International Students

Head of Language Centre to maintain currency of policy statement in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, to ensure that where norms or practices for English language support change at sectoral level that these changes are reflected in the policy statement.

University College Cork (UCC) English Language Support Policy for International Students  

This policy outlines UCC’s approach to supporting its international students’ English language needs. UCC is committed to supporting international students to achieve academic success and to fostering inclusivity throughout its staff and student body. By providing English language support, UCC assists international students to meet the academic requirements of their chosen course of study and to engage in university life. UCC recognises that the measures listed below are crucial for the university to maintain its academic standards, to attract and retain talented students, maintain its global reputation, and to ensure inclusivity.

This policy is subject to regular monitoring by the Language Centre, under the auspices of the Vice President Global Engagement, and periodic review by the Academic Council taking account of feedback from students, and internal and external stakeholders. By doing so, UCC ensures that the policy is fit for purpose and that English language supports offered align with student and institutional needs and meet current and future, internal and external quality assurance standards. 

English Language Proficiency Entry Requirements:

Teaching in UCC is normally through the medium of English, therefore all applicants are required to demonstrate a high level of competence in the English language. UCC's minimum English language requirements are approved by the Academic Council and apply to all applicants. All levels of applicants whose first language is not English are required to produce evidence of proficiency in accordance with UCC’s English Language Requirements which can be found at the following links:

Undergraduate English Language Requirements (International)

Undergraduate English Language Requirements for CAO / EU applicants

Postgraduate English Language Requirements

Connected policy: Overarching Admissions Policy

Provision of Support and Development of English for Academic Purposes (EAP):

The Language Centre is responsible for the creation, development and delivery of all EAP courses within the university. This provision takes the form of pre-sessional English courses, credit modules, digital badges, and drop-in sessions. These courses may be delivered on-campus or online.

All LC courses are subject to regular review by the Main Course Tutor and any other teaching staff who been involved in the delivery of them. Recommended changes and improvements are considered by the centre’s Curriculum Committee twice per academic year (at the end of Semester 1 and the end of Semester 3). 

Provision of English language supports to non-native English speakers:

• Pre-sessional English programmes for students who have yet to meet the English language conditions of their chosen degree (16-week, 12-week and 6-week courses; delivered on- campus and online)
• In-sessional support for matriculated UCC students through credit modules, digital badges and drop-in sessions
• Embedded English language credit-bearing modules and English support programmes of English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) to support schools with large international cohorts.

Applicants who do not meet the English language requirements outlined above can take advantage of pre-sessional English courses offered by the LC. On application, these students are sent information about these pre-sessional English courses. These courses have been designed to help students to enhance their proficiency so that they may meet the university’s entry requirements for English language and, in addition, to introduce them to the expectations and conventions of academic life in Ireland

In-sessional English-language support classes are offered free of charge to international students whose first language is not English. These classes help non-native English-speaking students to understand lectures, complete assignments, and improve their communication in both written and spoken English. Research-specific English language modules help students to access academic materials and present work effectively.

In addition to improving students’ English ability, these English-language supports promote international students’ social integration at UCC by helping students engage with peers and staff.

Pre-sessional English courses

English Language Support for UCC students

Quality Assurance Arrangements for English Language programmes:

All programmes delivered by the Language Centre are subject to quality assurance procedures overseen by the LC Curriculum Committee and Academic Standards Committee. 

In addition, credit-bearing modules that form an integral part of UCC degree programmes (for example, Medicine, World Languages, and Food Sciences) follow the quality assurance and curriculum approval procedures for modules as laid out by the Office of Academic Affairs and Governance. The Language Centre is subject to UCC’s periodic quality review process which evaluates the effectiveness of internal quality assurance mechanisms and the development of quality enhancement approaches into the future. Feedback and recommendations from these reviews are used to further develop the quality of LC courses and to improve quality assurance practices within the centre.

Credit-modules policy

International Foundation Year Programmes:

UCC does not offer its own International Foundation Year Programmes. However, UCC accepts students from private providers, whose curriculum, procedures and approaches are accepted and approved by the University’s Academic Board. In future UCC only engage with IFY providers within Ireland that have gained the TrustEd Ireland mark.

As required when sectoral changes to English language requirements arise or due to changes to the International Education Mark accreditation (IEM)

9 Further Information

Contact Email:lwoods@ucc.ie

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