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.

Life Sciences
The International Foundation Year in Life Sciences leads to a choice of degrees in the Faculty of Health and Medicine and in the Faculty of Science and Technology. To prepare for your degree, you will study subject modules and core English language modules. Degree options include Biochemistry, Biomedical Science, and Ecology.

You will learn about cell structure and function, as well as physiological processes in animals. Other areas of study include plant biology, genetics and ecology. Mathematic techniques are part of the course, and you will apply your understanding to real-life situations.

Geography (Study Abroad)
Discover Geography at Lancaster and overseas with our exciting Study Abroad programme. Explore a range of amazing locations and learn from world-renowned lecturers.

Geography is a distinctive subject: it studies our world in a vast range of areas. Our Study Abroad programme provides a unique first-hand experience of work and life in a different country. You will spend a year exploring the diverse physical environments, societies and culture in North America or Australasia, as well as benefiting from our world-class teaching at the state-of-the-art Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC).

While studying at LEC, you will have access to a host of new facilities including teaching and research labs, computer systems and software, and even our very own weather monitoring station! Working in comfortable class sizes, you will have the opportunity to get to know your lecturers personally, enabling you to benefit from their expert knowledge and helpful one-to-one advice.

Modules taken at Lancaster will make extensive use of the rural settings of the north and the bustling cities of Liverpool and Manchester, allowing you to explore some of the UK’s most unique areas of geographic interest. You will gain a wealth of hands-on experience with field trips to places such as the Yorkshire Dales, Cumbrian coast and Lake District, as well as to international locations including Iceland, Croatia and New York.

You will develop a fundamental understanding of human, physical and environmental geography in your first year Geography modules. These modules equip you with a well-rounded introduction to some of the key themes of geography, as well as providing you with some of the key skills used by geographers to analyse problems in both the physical and human aspects of the discipline.

Second year modules will be taught at a partner university in North America or Australasia. You may engage in topics such as cities and globalisation, environmental change, glacial systems, coastal processes, and water management. In addition, you will gain valuable fieldwork experience in another country.

In the third year, you will undertake a dissertation project, guided by an academic supervisor, which offers a chance to perform original geographical research on a topic of your choice. While completing the dissertation, you will use the key research, analytical and academic writing skills you have learnt throughout your degree. You will be offered further optional module choices with an emphasis on both human and physical geography, and there will be fieldwork opportunities in locations such as Iceland, the Amazon and New York.