Program Overview

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BSc International Disaster Management and Humanitarian Response and Chinese

Overview

Course overview

Develop knowledge about the causes and impacts of disasters, as well as how we can address contemporary global issues surrounding such events. Build a critical understanding of the process and practises of humanitarianism. Explore the causes of contemporary conflicts, as well as the current debates about peacebuilding. Gain a broad understanding of both global strategies, dynamics and practices, as well as regional specificities, histories and cultures. Study abroad in Chinese-speaking countries. Contact speakers of Chinese and get involved in Chinese events beyond the University, from public lectures to cultural celebrations. The University of Manchester is a world-leading institution, ranked in the top-50 globally across all of Arts and Humanities by Times Higher Education 2025.

Entry requirements

A-level

ABB including one essay based subject. This programme is designed for students whose level of Mandarin Chinese at entry ranges from complete beginner to approximately A Level standard. It is not suitable for students whose first language is Chinese.

Practical skills are a crucial part of science education and therefore will be a requirement to pass the practical element of any science A Level taken. Where applicants are applying for science and related degrees, this is likely to be made explicit in the offer you will receive.

Applicants taking A Levels are normally expected to offer three full A Levels. If you’re taking more than three A Levels, these won’t be included in your offer. We will only make offers consisting of three A Levels.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

A-level contextual offer

BBC including one essay based subject. This programme is designed for students whose level of Mandarin Chinese at entry ranges from complete beginner to approximately A Level standard. It is not suitable for students whose first language is Chinese.

Practical skills are a crucial part of science education and therefore will be a requirement to pass the practical element of any science A Level taken. Where applicants are applying for science and related degrees, this is likely to be made explicit in the offer you will receive.

Applicants taking A Levels are normally expected to offer three full A Levels. If you’re taking more than three A Levels, these won’t be included in your offer. We will only make offers consisting of three A Levels.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

UK refugee/care-experienced offer

BBC including one essay based subject. This programme is designed for students whose level of Mandarin Chinese at entry ranges from complete beginner to approximately A Level standard. It is not suitable for students whose first language is Chinese.

Practical skills are a crucial part of science education and therefore will be a requirement to pass the practical element of any science A Level taken. Where applicants are applying for science and related degrees, this is likely to be made explicit in the offer you will receive.

Applicants taking A Levels are normally expected to offer three full A Levels. If you’re taking more than three A Levels, these won’t be included in your offer. We will only make offers consisting of three A Levels.

Please check for specific GCSE/IGCSE subject entry requirements below

International Baccalaureate

34 points overall. 6,5,5 in Higher Level subjects

Applicants studying the International Baccalaureate Career Related Programme (IBCP) should contact the admissions team prior to applying so that their academic profile can be considered.

GCSE/IGCSE

Applicants must demonstrate a broad general education including acceptable levels of Literacy and Numeracy, equivalent to at least Grade 6 or B in GCSE/IGCSE English Language and 4 or C in Mathematics. GCSE/IGCSE English Literature will not be accepted in lieu of GCSE/IGCSE English Language.

Please note that if you hold English as a second language IGCSE qualification, we may also require you to offer one of our acceptable equivalent English Language qualifications or achieve a higher grade in your IGCSE than the one stated above. Please contact the admissions team in your academic School/Department for clarification.

Other entry requirements

Other entry requirements exist for this course. You may view these by selecting from the list below.

• Scottish requirements
• Welsh Baccalaureate
• Foundation year
• Pearson BTEC qualifications
• OCR Cambridge Technical qualifications
• Access to HE Diploma
• T Level
• Extended Project Qualification (EPQ)

Country-specific entry requirements

We accept a range of qualifications from different countries. For these and general requirements including English language see Accepted entry qualifications from your country

English language requirements

All applicants to the University (from the UK and Overseas) are required to show evidence of English Language proficiency. The minimum English Language requirement for this course is either:

• GCSE/IGCSE English Language grade B/6, or;
• IELTS 7.0 overall with 6.5 in each component, or;
• An acceptable equivalent qualification.

Please note that if you hold English as a second language IGCSE qualification, we may also require you to offer one of our acceptable equivalent English Language qualifications or achieve a higher grade in your IGCSE than the one stated above. Please contact the academic School for clarification.

Fees and funding

Fees

Fees for entry in 2026 have not yet been set. For entry in 2025 the tuition fees were £9,535 per annum for home students, and are expected to increase slightly for 2026 entry.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

• Find out more from student finance
• Eligible UK students can apply for bursaries and scholarships
• Funding for EU and international students is on our country-specific pages
• Many students work part-time or complete a student internship

Application and selection

How to apply

Apply through UCAS

Home-schooled applicants

If you are a student who has followed a non-standard educational route, e.g. you have been educated at home; your application will be considered against the standard entry criteria of the course for which you are applying. You will be required to demonstrate that you meet the specified academic entry requirements of the course. We will also require a reference from somebody who knows you well enough, in an official capacity, to write about you and your suitability for higher education. If you are a home schooled student and would like further information or advice please contact the academic School for your chosen course who will be able to help you.

Non-standard educational routes

Mature students are some of our most well-equipped learners, bringing skills and attributes gained from work, family and other life experiences. Students come from a whole array of backgrounds, study every kind of course, undertake full-time and part-time learning and are motivated by career intentions as well as personal interest. There is no such thing as a typical mature student at Manchester.

The application process is the same as for other prospective undergraduates. If you require further clarification about the acceptability of the qualifications you hold please contact the academic School(s) you plan to apply to. Further information for mature students can be found here ( )

Course details

Course description

On the modern languages side of this course, students will study compulsory language units (the number of credits will depend on whether students are ab-initio or post-A-Level and whether they are studying European or non-European languages) and the study of the culture and history of a specific region.

Teaching within modern languages in these latter areas are characterised particularly by the historically and politically contextualised study of culture and cultural practices, including in literature, visual culture, and music, with thematic focus on such issues as the environment, popular culture, gender, immigration and transnationalism, and religion.

Crucial here is the understanding of language skills being informed by intercultural awareness and cultural knowledge being mediated by linguistic skills.

On the humanitarian response side of the degree students critically explore contemporary and historical issues within the broader fields of international disaster management, peace and conflict studies, and humanitarian response.

The thematic focus of humanitarian response significantly overlaps with that of languages for instance, the investigation of environment, gender, migration, cultural norms and behaviours, power, politics, and popular culture.

As such, students will be able to apply their theoretical understanding of these broader ideas and contextualise them in different disciplinary and empirical areas.

Furthermore, teaching within humanitarian response is very much research-led, and draws on contemporary and historical case sites from across the world.

Most of these cases are in countries where English is not the principal language.

For example, students will explore issues such as resilience, peacebuilding, relief aid, maternal mortality, and refugees in diverse contexts including Puerto Rico, China, Haiti, Venezuela, Mexico, Iraq, Japan, and Cameroon.

This will make the content particularly engaging and relevant for students of languages.

The course unit details listed below are those you may choose to study as part of this programme and are referred to as optional units. These are subject to change and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this programme. Although language units may show here as optional, they are a mandatory part of your modern languages degree and you will take the units relevant to your level of language in each year of study.

Special features

• Insight from the field
• Work placements
• Industry partnerships
• Residence abroad

Coursework and assessment

The IDMHR part of the degree is 100% coursework based.

This involves a variety of assessment types including essays, policy briefs, blogs, book reviews and reflective writing.

On the languages side of your programme, you will be assessed in various ways, including:

• written and oral examinations
• presentations
• coursework (which may include library research, linguistic fieldwork and data collection, or web-based research)
• in your final year, a dissertation based on a research topic of your choice

Assessment methods vary from course unit to course unit - see individual course unit listings for more information.

Course content for year 1

You will split your study time equally between the two components of your degree.

All Year 1 students take the core course unit 'Introduction to Chinese Studies', plus study up to seven hours a week of 'ab initio' Chinese language through dedicated classes aiming to build your linguistic confidence.

For the IDMHR component of your degree you will take core modules introducing you to the key concepts and theories necessary to make sense of the humanitarian world.

You will also take modules introducing you to international disaster management and humanitarianism.

You will take only the language units relevant to your level of language in each year of study.

Course units for year 1

• Introduction to Chinese Studies
• Histories of Humanitarianism
• Key Concepts in International Disaster Management and Humanitarian Response
• Introduction to Disaster Management
• Key Skills in International Disaster Management and Humanitarian Response
• Visual Cultures in China and East Asia
• Chinese Language 1
• Chinese Language 2
• Chinese Language 3
• Chinese Language 4
• Chinese Language 5
• Modern China: from the Opium Wars to the Olympic Games

Course content for year 2

In addition to continuing your study in Chinese language, you will develop your knowledge of China via a choice of courses in areas such as literature, film, history, religion, society, culture, economics, anthropology and business, as well as begin to prepare for residence abroad.

In second year for IDMHR, you can choose between core units which allow you to explore aspects of responding to crisis; the links between disaster and development; and peacebuilding.

There is also an option to take a module centred on a professional experience project.

Course units for year 2

• China's Borderlands: Culture, Ethnicity and History
• Introduction to Classical Chinese
• Chinese Language 3
• Chinese Language 4
• Chinese Language 5
• Chinese Language 6
• Introduction to Conflict Analysis
• Governing Aid
• Everyday Peace Building and Security
• Disasters and Development
• Rethinking Crisis
• Understanding hazard risk
• Emergency Humanitarian Assistance
• Professional Experience Project
• Introduction to Global Health

Course content for year 3

Your third year of study is spent abroad under approved conditions.

Course content for year 4

The language teaching programme continues to develop skills such as reading and writing Chinese, and includes work on interpreting and on translation as practical skills.

You can also choose from a range of options within IDMHR, which will allow you to specialise in a specific area of the degree such as humanitarianism or disaster management.

Course units for year 4

• Religions in China
• Socialism in China
• Business Chinese
• Chinese Language 6
• Languages-Based Project 1
• Language-Based Project 2
• Extended Research Paper
• Introduction to Global Health
• War, Migration and Health
• Diseases in Developing Countries
• Ethical Decision-Making Under Pressure
• Decolonising Disaster Studies
• Illicit Economies, Conflict, and Development
• Practical Approaches to Researching Disasters and Conflict
• Research Paper
• Geographical Information Systems and Disasters: A Critical Introduction
• Systemic Approaches to Disaster Management
• Living Interventions
• Dissertation in Modern Languages and Cultures

Careers

Career opportunities

The study of humanitarianism and responses to conflict and disaster is dependent not just on knowledge of global strategies, dynamics, and practices, but also on regional specificities.

For that reason, by combining learning about humanitarianism with modern languages - courses that depend on the integrated study of linguistic knowledge and regional culture and history - you will be able to demonstrate a range of different intellectual and practical skills.

Your transferable and academic skills will appeal to employers involved in planning and response to disasters and conflict such as NGOs, international organisations, and government departments.

You'll also be well equipped to enter a career in business and commerce, law, journalism, tourism management, and teaching.

You can also pursue further study through our master's courses

The University has its own dedicated Careers Service that you would have full access to as a student and for two years after you graduate.

At Manchester you will have access to a number of opportunities to help boost your employability

Regulated by the Office for Students

The University of Manchester is regulated by the Office for Students (OfS). The OfS aims to help students succeed in Higher Education by ensuring they receive excellent information and guidance, get high quality education that prepares them for the future and by protecting their interests. More information can be found at the OfS website.

You can find regulations and policies relating to student life at The University of Manchester, including our Degree Regulations and Complaints Procedure, on our regulations website.