Portuguese at Uni

Hi I’m an AS french student and have been looking into modern language degrees and I’m really interested in maybe doing Portuguese ab initio. I was just wondering do most universities cover both European and Brazilian Portuguese as I’ve heard there are not only accent differences but also some grammatical differences. Do you choose which version you would like to learn?
Thank you :smile:

Reply 1

Caz1234567

14

It depends on the uni/course :smile:

Reply 2

Kerzen

17

Original post by f15es1

Hi I’m an AS french student and have been looking into modern language degrees and I’m really interested in maybe doing Portuguese ab initio. I was just wondering do most universities cover both European and Brazilian Portuguese as I’ve heard there are not only accent differences but also some grammatical differences. Do you choose which version you would like to learn?
Thank you :smile:

Are you hoping to do a degree in French and Portuguese?

King's might be worth a look:

https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/modern-languages-ba

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 3

FionaMG

11

Original post by f15es1

Hi I’m an AS french student and have been looking into modern language degrees and I’m really interested in maybe doing Portuguese ab initio. I was just wondering do most universities cover both European and Brazilian Portuguese as I’ve heard there are not only accent differences but also some grammatical differences. Do you choose which version you would like to learn?
Thank you :smile:

Hi.

There is a huge difference between European and Brazilian Portuguese, far more so than the difference between UK and US English, for example, and the version that a uni offers will depend largely on the nationality of the teaching staff, so it would be wise to check this at the application stage by asking the universities you are considering.

That said, both versions are understood throughout the Portuguese-speaking world, although the Portuguese find it easier to understand Brazilians than vice versa. This is down to exposure to the language, particularly on TV as Brazilian soap operas have always been very popular in Portugal, whereas many Brazilians will hardly ever have heard, if at all even, someone speaking European Portuguese. Also, the Portuguese tend to chop the ends off their words when speaking, which makes it harder for Brazilians to understand, since they pronounce all the syllables quite clearly.

From a career point of view, there may be a preference to studying one over the other. In my job as a translator, for example, I translate from both versions of Portuguese i.e. they are considered the same source language, but going the other way, as a target language, they are considered different languages. This means a European Portuguese translator would normally translate only into European Portuguese and a Brazilian would translate only into Brazilian Portuguese.

All of which is really intended to demonstrate that it may be important to choose a university that teaches the version most appropriate to what you ultimately aim to do with the language. If you have your heart set on teaching English in Brazil, for example, you would benefit from attending a uni that teaches the Brazilian version. Conversely, if you hope to be a translator in the European Parliament, you would be best served by a uni that teaches European Portuguese.

That said, if the uni you love teaches the "wrong" version it will not be the end of the world. You will get far more out of your course by studying at a uni you want to attend, as opposed to one you feel you ought to attend. You can always aim to do your year abroad in the country where they speak the "correct" version.

I hope this helps.
Good luck going forward. :smile:

Reply 4

azby1098

15

Oxford uni do a FANTASTIC ab initio Portuguese course. A close friend studies Spanish and (ab initio) Portuguese at Oxford and absolutely loves the course. You really don’t need perfect A*s/9s at GCSE, my friend got AAA at a level, in spanish french and history, and 9888777664 at gcse, so I really think it’s worth a shot. Any other questions pm me! @Oxford Mum may also be great help.

Reply 5

Oxford Mum

21

Original post by azby1098

Oxford uni do a FANTASTIC ab initio Portuguese course. A close friend studies Spanish and (ab initio) Portuguese at Oxford and absolutely loves the course. You really don’t need perfect A*s/9s at GCSE, my friend got AAA at a level, in spanish french and history, and 9888777664 at gcse, so I really think it’s worth a shot. Any other questions pm me! @Oxford Mum may also be great help.

Thank you for tagging me in @azby1098. @f15es1 I don't know anything about ab initio Portuguese and there is no substitute for Azby's friend's direct experience.

Azby could you please ask your friend about the Portuguese/Brazllian question?

As for the course itself, look at this:

https://www.mod-langs.ox.ac.uk/portuguese#undergraduate

Reassuringly, it says that the majority of Oxford undergraduates studying Portuguese have no prior knowledge of the language. However they will not be happy if you rock up for interview, never having at least engaged with the subject at all. There are many handy hints in the above website to help you with this.

If it's anything like German, there will be quite a lot of literature involved - how are you at analysing texts? This does not mean you will not get a good job afterwards using your language. I recall someone who studied German who acted as interpreter when Angela Merkel visited Russia.

I see that Oxford has slipped from first in the UK university rankings from top: it is now behind Cambridge and St Andrews. The university's reputation and the unique social life Oxford offers, however, is always worth considering.

Even as a beginner you will have to sit a languages apptitude test called the LAT. It is included in the MLAT paper (paper for people already familiar with a language). Here is a sample paper, look right at the bottom

https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/MLAT_2020_final.pdf

It is designed to see if you can spot patterns in languages (not my forte!)

Here are several other past papers if you want to practise:

https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/applying-to-oxford/tests/mlat

There is also a solutions section if you want to check your answers.

How easy is it to get in?

Modern foreign languages are in the top 10 easiest subjects to apply for. My son got in for German with only 3 x 8/9s at GCSE (as opposed to the 10 x 8/9s you will need for medicine)

Have a look at the overview of the course (it's important you enjoy the course, wherever you end up) and try the sample papers, alongside the answers, and see what you think. It's also important to note that Oxford you will be doing twice as many essays as elsewhere and the pace is very fast!