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Open Days and subject showcases - Autumn 2024

Open Days and information sessions are a great way to learn more about programmes, meet staff and students and see what it’s like to study at UWS.

Attend an Open Day

Entry Requirements

What qualifications do you need?

Scottish, UK, EU and international students are all considered on an individual basis. A range of factors are considered when assessing applications, and alternative combinations of qualifications and experience are accepted.

During Clearing our entry requirements remain flexible, and we are committed to providing opportunities to study with us based on a range of qualifications. Please get in touch, and we can discuss your specific circumstances.

Check the Undergraduate Entry Requirements page for more information about country-specific entry requirements.

Accelerated Entry

As a Widening Access & Participation University, we can other students accelerated entry. This can give students the opportunity to enter into second or third year, depending on qualifications. Due to the professional accreditation of the programme, direct fourth year entry is unavailable.

  • Scottish Highers*:
    • Standard Entry Requirements - ABBB (114 UCAS Tariff points)
    • Minimum Entry Requirements – BBBB (108 UCAS Tariff points)
  • A levels:
    • Standard Entry Requirements – BCC (104 UCAS Tariff points)
    • Minimum Entry Requirements - CCC (96 UCAS Tariff points)
  • Irish Leaving Certificate:
    • Standard Entry requirements: H1H2H2H2
    • Minimum Entry Requirements: H2H2H2H2
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma: 24 points
  • Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP): Access to Humanities (BBB)
  • BTEC Extended Diploma: MMM

*for more information on standard and minimum entry requirements, see our Undergraduate Entry Requirements webpage.

  • Scottish Advanced Highers: BCC (128 UCAS Tariff points) Should have a relevant subject.

  • A Levels: BBB (120 UCAS Tariff points)

  • International Baccalaureate: 28 points

  • BTEC Extended Diploma: DDM in relevant subject

  • HNC: HNC titles with required Required Modules:

    • Human Resource Management : Business Managing People & Organisations; HRM Core Activities/HRM: An Introduction

    • Management & Leadership: Managing People (J1F5 34) (L8) AND Managing People & Organisations (F84T 34) (L7) OR Human Resource Management: An Introduction (H1KP 34) (L7)

  • HND: Business; Leadership & Management without relevant modules.

  • HND: HND title with required modules:
    • Human Resource Management 
    • Business: Managing People & Organisations; HRM Core Activities/HRM: An Introduction; Behavioural Skills for Business; Business Culture & Strategy
    • Management & Leadership: Managing People (J1F5 34) (L8) AND Managing People & Organisations (F84T 34) (L7) OR Human Resource Management: An Introduction (H1KP 34) (L7) AND Human Resource Management: An Introduction (H1KP 34) (L7) AND Behavioural Skills for Business (J1BW 35) (L8) 
  • DipHE: Business

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW

All academic degrees/awards at UWS are taught in English. For applicants whose first language is not English*, the University sets a minimum English Language proficiency level. All English language qualifications must have been gained within two years of the start of your UWS course.

* applicants who are exempt from english language requirements include:

  • native speakers of English
  • Erasmus students (unless advised otherwise)
  • non-Erasmus students from EU partner institutions (your institution must provide confirmation of your English language ability in the absence of a formal qualification)
  • students whose previous degree-level study has been taught and assessed in English in what UK Visas and Imigration (UKVI) define as a majority English speaking country

In general terms, if you are applying to study a course at, or above, Year 1 (SCQF Level 7) bachelor’s degree level, then the UKVI’s minimum level of English proficiency is Common European Framework for References of Languages (CEFR) at B2 (Upper Intermediate).

 

UWS & INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEST SYSTEM (IELTS)

At UWS, we define our general English language requirements using the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic module (not General Training) as follows:

Undergraduate (bachelor's - BA, BAcc, BEng, BSc etc.) degrees and postgraduate (master's - MA, MBA, MSc etc.) taught degrees

  • the CEFR equivalent requirement is normally an overall IELTS score of 6.0 (or equivalent), with a score of no lower than 5.5 in any of the four elements (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

Postgraduate research degrees (MRes, MPhil, PhD, DBA etc.)

  • the CEFR equivalent requirement is an overall IELTS score of 6.5 (or equivalent), with a score of no lower than 6.0 in any of the four elements (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

These are minimum requirements and some courses may require a higher standard for admission†.

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

 

IELTS SCORE EXCEPTIONS (RESEARCH DEGREES, BIOMEDICAL & PARAMEDIC SCIENCE DEGREES, NURSING & MIDWIFERY DEGREES WITH NMC REGISTRATION, 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 score of less than 6.0

HEALTH & MIDWIFERY AWARDS

For Health, Nursing & Midwifery courses that lead to professional registration with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (BSc Adult Nursing, MSc Adult Nursing, BSc Mental Health Nursing, MSc Mental Health Nursing, BSc Midwifery and MSc Midwifery), applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • score of at least 7.0 in reading, listening and speaking and
  • score of at least 6.5 in writing

PARAMEDIC SCIENCE DEGREE

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 score of less than 6.5

BIOMEDICAL DEGREES

For our BSc (Hons) Applied Biomedical Science, BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science and MSc Advanced Biomedical Science degrees, which may lead to professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

  • 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 and applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

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

 

OTHER IELTS EQUIVALENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE TESTS

In additional to IELTS, we also accept a number of alternative English language for application and admission to our courses for both home/EU and international students at bachelor's degree study at Year 3 (SCQF Level 9), and above. From Cambridge to TOFEL iBT qualifications the number of these qualifications is extensive.

Find out about non-IELTS English Language Tests

 

ENGLISH LANGUAGE HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFACTIONS ACCEPTED FOR NON-EU APPLICANTS

UWS has also reviewed a range of High / Secondary School qualifications studied by non-EU applicants that can be used as a basis of entry to a UWS. These range from Botswana GCSEs to USA High School Graduation Diplomas, the number of these qualifications is extensive.

Find out more about international English Language high-hchool qualifications

 

PRE-SESSIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE COURSES AT UWS

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 an overall score of 4.0, plus a score of 4.0 in all sub-tests (10-month course), or an overall score of 4.5, plus no score below 4.0 in all sub-tests (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:

Undergraduate Tuition Fees

Tuition fees for this course 2024/25

Scottish

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

All other UK & Republic of Ireland

£9,250 Cost per year of study, but not more than £27,750

Channel Islands & Isle of Man

£9,250 Cost per year of study, but not more than £27,750

International (all other EU plus Non-EU)

£15,500 per year of study

More on tuition fees and funding

Modular Tuition Fees (20-credit points) 2024-25

Scottish

£305 per module (20 credits)

All other UK & Republic of Ireland

£1,550 per module (20 credits)

Channel Islands & Isle of Man

£1,550 per module (20 credits)

International (all other EU plus Non-EU)

£2,580 per module (20 credits)

More on tuition fees and funding

Apply via UCAS

Ready to apply? All UK & EU Undergraduate applications should be made through UCAS. Further information for international, part-time and exchange applications can be found below.

Apply on UCAS

Further application information

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 2025/26 entry is 29 January 2025, 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 2025. 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 for domestic & EU/EEA to find more information on when and how to apply to study at UWS.

You can find out more about applying for this undergraduate course 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.

We will always try to make sure that we publish accurate course information but we do not accept responsibility for any mistakes or omissions. We will also try to make sure that we deliver our courses in line with our published information. However, we may not always be able to do so and you can find further information about this in our enrolment terms and conditions.