English language entry requirements
You must demonstrate a level of English language competency that will enable you to succeed in your studies, regardless of your nationality or country of residence.
Programme requirements
English language requirements vary between degree programmes and you should check you have the necessary qualifications before applying.
Find the specific language requirements for your chosen programme in our degree finder.
Accepted English language qualifications
We accept a wide range of international English qualifications and English language tests.
If you have already met our English language entry requirements for your programme at the time you apply, your application may be considered more competitive in selection than applications where you still need to take an English language test.
Degrees taught and assessed in English
We accept an undergraduate degree, PGCE, PGDE or postgraduate degree, including a one-year Masters degree, that has been taught and assessed in English, either:
- In a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI).
UKVI Majority English speaking countries
or
- On our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries.
Approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries
If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the start of the month in which your programme of study begins.
Degrees supported by school qualifications
You may also meet our English language entry requirement if you can provide evidence of the following:
-
You have a school qualification which meets our English language entry requirements for undergraduate study; AND
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You began a degree within three and a half years of achieving your school qualification, which was taught and assessed in English at a recognised university not otherwise accepted for English language purposes; AND
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That you successfully completed that degree within five years old of the start of the month in which your programme of study begins.
Evidence that your degree was taught and assessed in English should be in the form of a letter from the awarding university.
Undergraduate English language entry requirements
Transfers
If you have transferred from a university where teaching and assessment are conducted in a language other than English to a university in a majority English speaking country, or to an approved university in a non-majority English speaking country, at least 50% of your studies must have been undertaken in English, including your final year of study.
Degrees from UK universities with campuses overseas
We do not accept degrees awarded by UK universities where all study has taken place at an overseas campus in a non-majority English speaking country, unless they are on the list of approved universities.
Degrees jointly awarded by the University of Edinburgh
We accept degrees jointly awarded by the University of Edinburgh with partner universities in non-majority English speaking countries where teaching and assessment are conducted in English, even if the partner universities are not on the list of approved universities.
Degrees awarded by the Open University
We only accept degrees awarded by the Open University to meet our academic English requirement if you are a national of a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI).
UKVI Majority English speaking countries
We do not accept degrees awarded by the Open University to meet visa English requirements.
Online degrees
We do not accept degrees taught and assessed entirely online except for those awarded by the University of Edinburgh, or the Open University provided you meet the criteria defined above.
Other qualifications and tests
We also accept a wide range of international English qualifications and English language tests.
The qualifications we accept meet both our English language proficiency requirements and the minimum standards for Student route visas.
Expiry of qualifications
Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start of the month in which the programme you are applying to study begins, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL or Trinity ISE, in which case it must be no more than two years old on the first of the month in which the degree begins.
Two year expiry
| IELTS Academic / IELTS Academic for UKVI and IELTS Academic Online |
International English Language Testing System (internet-based or at any IELTS test centre) English requirements must be met in a single test. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake, IELTS General, IELTS for UKVI General or IELTS Life Skills for UKVI to meet our English language requirements. |
|
PTE Academic
|
We do not accept PTE Academic Online to meet our English language requirements. |
|
TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition) |
Internet-based or Paper Edition Test of English as a Foreign Language. English requirements must be met in a single test. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements. |
| Trinity ISE | Trinity Integrated Skills in English |
| Oxford ELLT Global and Oxford ELLT Digital | Oxford English Language Level Test |
Three and a half year expiry
| C1 Advanced | C1 Advanced, formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) |
| C2 Proficiency | C2 Proficiency, formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE) |
Pre-sessional English for Academic Purposes
We also accept satisfactory completion of our English for Academic Purposes programme or the University of Glasgow Pre-Sessional English programme as meeting our English language requirements. You must complete the programme no more than two years and one month before the start of the month in which the degree you are applying to study begins.
Pre-sessional English for Academic Purposes
Professional qualifications
The following professional registrations can be accepted as meeting English language requirements:
- Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery (MFDS)/ Membership of the Faculty of Dentistry (MFD)
- NHS Dental Vocational (Foundation) Training and Dental Core Training
- Overseas Registration Examination (ORE)
- General Medical Council (GMC) (must be Registered with a licence to practise)
- Membership of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (MRCV)
- Registration with the Health Care Professionals Council (HCPC)
- Membership of the Royal College of Physicians
- Royal College of Surgeons
- The Membership Examination of the Surgical Royal Colleges of Great Britain (MRCS)
- Irish Medical Council (IMC)
- General Dental Council (GDC)
If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country and are no longer domiciled in a majority English speaking country your professional qualification must be no more than three and a half years old at the beginning of your programme of study.
Certificates
We will need to verify your qualifications and/or test results. If your certificates are not in English you will also need to submit a certified translation.
Students who require a visa to study in the UK
In addition to our English language proficiency requirements, the UK Home Office sets its own minimum standards for applicants who require a Student route visa to study in the UK.
Degree study
If you require a Student route visa to study in the UK, the English qualification that you use for admission to a postgraduate degree must be included in our list of accepted qualifications, unless you are a national of a majority English speaking country as defined by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
Majority English speaking countries
English language education
If you are interested in our English language programmes as preparation for degree entry you must have an IELTS for UKVI test from a UKVI-approved test centre.
English language courses
If you do not have the English grades we require for entry, you can improve your language skills through our range of English courses.
English language courses at Edinburgh
Related Links
University policy on English language entry