These full-time, intensive programmes are designed for students holding an offer to study at Cardiff University who have an IELTS (Academic) score of 5.0 or above. 

If a student successfully completes their pre-sessional course, there is no need to retake an IELTS test to enrol to Cardiff University.

For 2025 entry, we are introducing new 20, 16, and 10-week combined programmes, as well as 6-week online and on-campus courses. 

We will continue to offer our ‘Speaking Skills’ add-on, available to students taking part in our 12-week online courses.

20-week combined

The first 7 weeks of the course will be taught online, with students studying from their home country.

There will be a 1-week travel window before students complete the final weeks of the course on-campus in Cardiff.

The on-campus section of the course will be delivered over 12 weeks, and will include live on-campus classes and class tasks, plus seminars and assessment tutorials, with additional hours of guided practice and self-study.

16-week combined

This course is specifically for offer holders from the School of Journalism, Media and Culture, who currently have an IELTS score of 6.0 but need to achieve an IELTS 7.0 overall score to meet their entry requirements.

The first 6 weeks of the course will be taught online, with students studying from their home country. There will be a 1-week travel window before students complete the final 10 weeks of the course on-campus in Cardiff.

10-week combined

The first 3 weeks of the course will be taught online, with students studying from their home country.

There will be a short travel window before students complete the final 7 weeks of the course on-campus in Cardiff.

6-week online and on-campus

These courses replace our 8-week programme. Students can choose to study either online or on-campus in Cardiff. The courses are suitable for offer holders with IELTS 6.0 overall who are required to achieve IELTS 6.5.