Your letter may state:
“Please provide evidence of proficiency in English Language. For this programme we require 6.0 IELTS (with no less than 5.5 in any band) or Pearson Test of English (PTE) with 51 in all four skills. Tests should be no more than two years old at the time of admission.”
For the full list of suitable documents which you can use as your proof of English proficiency, you can visit our English language requirements page.
Make sure that your test results are no more than two years old from the start date of your course* at the University of Birmingham.
You can scan and upload a copy of your results to the Postgraduate application portal. You do not need to send in a copy of this to the University or bring it when you are verifying your documents with our representatives in your country as the University can verify the certificate using the reference code.
*If you are deferring your offer by one year, please make sure your test results will still be valid for when your course starts next year.
Exemptions
For those who have recently graduated from a University in the UK or majority English speaking country (e.g USA, Australia, New Zealand or Canada) you may be exempt from taking English language test. Please note that if your degree was delivered in English but not at a recognised university in the UK or majority English speaking country, our Admissions Office will require you to demonstrate your level of English with IELTS/TOEFL/PTE or alternative qualifications. You may also want to check our country pages as some countries may have certain exemptions, such as those who graduate from the University of Malta.
You will still need to present evidence of your qualifications studied in English to meet our entry requirement. Our admission office will then review your application and if exempt you will not be required to provide evidence of English language proficiency.
Postgraduate research (PhD) applicants
If you have been using English as your medium of education or work. Your agreed supervisor can assess your English Language skills at interview or other meetings to apply for an English Proficiency wavier from the Admissions office.