Free courses

• Arabic Level 1 
• French Levels 1 to 8 
• German Levels 1 to 8 
• Italian Level 1
• Japanese Levels 1 to 3
• Mandarin Chinese Levels 1 to 4
• Russian Level 1
• Spanish Levels 1 to 8

The information available at our What Level am I? webpage and our placement tests will help you to see which entry level you need. Queries about entry levels can be resolved by e-mailing the relevant Language Co-ordinator in Languages for All.

An explanation of entry levels is given here

Eligibility

• All students registered for an undergraduate programme of study at this University are eligible to apply for a Free Language Course. 
• Students must be based on campus and available to attend classes for the full academic year in order to participate in these courses.
• ‘Free’ places are funded by your home School/College. The number of places is limited and we may not be able to accommodate all applicants. 
• Places are not available to students already taking a language course as an accredited optional module in their programme of study (e.g. as a Widening Horizons module).
• The College of Arts and Law extends this opportunity to students registered for postgraduate study in this College.  However, the scheme is intended primarily to extend the learning opportunities available to undergraduate students, who are given priority for places.
• We reserve the right to decline applications which are not appropriate to students’ previous knowledge or experience of the language/level.

Information and Application procedure

• Information and application will be made available to current students of the University during the summer term for the next academic year.
• New incoming students to the University will apply for places during Welcome week.
• One application only per student will be accepted.  Duplicate applications will be removed and the latest application only will be counted.
• Applications made after the published deadline will not be accepted.
• If demand for a language course exceeds the number of spaces available, places are allocated on a random basis to the applications received. We do not operate a ‘first come, first served’ allocation process.
• Students who have made an unsuccessful application in a previous year are given priority for a place.
• A degree of priority will also be given to students who have already completed a language course with Languages for All.
• Unsuccessful applicants will be informed as soon as possible after the applications deadline and a waiting list will be kept until the start of the courses. Places which arise through cancellations will be offered to unsuccessful applicants through their University e-mail address.

Module Registration

• Free Language Course places are allocated to students for the full academic year and students will be registered for the appropriate module as part of the enrolment process.
• Free Language modules are zero-credit rated and will not impact in any way on other modules or the calculation of end-of-year marks or degree classifications.
• Students with a Free Language Course place will also be registered to the corresponding Canvas course, where course resources will be available.

Workload and Commitment

• We ask that you are committed to attending weekly classes in the autumn and spring terms, and the work involved before taking up a place which might be of greater benefit to another applicant.
• Students taking a Languages for All course are expected to have the use of the prescribed course textbook for the duration of the course.
• Do not make an application if you are off campus on placement for part of the year (e.g. in Semester 2) and therefore cannot commit to classes for the full duration of the courses.
• Any student who does not attend the first class without prior notification to Languages for All will forfeit their place on the course with immediate effect.  Their registration will be cancelled and the vacant place will be offered to another applicant.
• Failure to attend three consecutive classes without authorisation will result in the module registration being cancelled. Students will not be eligible to re-join classes in that academic year.
• Free Language Courses equate to taking an additional 20-credit module, but without formal assessment. Before accepting a place, students should be aware of the commitment required and take this into account when considering their workload over the full academic year.
• Most Languages for All classes include students taking a language module as their Widening Horizons choice and Open Access students from outside the University, as well as Free Language course students.
• The deadline for transfer requests (to a different language course) and withdrawals from the scheme is Week 6 of Semester 1.  

Completion

• In line with other University modules, a minimum of 70% attendance is required;
• Students must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 6 pieces of formative assessment, 3 of which must be in Semester 2. These are informally assessed activities, homework or class tests, to be taken as part of normal coursework (their format will vary by language and level). ‘Satisfactory’ means that it would be awarded a mark of at least 40% if graded;
• Your language course will appear on your end-of-year transcript with a Pass or Fail result.  No numeric marks are awarded.

• 10 May to 21 June 2019:  Applications are open for continuing students. No applications can be accepted after 21 June.
• End July 2019: Continuing students will be notified of the outcome of their application by e-mail and will be asked to confirm their acceptance.
• July/August 2019: Successful applicants are registered for their language course. 
• September 2019: Timetables to be published.
• 23 to 27 September 2019: Applications are open for new students. After 27 September, no additional applications are accepted for the 2019-20 academic year.
• Week 1 of Autumn Term: New students will be notified of the outcome of their application by e-mail.
• Monday 7 October 2019 (Week 2 of the autumn term): All courses start.