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Entry Requirements

What qualifications do you need?

We welcome Scottish, UK and international students and consider all applicants on an individual basis.

Don’t worry if your qualifications are not listed here, we take a range of factors into account when assessing your application and are happy to consider other alternative combinations of qualifications and experience.

If you are applying with an EU or non-EU qualification, please check our Undergraduate Entry Requirements page which gives more information about country-specific entry requirements.

Accelerated entry

Direct entry to Year 2 (with an appropriate HNC) and Year 3 (with an appropriate HND) may be possible.

Year 3 entry to this UWS programme is also offered at both South Lanarkshire College, New College Lanarkshire (Coatbridge Campus) and Ayrshire College under our college partnership agreements. Please note that these routes are only open to students who have completed an HND in Accounting at those institutions. Students wishing to complete the Honours year will be required to attend either the Paisley or Lanarkshire campuses.

  • Scottish Highers*:
    • Standard Entry Requirements - ABBB (114 UCAS Tariff points)
    • Minimum Entry Requirements – BBBB (108 UCAS Tariff points)
  • A levels:
    • Standard Entry Requirements – BCC (112 UCAS Tariff points)
    • Minimum Entry Requirements - CCC (96 UCAS Tariff points)
  • Irish Leaving Certificate: H1 H2 H2 H2
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma: 24 points
  • Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP): Access to Humanities (BBB)
  • BTEC Extended Diploma in relevant discipline (MMM)

* for more information on standard and minimum entry requirements, see the  drop-down section below

  • SQA Advanced Highers: BCC (128 UCAS Tariff Points)
  • A-Levels: BBB (120 UCAS Tariff Points)
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma: 28 points
  • SQA HNC / BTEC Level 4 HNC: Accounting (for SQA HNCs with Grade A in the Graded Unit)
  • SQA HND / BTEC Level 5 HND*: Social Science
  • BTEC Extended Diploma in relevant discipline (MMM)
  • SQA HND / BTEC Level 5 HND: Accounting (for SQA HNDs with Grades AB in the Graded Units)

English language requirements for most courses

For applicants whose first language is not English, the University sets a minimum English Language proficiency level. The qualifications below must have been gained within two years of the start of your course.

General IELTS Requirements

General English language requirements at UWS: International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic module (not General Training)

  • overall score 6.0
  • no sub-test less than 5.5

Exceptions to this level of IELTS scoring exist for some accredited or professionally-recognised courses (see IELTS Score Exceptions section below for more details).

IELTS Score Exceptions (Research degrees, Biomedical Science degrees, Nursing & Midwifery degrees with NMC registration, Paramedic Science and Social Work degrees, Certificate of Higher Education, etc.)

Research Degrees

For our research degrees (MRes, MPhil, PhD, DBA, DProf) applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • overall score of 6.5
  • no sub-test less than 6.0

Health & Midwifery Awards

For all our Health, Nursing & Midwifery courses that lead to, or require professional registration with the Nursing & Midwifery Council, applicants are required to have an IELTS or Occupational English Test (OET)*.

For such courses, the IELTS score is as follows:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • score of at least 7.0 in reading, listening and speaking and no less than 6.5 in writing

* Note that the Occupational English Test (OET) will now be accepted in addition to IELTS as proof of a Nurse's English Language Competence (Nursing & Midwifery Council, 2019).

Biomedical Degrees

For our BSc (Hons) Applied Biomedical Science, BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science and MSc Advanced Biomedical Science degrees, applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • no sub-test less than 6.5

Paramedic Science

Our BSc Paramedic Science degree leads to professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC); it has different IELTS requirements than other Health-related courses. Although it is not possible to apply for this degree directly as an international student, for applicants who meet SAAS residency requirements and for whom English is not their first language, then the following IELTS scores are required:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • no sub-test less than 6.5

Social Work Degrees

Our BA (Hons) Social Work and MSc Social Work degrees are professionally-recognised by the Scottish Social Services Council; applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • no sub-test less than 7.0

Certificate of Higher Education

For our Certificate of Higher Education courses, applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • overall score of 5.0
  • no sub-test less than 4.5

Common equivalent English language qualifications

All stated English tests are acceptable for admission for both home/EU and international students for this programme:

  • CAE (Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English): 176 overall; no sub-test less than 169
  • CPE (Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English): 176 overall; no sub-test less than 169
  • Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English: ISEII with the minimum of a Pass in all sub-tests
  • PTE Pearson Academic English: An overall score of 59 to 64 with no element below 59 (for programmes that require IELTS 6.0 with no element below 5.5). An overall score 65 to 75 with no element below 65 (for programmes that require IELTS 6.5 with no element below 6.0)

TOEFL IBT

TOEFL IBT*: 78; no sub-test less than:

  • Reading: 17;
  • Listening: 17;
  • Speaking: 17;
  • Writing: 17

* Please note that TOEFL is still acceptable for admission to this programme for both home/EU and international students.
For international students, the Home Office has confirmed that the University can choose to use TOEFL to make its own assessment of English language ability for visa applications to degree level courses. We therefore still accept TOEFL tests taken in the last two years for admission to this programme.

 

West African Senior School Certificate of Education (WASSCE)

West African Senior School Certificate of Education (WASSCE) including acceptance of WAEC Scratchcard*

  • C6 or above in English

*UWS will accept a WAEC scratchcard confirming that an applicant has achieved C6 or above as evidence of meeting English language requirement from Nigeria if the student graduated within the last 5 years. After 5 years applicants would be required to provide the WAEC Certificate. WAEC Certificates should not be older than 10 years at the time of making the application.

 

Pre-sessional courses

Applicants who do not meet the minimum English language requirements have the option to study one of our preparatory and pre-sessional English courses. The UWS courses available are:

    • 10 week pre-sessional - entry criteria UKVI IELTS 5.0 with no element below 4.5.
    • 5 week pre-sessional - entry criteria UKVI IELTS 5.5 with no element below 5.5.
    • English Language for University Study - entry criteria UKVI IELTS with score of 4.0 in all elements (10 month course), or 4.5 with no score below 4.0 (7 month course).

Find out more about our English language courses.

On our course pages, you will find details of our entry criteria listed as Standard Entry Requirements and Minimum Entry Requirements. These are the academic qualifications that, depending on your personal circumstances, you will be required to meet to allow your application to be considered for a place at UWS.

Competition for places on many of our courses can be very high and even if you meet the standard or minimum qualifications stated, there is no guarantee that your application will progress to the next stage of the admissions process. We review individual applications very closely and place great importance on your personal statement and academic reference as well as your academic qualifications before making selection decisions.

Standard Entry Requirements

Our Standard Entry Requirements are the grades that you will need to achieve to allow you to be considered for entry to a specific programme of study.

Minimum Entry Requirements

Our Minimum Entry Requirements are applicable to those applicants who have not had an equal opportunity to demonstrate their academic ability at school or college and are known as ‘widening access’ applicants. We also sometimes refer to this type of applicant as receiving a ‘contextual’ offer. We may be able to provide you with a contextual offer if you fall into one of the categories below:

  1. You have been in care (care-experienced/care-leaver)
  2. You are a young carer
  3. You have government-recognised asylum or refugee status
  4. You are estranged from your family or guardians
  5. You live in an SIMD decile 1-4 (SIMD20/40)* Scottish postcode area
    *if you are unsure if you live in one of these areas you can check using the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation Postcode calculator SIMD (Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation)

If you fall into any of the first four categories above, please mention this on your UCAS application. We will automatically apply category 5 if it applies to you.

If you have already achieved the required grades for either our standard or minimum entry criteria, we may be able to offer you an unconditional offer for some course areas. If you have not yet achieved these grades, we may be able to make you a conditional offer, which will rely on you achieving further qualifications before you can be accepted on to a programme of study.

Further details of our Admissions processes can be found as follows:

 

From February 2023, students from these areas will be attending UCAS events promoting study in September 2024. We are therefore highlighting the entry requirements for September 2024 entry to this programme below. Entry requirements for September 2024 for Scottish and international applicants will appear on this page soon.

Year 1 entry

A Levels:
• Standard Entry Requirements: BCC (104 UCAS Tariff Points)
• Minimum Entry Requirements: CCC (96 UCAS Tariff Points)
ILC: H1H2H2H2
BTEC Extended Diploma: MMM

Year 2 entry

A Levels: BBB (120 UCAS Tariff Points)
BTEC Level 4 HNC: Accounting

Year 3 entry

BTEC Level 5 HND: Accounting

Undergraduate Tuition Fees (Academic Session 2022/23)

Academic Session 2022/23 Undergraduate Tuition Fees - Full-time

Scottish

£1,820 Cost of study per year (paid by the Scottish Government via SAAS*)

Rest of UK (English, Northern Irish, Welsh)

£9,250 Cost of study per year (for four years but you will not pay more than £27,750)

Republic of Ireland

£9,250 Cost of study per year (for four years but you will not pay more than £27,750)

International (including EU)

£14,500 Cost per year of study

Check Your Tuition Fee Status

Academic Session 2022/23 Tuition Fees for 20-credit Modules (face to face)

Scottish

£305 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Rest of UK (English, Northern Irish, Welsh)

£1,550 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Republic of Ireland

£1,550 Cost per 20-credit module of study

International (EU/EEA & non-EU/EEA)

£2,420 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Check Your Tuition Fee Status

Undergraduate Tuition Fees (Academic Session 2023/24)

Undergraduate Tuition Fees - Full-time

Scottish

£1,820 Cost of study per year (normally paid by the Scottish Government via SAAS)

Rest of UK (English, Northern Irish, Welsh)

£9,250 Cost of study per year (for four years but you will not pay more than £27,750)

Republic of Ireland

£9,250 Cost of study per year (for four years but you will not pay more than £27,750)

International (including EU)

£15,250 Cost per year of study

Check Your Tuition Fee Status

Tuition Fees for 20-credit Modules (face-to-face)

Scottish

£305 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Rest of UK (English, Northern Irish, Welsh)

£1,550 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Republic of Ireland

£1,550 Cost per 20-credit module of study

International (EU/EEA & non-EU/EEA)

£2,540 Cost per 20-credit module of study

Check Your Tuition Fee Status

How to apply

Full-time (domestic & EU/EEA)

All UK and EU applicants for undergraduate study, not applying through an agent or partner, should apply through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service)

The on-time application deadline for 2023/24 entry is 25 January 2023, 18:00 (UK time). For some courses it may still be possible to apply beyond this period, subject to suitable vacancies remaining. The final deadline for late applications via UCAS is 30 June 2023, 18:00 (UK time). Beyond this deadline, you may be able to apply via 'UCAS Clearing' if the course you are interested in has remaining places.

Please refer to our Undergraduate Application Guide to find more information on when and how to apply to study at UWS.

Apply on UCAS

Full-time (non-EU/non-EEA), Part-time & Online (all students), Erasmus & International Exchange

Students from non-EU/non-EEA countries can apply directly to UWS via our dedicated online application system. The latest we can process your application is 6 weeks before the course start date to allow for visa processing times. For more information on when and how to apply to study at UWS please refer to our International Undergraduate Application Guide.

For part-time & online study, you should apply directly to the University through our online application system, not through UCAS. Please select the part-time mode of study when submitting your application. Before you begin your application, it is important to read the part-time application step-by-step guide for a smooth process.

To come to UWS as a visiting student on a study abroad or exchange programme, you must apply entirely through our online system.

 

An ATAS certificate is not required for overseas students applying for this course.

Get in touch

Do you have a question about applying for this course? Get in touch. We are here to help!

Unistats

Unistats draws together comparable information in areas students have identified as important in making decisions about what and where to study. The core information it contains is called the Key Information Set.

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