English language entry requirements

You must prove that your English language abilities are at a high enough level to study your degree programme. This is the case for all applicants, including UK nationals.

What English language qualifications you can apply with

You can meet our English language requirements with one of the following: 

  • an English language test
  • certain professional qualifications
  • a degree that was taught and assessed in English 

If you have already met our English language entry requirements for your degree 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. 

Tests and other qualifications 

We accept a wide range of English language tests. 

The qualifications we accept meet both our English language proficiency requirements and the minimum standards for Student route visas. 

English language tests 

Two year expiry tests 

The following English language tests must be no more than two years old on the 1st of the month your programme starts, regardless of your nationality: 

  • IELTS Academic / IELTS Academic for UKVI and IELTS Academic Online
    • 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.
  • TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition)
    • English requirements must be met in a single test.
    • We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
  • Trinity ISE
  • Oxford ELLT Global and Oxford ELLT Digital
  • Oxford Test of English Advanced 
Three and a half year expiry tests

The following English language tests must be no more than three and a half years old on the 1st of the month your programme starts, regardless of your nationality: 

  • C1 Advanced
    • Formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE).
  • C2 Proficiency
    • Formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE).

Pre-sessional English for Academic Purposes 

You can meet our English language requirements after satisfactory completion of either: 

  • our English for Academic Purposes programme
  • the University of Glasgow Pre-Sessional English programme  

You must complete the programme no more than two years and one month before the 1st of the month your degree programme 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) 
How old professional qualifications can be

If you are not a national of and are no longer domiciled in a majority English-speaking country or region, your professional qualification must be no more than three and a half years old at the beginning of your programme of study. 

Degrees

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 or territory, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)
  • on our list of approved universities in non-majority English-speaking countries   

Approved universities in non-majority English-speaking countries and regions

Degrees supported by school qualifications 

You may also meet our English language entry requirement if you meet all of the following conditions:   

  1. You have a school qualification which meets our English language entry requirements for undergraduate study.
  2. 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.
  3. You successfully completed that degree within five years of the 1st of the month in which your programme starts. 

You will need to provide evidence that your degree was taught and assessed in English. This should be in the form of a letter from the awarding university. 

 Our 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 region, or to an approved university in a non-majority English-speaking country or region, 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 or region, 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. This includes cases where the partner university is not listed on our list of approved universities.  

Degrees awarded by a UK university with a partner university in China 

We accept dual/joint degree qualifications awarded by a UK university with a partner university in China, where the degree is licensed by the Chinese Ministry of Education and is included on the Ministry’s published list of approved joint degrees. 

If you need to request this information in an alternative format, email us at: futurestudents@ed.ac.uk  

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 or territory, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI). 

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 are a national of a majority English-speaking country or territory, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) 

How old your degree can be 

If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts. 

This time limit does not apply to your degree if you are a national of a majority English-speaking country. 

Find English language requirements for your degree programme

English language requirements vary between degree programmes, and you should check you have the necessary qualifications before applying. 

Submitting certificates of English language qualifications 

You will need to submit certificates to verify your degree or test results. If your certificates are not in English, you will also need to submit a certified translation.  

English language requirements and competitiveness

If you have already met our English language entry requirements for your degree 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. 

If you need a visa

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 or territory as defined by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI). 

Improve your language skills with our English courses

You can improve your language skills through our range of English courses. For entry, you must have an IELTS for UKVI test from an approved UKVI test centre. 

University policy on English language entry

Other supporting information and documents