Course content - 6-week pre-sessional (online)
You will focus on the key academic skills and language you will need to succeed in your future studies with us.
After finishing the course, I did not feel unfamiliar or nervous at the beginning of my degree programme. The Pre-sessional course is a good way to adapt to university life when you are an international student.
Lingxuan Meng From China / Online 10-week pre-sessional course.
The course aims to:
- raise your level of English language proficiency and academic skills;
- improve your confidence working in an academic environment;
- help to prepare you for studying at this University.
Your studies will include:
- 12 hours per week of tutor-led sessions in groups of up to 18 students
- approximately 10-15 hours per week of interactive tasks to be completed either in study groups of up to five students or individually online
- weekly tutorial meetings, individually or in a small group.
In order to succeed on the course, you must have a quiet place to study. You will need to have your webcam turned on and be able to talk with other students.
Sample timetable
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.30am -8.30am* Study groups |
Academic listening: Listening to a lecture. |
Academic speaking: Discussion from the lecture. |
Academic speaking: Reflecting on seminar performance. |
||
| 8.30am - 9.30am | Break. | ||||
| 9.30am -11am Tutor-led session |
Academic reading: Reading for main ideas. |
Academic reading: Navigating a journal article. |
Academic writing: Rewording information from sources. |
Academic speaking: Referring to journal articles in a seminar. |
Individual tutorials. |
| 11am - 11.30am | Break. | ||||
| 11.30am -1pm Tutor-led session |
Academic listening: Taking notes in lectures. |
Academic reading: Taking notes when reading. |
Academic writing: Rewording information from sources. |
Academic speaking: Pronunciation - English sounds. |
Individual tutorials. |
| 1-2 hours Individual study |
Academic language: Using the academic word list in writing. |
Academic speaking: Seminar preparation - reading journal articles. |
Academic language: Varying sentence structures. |
||
*All times are local, UK time
There is flexibility for you to choose when to complete the individual tasks, but you must attend the tutor-led sessions and study groups at the specified time. These times cannot be changed – it is important to consider the time difference between the UK and your home country when applying for this course.
Engagement with the course
During the course, you will be aiming to meet the required language level in each academic skill, which varies across degree programmes. You will be expected to fully engage with the course, including completing all assessments. Disengagement with the course will be reported to your academic School, and may be considered at future exam boards. Non-completion of any assessments will mean that we are unable to give a final grade to your academic School. Acceptance onto your academic course is usually dependent on your Pre-sessional grades and full engagement with the course.
Throughout the course, you will complete 3 assessments: a piece of academic writing using provided sources; a question and answer assessment based on your academic writing; and a seminar discussion based on video and audio recordings.
All assessments will be online.
Writing
During the course, your tutor will give you a set of academic sources to read and discuss, and an essay question to answer using the sources. You will be assessed on the essay you produce and how well you support your answer using these academic sources.
Reading
Throughout the course, you will read and make notes on academic sources to use in your written essay. You will be assessed on your understanding and use of these sources.
Listening
You will listen to and make notes on recordings, including academic talks, to use in your assessed seminar discussion. You will be assessed on how well you use these recordings and how well you engage with other students.
Speaking
Towards the end of the course, you will have a seminar discussion based on the recordings you have listened to, and a one-to-one question and answer session based on your written essay.
Online tutor-led sessions will be delivered via Teams, and online tasks and materials will be accessed via Canvas, which is our central learning environment (CLE). There will be help accessing these, as well as technical support throughout the course.
All assessments will be online.
You must ensure you have access to:
- access to a laptop or tablet - mobile phones are not suitable;
- a fast reliable internet connection (we recommend a broadband speed of 5mbps; and a minimum speed of 2mbps);
- a browser such as Google Chrome/Firefox/360 Secure Browser;
- a webcam;
- a microphone;
- headphones