Program Overview

Pre-Masters Programme 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.

Your postgraduate preparation
The Pre-Masters Programme is available over two or three terms at the International Study Centre, providing you with the skills necessary for postgraduate study at Lancaster University. You will  build on the knowledge gained in your earlier studies whilst developing your practical English language and mathematical abilities, as well as study and research skills.

You will develop an intellectual appreciation of issues relevant to your chosen degree through classes designed specifically for international students. These will be based on study and careers skills, as well as subject specific modules, which prepare you for your chosen Masters degree at Lancaster.

How does it work?
When you apply to the International Study Centre, you will choose between two pathways, depending on your career aims. Upon acceptance to the Pre-Masters Programme, you will also receive a conditional offer to study a Masters degree at Lancaster University after successful completion of your Pre-Masters.

Engineering, Computing, Mathematics and Science
The Pre-Masters Programme in Engineering, Computing, Mathematics and Science ensures you are prepared for postgraduate study at Lancaster University. Students on this programme can progress to a variety of scientific degrees.

Programme structure
Throughout the programme, you will study subject specific modules to develop a deeper understanding of your chosen area. You will also study core English language modules that will develop both your language and academic skills to the level required for Masters study in the UK, as well as building your ability to study at postgraduate level by improving your research and critical analysis abilities.

Conservation and Biodiversity
Our Conservation and Biodiversity Masters offers great flexibility, with a wide choice of topics from across disciplines, enabling you to construct a programme that suits your individual interests and career ambitions in this increasingly important field.

You will have the opportunity to gain a solid foundation in the key theoretical issues, such as wildlife population dynamics and conservation biology, and learn how these are applied to real-world problems, such as managing habitats or dealing with wildlife-human conflicts. Additionally, you will gain and develop the key skills that are valued by employers, such as field skills on species identification, sampling and monitoring, and more generic skills in problem solving, report writing, data analysis and presentation.

You will complete six taught modules delivered by world-leading researchers from our three internationally-renowned partner organisations: Lancaster Environment Centre, Rothamsted Research and the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology. This gives you the opportunity to interact with a wide range of expert specialists, including conservation biologists, terrestrial, marine and lake ecologists, food security biologists, and earth observation geographers. 

Several modules include field trips to the beautiful and topographically varied countryside around Lancaster, and beyond.  If you want to travel further afield, we have research projects and partners across the globe that provide exiting opportunities when it comes to selecting your dissertation project.

This project forms a substantial part of your Masters degree. It will enhance your practical and analytical skills and give you the opportunity to apply your learning to a real-world challenge. This may involve doing a project with a government agency or conservation organisation through our award winning Centre for Global Eco-innovation, which uses our excellent links with the environmental and conservation sectors. Examples of previous dissertation projects are:

• Effectiveness of habitat management for fritillary butterflies (with Butterfly Conservation)
• Impact of tourist disturbance on breeding seabirds on the Isle of May (with CEH)
• Predation impacts on breeding success of black-tailed godwits (with RSPB)
• Deer and forestry interactions in the Czech Republic (placement with Czech university)
• Habitat selection by sand lizards in coastal dunes
• Impact of urbanization on blue tit song behaviour
• Habitat loss and biodiversity in the Amazon rainforest (with Lavras University, Brazil)
• Biodiversity in reed fringes on Lake Windermere (with Freshwater Biological Association)

Graduates have gone on to successful careers in the environmental and conservation sectors, as well as further study for a PhD.