Program Overview

An International Foundation Year at our International Study Centre prepares you for your degree at Lancaster University. You will focus on English language, university-level study skills, and academic modules that relate to your degree subject.

Supporting your progression to the University
At the International Study Centre, we take every measure to ensure you are supported in your academic journey. Our programmes allow for increased time spent learning, researching and developing your skills. By studying with us, you will benefit from:

• Formal assessments at the end of each term.
• An improved English language module, Academic English Skills, providing greater opportunity for informal assessments and feedback.
• Combining and reducing the number of module assessments allowing more time to prepare.
• A personal tutorial system with a focus on your academic progress at key points of the academic year, creating action plans based on your performance and progession options.

Engineering and Computing
An International Foundation Year in Engineering and Computing leads to a choice of degrees in the Faculty of Science and Technology. To prepare for your degree you will study core English language modules, and subject modules for Engineering and Computing Foundation Year. Degree options include Chemical Engineering, Natural Sciences and Physics.

You will develop your understanding of Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Physics. Areas of study include number theory and graph theory (Pure Mathematics); vectors and variable acceleration (Applied Mathematics); and induction and inductors (Physics).

Engineering
Engineering at Lancaster will challenge you to design and build things to solve real-world problems. The discipline is particularly interesting to anyone with a technical and creative mind, and enjoys working as part of a team.

In modern engineering, it is almost impossible to define distinct boundaries between disciplines and as such we offer a general engineering entry point. Knowledge and experience spanning across several engineering disciplines will compliment later specialisms, improve career prospects, and is ideal for students who want to defer choosing a specialism. For example, it can be highly beneficial for an electronic and electrical engineer to understand thermal heat transfer, a chemical engineer to understand stress analysis, and a mechanical engineer to be able to programme a simple interface.

During this general first year, we will introduce you to many of the key features of engineering, equipping you with a well-rounded understanding and skill set in areas such as transport technology, chemical engineering, computing and digital electronics. In addition to these, you will gain an appreciation for the interdisciplinary nature of the subject.

Following the first year, where you will have developed a solid foundation of engineering knowledge and begun to explore a variety of different areas of the discipline, you will have the opportunity to consider and plan your academic progression. At this stage, you move onto any of our specialist programmes.

The BEng course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) on behalf of the Engineering Council for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for registration as an Incorporated Engineer and partly meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered Engineer. All of our specialist programmes are accredited by at least one professional body including the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), and the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), and depend on which specialism you wish to pursue.

A combination of core and optional modules will allow you to focus your interest while gaining practical experience. This flexibility to choose enables you to develop specialist skills from one of the many fields of engineering, preparing you for a vast range of focused or interdisciplinary roles.

In addition to undertaking a dissertation, your third year enables you to apply your skills in a series of individual and group projects. The project theme will depend on the area of engineering that you wish to study and will have real positive impact on businesses and society, cementing your specialist engineering knowledge and developing your professional skills and experience. You will also further your study through a selection of optional modules, allowing you to expand within your specialist field.