Sarah

I really enjoyed studying for my BA in English at Goldsmiths College and graduated with first-class honours. In particular, I liked modules on multilingualism and language use in the context of forced migration. This led me to write my final dissertation on the role of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) for people forced to migrate, residing at the time in Calais (France).

The MA in Multilingualism Linguistics and Education felt like a natural next step after graduating. It allowed me to develop these interests further and encouraged multidisciplinary research, something that really appealed to me. In order to make studying for a Masters financially viable, I applied for the MA fee-waiver bursary and was very fortunate to be offered it. If finances are also a hurdle for you, I highly recommend looking into this and other bursaries. 

Whilst studying for the MA in Multilingualism Linguistics and Education, I applied for the University of London Erasmus exchange project with the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) in Salvador (Brazil). With help from the 'Access to Study Abroad bursaries' and the Erasmus grant, I was able to spend three months in Brazil, conducting research alongside the UFBA university team. The project’s area of investigation was the role of ELF and critical pedagogy for English language teaching. I compared how pre-service (trainee) and in-services (qualified) teachers engaged with critical pedagogy and ELF in the public (state) school system. We were also given the opportunity to learn Brazilian Portuguese, I attended regular in-person lessons throughout the 3 months. This was so useful while I was in Brazil and something I’ve continued with.

Studying and living in Brazil was such a great experience and I couldn’t recommend the MA in Multilingualism Linguistics and Education enough, especially with the UFBA Erasmus exchange!