to London, and convenient travel to the rest of Europe. We attend local, national and international events at venues of significance. Our students have recently worked with practitioners at the Royal Shakespeare Company, studied questions of European consequence on our Brussels trip, participated in our summer cultural tour of Rome, attended the Welsh National Opera and watched a performance by the Birmingham Royal Ballet.
  • Strong student community – You will join a peer group of ambitious, curious, and international students, who regularly organize group social events and student-led debates as part of our Café Culturel lecture series. 

What will I study?

1. Birmingham Credits

Students will develop their own programme of ‘Birmingham credits’ by choosing from our broad portfolio of courses across the University:

  • Semester Abroad students choose 50/60 ‘Birmingham credits’
  • Year Abroad students choose 100/120 ‘Birmingham credits’ 

Selecting a Major programme of study from our wide variety of subjects is encouraged, but not required. Ultimately, this is your opportunity to deepen and broaden your knowledge in subjects of your choosing, whether your interests are in Arts, Science, Social Sciences, or a combination of all three.

2. Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences Compulsory Module

In addition to the above, the remainder of your credits will be fulfilled by taking our own Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences compulsory modules. You will take one or two of these modules, depending on whether you join us for a semester or a year abroad.

Our compulsory modules are titled From Research To Policy and show how you can amplify your voice, and to understand how individual acts can change the world. The themes are typically broad and previous themes have included “Work, Wealth, Wellbeing” or “Crisis.” These modules give you:

  • The ability to identify urgent and significant problems with global implications.
  • The skills to undertake research across a range of relevant subject areas and topics.
  • Confidence in the discourse and rhetorics associated with major questions confronting experts in the field.
  • Real-world opportunities to put theory into practice.
  • The opportunity to build your research and communication skills across traditional subject areas, and develop your leadership capability: 

Semester 1 – Autumn Term – we bring a suite of experts to the classroom and challenge you to design and address a research question in consultation with the module tutor. For instance, how can we measure wellbeing? What is the relationship between crisis rhetoric and crisis reality? 

Semester 2 – Spring and Summer Terms – we take you out of the lecture hall to work with local organisations on real problems, identifying creative solutions and designing a campaign to deliver them.An integrated year abroad as part of your study with us allow you to transform your understanding and is undoubtedly one of the best experiences available to you in your undergraduate career.