10-week Pre-sessional course 2017 entry
The 10-week Pre-sessional course is an academically challenging course taught by experienced University of St Andrews staff. Designed to develop your language skills and academic literacy, this discipline-specific course will prepare you for postgraduate study in the UK.
Course type
Full-time pre-degree course to prepare students who use English as an additional language for postgraduate degree programmes.
Course dates
Orientation: Thursday 29 and Friday 30 June 2017 (both orientation days are compulsory)
Course: Thursday 29 June to Thursday 7 September 2017
Entry requirements
To enter, applicants must have a conditional offer for a postgraduate taught (Masters) programme from one of the following schools:
- Computer Science
- Economics and Finance
- Management
- Mathematics and Statistics.
- If your school is not listed here and you wish to study on the 10-week Pre-sessional course, please contact English Language Teaching by emailing elt@st-andrews.ac.uk.
You must also have an IELTS (Academic) score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each subscore. If you require a visa to study in the UK, you must take the IELTS for UKVI version of the test.
To apply, you will need to provide a copy of your passport.
Tuition fees
£3,500
No deposit is required.
Payment can be made by the following methods:
- International bank transfer
- Credit card through the online payment portal.
Application deadline
Applications are accepted until shortly before the courses begin. Please submit your application early to allow enough time to apply for a visa, if you need one.
If you started this programme in 2016, you can find information about 2016 entry on the 2016 Pre-sessional course 10 week page. Information about all programmes from previous years of entry can be found in our archive.
Course information
The 10-week Pre-sessional course will cover discipline-specific academic skills and language, including presentation, academic writing and critical reading components. It will also include subject specialist lectures to prepare students for their related subject area.
Presentations
Students will practise delivering presentations on a theme related to their future degree. Students will learn how to maximise the impact of their presentations by learning how to:
- structure the content
- select an appropriate style of language
- engage their audience
- pace their delivery
- use software to support the content.
Writing
Students will research and write critically on topics related to their future degree. You will develop your extended essay writing skills by:
- using sources appropriately and engaging with good academic practice
- organising the content of your essay or report
- improving your academic style
- using discourse markers
- confidently using English grammar.
Reading
To develop critical reading you will learn how to:
- source materials appropriately
- evaluate texts
- paraphrase and summarise.
Subject-specialist lectures
To ensure you are getting the most from your degree teaching and to prepare you for your degree lectures, you will learn how to:
- improve your listening and note-taking skills
- become used to different styles of delivery
- gain confidence in your ability to operate within what may be a new or unfamiliar teaching method.
Progression requirements
To successfully complete your course, you must attend all obligatory classes, lectures, seminars and workshops and complete all assignments (assessed and non-assessed).
For students with a conditional offer, you must achieve an overall score of 14 on the University's 20-point marking scale to fulfil the conditions of your offer. Further explanation of assessment and progression will be provided during orientation.
Accommodation
Students can apply for accommodation in Fife Park Apartments or David Russell Apartments for the duration of the pre-sessional course.
The pre-sessional course accommodation package is self catered. Accommodation will be available from Wednesday 28 June 2017.
Taught postgraduate students
Visit the postgraduate accommodation webpage to complete the online accommodation application form. When you complete the online application, you must ensure you check the box for the 10-week Pre-sessional course.
Private accommodation
If you do not want to apply for residential accommodation, please be aware that you are responsible for making alternative arrangements. Unfortunately, ELT cannot assist you in finding private accommodation before or during the course. St Andrews is very busy during the summer months, and it may be difficult to find an affordable private room or flat.
If you decide that you would prefer to arrange private accommodation for yourself or your family, we recommend that you look at the properties available on StudentPad.
Contact
English Language Teaching
University of St Andrews
Kinnessburn
Kennedy Gardens
St Andrews
KY16 9DJ
Scotland, UK
Phone: +44 (0)1334 46 2255
Email: elt@st-andrews.ac.uk
Admission to the University of St Andrews is governed by our Admissions policy.
Curriculum development
As a research intensive institution, the University ensures that its teaching references the research interests of its staff, which may change from time to time. As a result, programmes are regularly reviewed with the aim of enhancing students' learning experience. Our approach to course revision is described online. (PDF, 72 KB).
Tuition fees
The University will clarify compulsory fees and charges it requires any student to pay at the time of offer. The offer will also clarify conditions for any variation of fees. The University’s approach to fee setting is described online. (PDF, 84 KB).