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.

Social Studies
The International Foundation Year in Social Studies leads to a choice of undergraduate degrees in the Faculty of Arts and Social Studies and the Faculty of Science and Technology. To prepare for your degree, you will study core English language modules and subject modules. Degree options include Philosophy, Sociology, and Film.

You will learn about global issues and contemporary events, including business, culture, politics and environment. Other areas of study include advertising, social media, psychology, and theories that relate to media and modern society.

English Language
Uncovering the secrets of the English language is a rich and rewarding experience. From how the English Language functions and sounds, right through to how we can apply language study to a real-world context, our English Language degree allows you to delve deep into this fascinating subject.

We are a very large Linguistics and English Language department which means that we have a wide range of optional modules available to you throughout your degree programme. Our academics cover a very wide range of language study specialisms, and our students benefit from their expertise in lectures, seminars, tutorials, and supervisions. They will teach you from day one in small classes designed to challenge you as a linguist.

You will begin your academic career with us on the core English Language module. How do you describe the English Language in terms of its grammatical and sound systems? How does it function in different contexts? How does language interact with society? As well as exploring these questions, you will explore newer and emerging fields such as conversation analysis, corporate communication, and corpus linguistics.

Our first year system allows you to select two other modules in your first year, giving you increased choice and flexibility. This might be linguistics or another subject that complements your major.

In your second year, you’ll focus on the core subjects, delving into the grammar and sound system of the English language. As for optional modules, we offer modules on Discourse Analysis, Language and Pedagogic Practice and Child Language Acquisition. As a final-year undergraduate, along with core modules in Advanced Phonetics and Corpus-based English Language Studies, you can also select from optional modules in Forensic Linguistics, Language Change in English and Beyond, and others. You’ll also write your dissertation, exploring a topic that you’re particularly interested in, and this is overseen by a member of staff from our department who specialises in your particular area. Given the size of the department, our academics can supervise a very wide range of subjects covering most students’ special interests.

An English Language degree is well-suited for careers in education, publishing, the media and information technology. It is valuable in fields involving international communication, such as science, trade and international relations. We offer an English Language degree which teaches you the skills of data analysis, academic writing, and argumentation, and we are confident that our teaching, combined with your willingness to learn, will put you in a strong position to move forward in your career.