16-week course
Our 16-week summer pre-sessional course for applicants with offers from the School of Journalism, Media and Culture focuses on developing the English language and core study skills you need to study effectively on an academic course in the UK.
Your pre-sessional result will only be valid for entry to academic courses in the 2025/26 academic year.
You will study the first few weeks of the course online from your home country before travelling to complete the course on campus in Cardiff.
The 16-week programme is a full-time, intensive course of approximately 30 hours per week, including class time, tutorials, self-study, homework, and assessment.
Course dates and times
The deadline to apply for this course is 25 April 2025.
The 16-week combined course will run from 12 May to 5 September 2025. The first 6 weeks of the course will be delivered fully online – this means that you will study from your home country. There will then be a one-week travel window for you to arrive for the final 10 weeks of the course which will be taught on campus in Cardiff.
The online section of the course (6 weeks, 12 May to 20 June) will include live online classes and class tasks, plus seminars and tutorials between 09:00 and 14:30 UK time (British Summer Time) with additional hours of guided practice and self-study.
The designated Travel week (21 June to 29 June) will allow you to travel to Cardiff at a convenient time. It will also give you the opportunity to settle into your accommodation in Cardiff, to find your way around campus, and to start to feel at home.
The on-campus section of the course (10 weeks, 30 June to 5 September) will include live on-campus classes and class tasks, plus seminars and assessment tutorials between 09:00 and 15:00 UK time (British Summer Time) with additional hours of guided practice and self-study.
A CAS will be issued to eligible students for the on-campus section of the course. A CAS will not be issued for the online section of the course as it cannot be studied from the UK.
You must ensure that you arrive in Cardiff between 21 and 29 June or you will not be able to continue with the course.
Cost
The course fee for 2025 entry is £7,310.
Entry requirements
The 16-week course is for offer holders for the School of Journalism, Media and Culture with IELTS (Academic) for UKVI 6.0 overall (with 5.5 in Writing and all other sub-scores at 5.0 or higher) and who have a course entry requirement of IELTS 7.0 overall.
| Section | IELTS (Academic) for UKVI | PTE Academic UKVI |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 6.0 | 62 |
| Listening | 5.0 | 51 |
| Reading | 5.0 | 51 |
| Writing | 5.5 | 59 |
| Speaking | 5.0 | 51 |
Applicants will need to ensure that they take the IELTS (Academic) for UKVI test or the Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic UKVI test.
Course outline
The course will:
- develop your language and skills to prepare you for your academic course at Cardiff University
- focus on intensive study of the vocabulary and grammatical features common to both academic discourse and that specific to a journalistic context.
- include a full teaching programme and course materials that will cover the skills of academic reading, writing, listening, and speaking
- feature 'guided practice' materials which provide extra opportunities to develop key areas of academic language and skills, supplemented by self-study materials that you may wish to practice in your own time to check your understanding of different aspects of the course
- offer every student a rich classroom experience: you will be placed in a group of students for your lessons with our experienced and qualified tutors, where we hope that you will enjoy working both individually and with the other students in your group as you develop your skills together
- provide tutorials with your teacher and individual feedback on your progress
- offer all students pastoral care from our approachable and caring team
- introduce you to academic life and provide professional guidance on academic issues and expectations
Part 1: Weeks 1 – 6
The primary focus of the first six weeks of the course is to quickly develop your language resource, with a specific focus on vocabulary and grammar in a journalism context. It will focus on intensive study of the vocabulary and grammatical features common to academic discourse.
As a result, you will practise and develop both receptive and productive skills which are required in an academic context.
Part 2: Weeks 7 – 16
This part of the course will focus on the ways we use the English language in an academic context. We will concentrate on the grammatical structures and vocabulary commonly used in presenting academic work, while improving confidence in communicating with, and responding to, the academic community.
Study skills
Academic study skills are invaluable and we believe that all university students would benefit from this course. In this part of the course, you will learn and practise the core skills needed to complete your chosen degree programme.
They include skills such as note-taking, summarising, text structure, referencing, critical thinking, understanding lectures, making presentations and participating in seminars and tutorials.
Academic orientation
All students will be familiarised with university resources provided to students enrolled on academic programmes of study and with the conventions and expectations for the presentation of academic work.
Secure your place on one of our 6, 10, 12, 16 or 20 week courses now.
