English Presessional Programmes
Presessional courses are designed for students who wish to improve their knowledge of spoken and written English in preparation for academic study at the University of Birmingham. Students with conditional offers have the option of attending one of these courses instead of retaking IELTS.
Updated: Monday 23 November 2020
Due to the current global COVID-19 situation, our presessional English courses will be available both on line and on campus. We welcome both applications for students wishing to study in the UK, and applications from students who wish to study on line from their home countries and do not need a CAS.
You can be assured that online courses will be run to the same high standard as our campus-based programmes, and are designed to help you to develop your English language and academic skills in preparation for your studies at the University of Birmingham. They will include a mixture of interactive, class-based discussion and listening tasks set by your dedicated class tutor delivered in live Zoom classes, as well as guided reading and written tasks with feedback to develop your skills. You will be fully supported throughout your course and will receive regular 1-1 tutorials by video to discuss your progress and answer any questions. Timetabled sessions will take into account the needs of students studying in different time zones.
Presessional courses run throughout the year. Details of the courses starting in the Spring term are below, and our summer presessional courses will be open for applications in the new year. The summer courses range from 20 to 6 weeks in length. We also offer a 4 week Academic English course for students who have unconditional offers for their main programmes. More information including dates, prices and application links will be available in January.
Presessional English course dates for spring for the academic year starting 2020
| Presessional course | Start and end dates | Latest start date | For more information | Deadline for applications |
|---|
|
31 week Presessional English*
On line and on campus offered
|
11 January 2021 - 17 September 2021 |
18 January 2021 |
English for Academic Purposes Presessional |
11 December 2020 for campus based
4 January on line course
|
|
21 week Presessional English*
On line and on campus offered
|
11 January 2021 – 2 July 2021 |
18 January 2021 |
English for Academic Purposes Presessional |
11 December 2020 for campus based
4 January on line course
|
|
11 week Presessional English*
On line and on campus offered
|
11 January 2021 - 26 March 2021 |
18 January 2021 |
English for Academic Purposes Presessional. |
11 December 2020 for campus based
4 January on line course
|
|
15 week Presessional English*
On campus only
|
22 February - 2 July 2021 |
1 March 2021 |
English for Academic Purposes Presessional. |
22 January 2021
|
*Our Presessional English on-campus course options, starting in January 2021, will be a mixture of face-to-face classes and online classes and tasks.
Information about our presessional programmes
We offer courses during term-time and the summer with flexible entry and exit points depending on your current level of English (approved English Language test score) and the requirements of your main University of Birmingham offer for: Foundation Pathways, undergraduate study and postgraduate study.
The length of course you need depends on your current level of English, and on the score specified in the offer letter for your University of Birmingham degree.
All our campus-based courses are accredited by the British Council with strengths identified in three areas: Course Design, Teaching and Care of Students.
If you wish to apply for one of our pre-sessional programmes you must present an approved English test as proof of your ability in English.
Please note that you will not need a CAS for the wholly online pre-sessional programmes, but will require one for your main programme of study in the UK.
We are offering the option of studying on-campus on a short term study visa, with courses finishing in July. You will not need a CAS for these courses but you will be issued with a letter confirming your place for your visa application.
The UK Home Office recently made changes to the rules about English language tests for presessional courses. These are known as SELT (Secure English Language Tests) and more information is available from the Home Office website and our SELT information webpage.
Foundation students with offers to study on the Foundation Pathways
Students with conditional offers to study on the Birmingham Foundation Programme can apply to study on our English for English for Academic Purposes Presessional.
BIA Presessional courses: Frequently Asked Questions