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.

German Studies and Geography
Gain an in-depth understanding of the German language, culture and society, while developing your geographical skills, learning from world-renowned lecturers and taking part in exciting international fieldtrips.

This exciting programme will allow you to gain a detailed understanding of geography, while giving you the skills and knowledge to engage with the discipline in preparation for a placement year overseas in a German speaking country. During the four years, you will be able to draw on expertise from two specialist departments: Languages and Cultures; and Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC).

Situated between the idyllic rural settings of the north and the bustling cities of Liverpool and Manchester, Lancaster’s location enables us to explore some of the most unique areas of geographic interest in the UK. 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 international locations such as Iceland, the Brazilian Amazon, New York and Croatia.

You will develop a fundamental understanding of human geography in your first year Geography modules. These modules equip you with a well-rounded introduction to some of the key themes in geography, as well as providing you with the skills used by geographers to analyse problems in both the human and physical aspects of the discipline. In addition, you will take language classes, determined by your current level of ability. These are taught by native speakers and will ensure you have a solid grasp of the written and spoken language.

Specialisation begins in second year, enabling you to choose topics that match your particular interests. Core modules will focus on practical work, equipping you with a range of analytical and research skills, while optional modules feature cultural and political geography, a field course on food politics in Paris, and the opportunity to gain valuable classroom experience in a local school. You will also benefit from specialist German modules, which will develop your communication skills further and broaden your social, political and cultural understanding of Germany.

Additionally, you will also take a specialist module that will prepare you for your year abroad. This module will allow you to select what activities you will take part in, explain the British Council English Language Assistantship scheme, and introduce you to academia and work overseas. You will also gain valuable employability skills, as well as advice on welfare and wellbeing.

You will spend your third year at one of our partner institutions in a German speaking country, where you will practise and develop your language abilities, while continuing to enhance your geographical skills and knowledge. This year, you will analyse the social, cultural, political and economic issues related to the area, complementing both your German and geography studies.

Returning to Lancaster for your fourth year, you will undertake an extended essay, guided by your academic supervisor, which offers a chance to investigate, in depth, a topic of your choice related to both aspects of your joint degree. While completing the essay, you will use the key research, analytical and academic writing skills you have learnt throughout your degree.

You will also be offered further optional module choices, which could include the study of Global Consumption, Urban Infrastructure in a Changing World, and the Geographies of Health, and there will be fieldwork opportunities in locations such as Croatia, the Amazon and New York.

In addition to your subject knowledge, you will gain communication and IT skills, and will become familiar with data handling and environmental sampling and analysis. Throughout your degree, considerable weight is placed upon enhancing your employability and such skills are greatly valued by potential employers.