English Language Requirements

English language requirements: undergraduate and postgraduate

All our courses are delivered in English. You'll need to demonstrate that you meet our English language requirements and have the language skills needed to succeed in your chosen course.

What level of English language do I need?

The level of English language ability depends on the academic level and any professional body requirement of the course you plan to study. You can find the specific English language requirements on our course pages.

Most of our undergraduate and taught postgraduate courses require English at IELTS 6.0 (with no component less than 5.5) or a University-accepted equivalent, except for the following:

BSc (Hons) Food, Nutrition and Health and BSc (Hons) Fitness, Nutrition and Health: IELTS 6.5 (with no component less than 6.0)
BSc (Hons) Mental Health Nursing: IELTS 7.0
MSc Counselling: IELTS 7.0 or a University-accepted equivalent
MSc Construction Management (ESCT partnership route): applicants applying through our partnership with ESCT (France) must provide the Password English test at a minimum of 6.0 (with no individual subscore lower than 5.5). Other qualifications listed on this page aren't accepted for this route. This applies to applications for entry from September 2027.
MSc Cyber Law and Ethics: IELTS 7.0 (with no component less than 6.5) or a University-accepted equivalent
Global MBA: IELTS 6.5 (with no component less than 6.0)
MSc Sports Therapy: IELTS 7.0 (with no component less than 6.5)
DBA programme (offered by our partner, Westford University College): IELTS 7.0

Our postgraduate research degrees require IELTS Academic 7.0 overall (with no component less than 6.5).

Do I need a Student visa?

Students who require a visa to study in the UK must meet the English language proficiency requirements set out by the UK Home Office. You can find out whether you need a Student visa on our visa information pages or the UKVI website.

Applicants who don't need a Student visa to study in the UK, but whose native language is not English, will still need to meet our English language requirements.

How do I meet the English language requirement?

You can demonstrate that you meet our English language requirements by:

providing an accepted English language proficiency test
providing an approved UK or international English language qualification
meeting our exemption criteria
completing our Online Pre-Sessional English Programme, if you need to improve your English first

Accepted English language qualifications

Select a qualification from the dropdown to see our minimum requirement. Some of these tests can be taken online.

Select your qualification

UK or international English qualifications

We may consider UK or international high school qualifications in English to meet the English language requirements. You'll find the accepted qualifications in the dropdown above.

Need to improve your English first?

If your English is below the level your course needs, the Online Pre-Sessional English Programme can help you reach it before you start. It's taught online by Oxford International Digital Institute (OIDI), so you can study from home.

6, 12 or 16-week options with multiple start dates
A live two-hour lesson every weekday, in groups of 10 to 12
Finish with OIDI 6 overall (no component less than OIDI 5) to meet our standard requirement

You may not need to take a test or course at all. Check the exemptions below first.

View the Online Pre-Sessional English Programme

English proficiency exemption

Applicants who have successfully obtained a bachelor's, master's or PhD in the UK are not required to provide evidence of English language proficiency. Professional or vocational qualifications are not acceptable, regardless of whether they are equivalent to a UK bachelor's degree.

Applicants are also exempt if they have a GCSE, A level, Scottish National Qualification (level 4 or 5) or Scottish Higher or Advanced Higher in English (either Language or Literature), regulated by Ofqual, SQA, Qualifications Wales or CCEA, following education in a UK school while they were under 18.

Applicants who have achieved the minimum required high school English grade and then achieved the equivalent of a UK higher education qualification at RQF level 5 (for example, an HND) or above, wholly delivered and assessed in English for the duration of their study in their home country, may be considered for an exemption based on English as the medium of instruction. A maximum validity period of 5 years from the date of the award applies. Please submit an official letter on headed paper, stamped and signed by your institution, confirming that your studies were taught and assessed in English.

Who does not need to prove their knowledge of English?

Applicants who have previously completed an academic qualification equivalent to a UK degree, which was taught in the Home Office’s list of ‘majority English-speaking countries’ do not have to confirm English language competence. (Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, USA).

Applicants also do not need to prove knowledge of English if they:

are a national of Canada
are applying to come to the UK for a study abroad programme as part of a university degree course in the USA
proved their level of English in a previous visa application

English language competence is also exempted for applicants who are moving from UKVI Child Student route into a UKVI Student Route.

English Language Requirements