Education

Scottish Highers

• ABBB (114 UCAS Tariff points) including English at C or above, plus National 5 Maths at C or above.  
• Minimum Entry Requirements: BBBB (108 UCAS Tarrif points) including English at C or above, plus National 5 Maths at B or above.

A Levels

• BBC (112 UCAS Tariff points) including GCSE English Language and English Literature at C/5, plus GCSE Maths at C/5 or above. 

Irish Leaving Certificate

• Standard Entry Requirements: H2H2H2H3 (114 UCAS Tariff points) including English, plus Ordinary Level Maths at O2 or above.

International Baccalaureate

• 32 points including English at Higher Level, plus Standard Level Maths at Grade 5 or above

Scottish Wider Access Programme

• Access to Humanities (Primary Teaching Route) with BBB.

BTEC Level 4 Extended Diploma

• DMM (112 UCAS Tariff points)

SQA HNC/BTEC Level 4 HNC

• Full HNC award in any subject, plus Higher English and National 5 Maths at Grade C or above 

SQA HND/BTEC Level 5 HND

• Full HNC award in any subject, plus Higher English and National 5 Maths at Grade C or above

Successful applicants who gain a place on this course will need to register on the PVG Scheme, managed and delivered by Disclosure Scotland. An application form will be sent from the University once you have accepted your offer. The fee for joining the scheme is £59.

Visit the Disclosure Scotland website for more information on the PVG scheme.

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) 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 score of 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.

Valuable opportunities for school placement are embedded in each year of the degree, providing hands-on experience to complement your academic studies. 

You will spend 30 weeks of the programme on placement.  Your school placements include a range of primary schools within local authorities in Scotland.

In Years 1 and 2, school placements provide insights into the role of the teacher and the diverse range of professionals involved in the education and care of children and young people.

As you progress to Years 3 and 4, theoretical knowledge and the practical skills required for effective primary teaching are enhanced. Here, you gain professional skills to enable you to lead learning in schools.  You will also have the opportunity to undertake a placement in an Additional Support Needs school.

Lectures, tutorials, workshops and use of the Moodle VLE, employing a range of learning and teaching methodologies including exposition, whole-class discussion, paired and group work, problem-based learning, student presentations, and resources such as subject-specific equipment, interactive whiteboards, and laptops will be used, as appropriate, to develop student learning and prepare them for periods of school experience.

Students will monitor their progress through target-setting and evaluation within the Reflection and Evaluation of the Standards (RETS) documentation.

Module handbooks and other material made available to students will give more detailed information on the particular learning and teaching methodologies and themes within timetabled student sessions. This will clarify for students both their expectations for timetabled sessions, and their expectations for the overall balance of learning and teaching methodologies to be used during the module.

Placement handbooks and other very detailed materials made available to students will set out the requirements and expectations of school experience, including the maintenance of the teaching and learning file.

This course also gives you the option of taking a language module, which can count towards your degree. These modules cover multiple languages and range from absolute beginner to near-native speaker level. The cost of your language module is included in the tuition fees.

UWS Programme Specifications and Module Descriptors

Programme Specification and Module Descriptors for Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses are available to download (PDFs). These provide you with core information concerning your chosen subject. 

View our Programme Specifications & Module Descriptors