QMUL Programmes: English language entry requirements
The Academic IELTS requirements for each programme or degree level are given in the table below.
For Undergraduate and Postgraduate programmes, you may produce alternative qualifications instead of IELTS.
Applicants who require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK must meet the minimum English language requirements to meet the UKVI regulations. For applicants to UG or PG courses, the minimum requirement is 5.5 in all four skills of IELTS, or equivalent in other qualifications.
Pre-sessional English course requirements for each programme or degree level are also published below, where applicable.
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
International Foundation programmes
| Programme | IELTS* |
| Foundation Certificate in Humanities and Social Sciences | 6.0 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.5) |
| Foundation Certificate in Business Management | 6.0 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.5) |
| Foundation Pre-Sessional | 5.5 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.0) |
- *Please take Academic IELTS
Pre-Masters programmes
| Programme | IELTS* |
| Pre-Masters Graduate Diploma in Humanities and Social Sciences | 6.0 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.5) |
| Pre-Masters Graduate Diploma in Finance and Economics | 6.0 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.5) |
| Pre-Masters (Foundation) Pre-Sessional | 5.5 overall (W, R, L, S: 5.0) |
- *Please take Academic IELTS
School of Business and Management: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS | ||
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (5.5 W) | ||
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (5.5 W) | ||
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) | ||
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.0 W) | ||
School of Business and Management: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (6.0 W) |
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of Law: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| IELTS | 7.0 (6.5 W) |
|
English entry requirement No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required | 6.5 (6.5 W) or 7.0 (6.0 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required |
6.0 (6.0 W) or 7.0 (5.5 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required |
6.0 (5.5 W) |
Any student who scores 6.5 or below on the IELTS writing element (W) (or equivalent) is required to attend the Queen Mary In-sessional programme : Critical Thinking and Writing in Law. This programme is free to Queen Mary registered students and runs in Semesters 1, 2, and 3. Students with higher English language scores may join the programme for free if they wish. Please see www.languageandlearning.qmul.ac.uk for more information.
Discretion will be used if a student’s English score falls between any of the above levels.
School of Law: Postgraduate taught programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (7.0 W) |
| In-sessional programme required (Five week Pre-sessional recommended) |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required |
6.5 (6.5 W) or 7.0 (6.0 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required |
6.0 (6.0 W) or 7.0 (5.5 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional + In-sessional Programme required |
6.0 (5.5 W) |
Any student who scores 6.5 or below on the IELTS writing element (W) (or equivalent) is required to attend the Queen Mary In-sessional programme : Critical Thinking and Writing in Law. This programme is free to Queen Mary registered students and runs in Semesters 1, 2, and 3. Students with higher English language scores may join the programme for free if they wish. Please see www.languageandlearning.qmul.ac.uk for more information.
Discretion will be used if a student’s English score falls between any of the above levels.
School of Law: Postgraduate research programme
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.5 (7.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 7.0 (7.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional In-sessional programme required |
6.5 (6.5 W) OR 7.0 (6.0 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
School of Economics and Finance: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) Economics and Politics (LL12): 7.0 (6.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional |
6.0 (5.5 W) Economics and Politics (LL12): 6.5 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional |
6.0 (5.5 W) Pre-sessional recommended but at student's option Economics and Politics (LL12): 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional |
5.5 (5.5 W) Economics and Politics (LL12): 5.5 (5.5 W) |
School of Economics and Finance: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) Pre-sessional recommended but at student's option |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.5 W) |
School of English and Drama: undergraduate programme
Key: Writing = W; Reading = R; Listening = L; Speaking = S
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (7.0 W, R, L, S) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W, R, L, S) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W, R, L, S) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W, R, L, S) |
School of English and Drama: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (7.0 W, R, L, S) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W, R, L, S) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W, R, L, S) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W, R, L, S) |
School of Geography: Undergraduate programmes
Key: Writing = W; Reading = R; Listening = L; Speaking = S
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of Geography: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) MSc Environmental Science: 6.5 (W6.0) MSc Integrated Management of Freshwater Environments: 6.5 (W6.0) |
| Five week Pre-sessional |
6.5 (6.0 W) MSc Environmental Science: 6.0 (W 5.0) MSc Integrated Management of Freshwater Environments |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) For MSc, PGDip and PGCert Integrated Management of Freshwater Environments AND MSc Environmental Science by Research: 5.5 (5.0 W) |
School of History: undergraduate programmes
Key: Writing = W; Reading = R; Listening = L; Speaking = S
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of History: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of Languages, Linguistics and Film: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (7.0 W) |
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W) |
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of Languages, Linguistics and Film: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (7.0 W) |
| MA Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching only Five week Pre-sessional recommended In-sessional programme required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.5 (6.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
School of Politics and International Relations: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS | ||
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) | ||
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (6.0 W) | ||
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) | ||
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) | ||
School of Politics and International Relations: postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS | ||
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) | ||
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.5 (6.0 W) | ||
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (6.0 W) | ||
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) | ||
Faculty of Science and Engineering
Foundation programmes
| Programme | IELTS* | |
| International Science and Engineering Foundation Programme (One-year Foundation Programme) |
5.0 (minimum W, R, L, S: 5.0) |
|
| International Science and Engineering Foundation Programme (Four-year degree programme: Foundation plus three-year degree) |
6.0 (minimum W, R, L, S: 5.5) |
|
| Pre-Sessional: Applicants may not take the Pre-Sessional programme. | ||
- *Please take Academic IELTS
School of Biological and Chemical Sciences: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.0 W) |
School of Biological and Chemical Sciences: postgraduate programmes
Key: Writing = W; Reading = R; Listening = L; Speaking = S
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Five-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Nine-week Pre-Sessional | 6.0 (5.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.0 W) |
Undergraduate programmes: general
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.0 W) |
School of Biological and Chemical Sciences: undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.0 W) |
Postgraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
6.5 (6.0 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.5 W) |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | 6.0 (5.0 W) |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | 5.5 (5.0 W) |
School of Medicine and Dentistry
Undergraduate programmes
| Programme | IELTS |
| English entry requirements No Pre-sessional required |
7.0 (6.5 W) |
| Five week Pre-sessional | If any skill is -0.5 below |
| Nine week Pre-sessional | If any skill is -1.0 below |
| Thirteen week Pre-sessional | If any skill is -1.5 below |
Postgraduate programmes - Medicine
| Programme | IELTS* |
|
Postgraduate medical taught programmes in:
|
English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
|
Postgraduate medical taught programmes in:
|
English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
| Research students undertaking non-clinical project |
English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
| Research students undertaking clinical project |
English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
- *Please take Academic IELTS
Postgraduate programmes - Dental
IELTS requirements for postgraduate programmes in the Institute of Dentistry
*Please take Academic IELTS
|
Programme |
IELTS |
|
MSc Oral Biology
MSc Experimental Oral Pathology (Oral Sciences)
MSc Dental Technology
|
IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing)
5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below. 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below. 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below.
|
|
MSc Dental Public Health
|
IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing and speaking)
5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below. 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below. 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below.
|
|
MSc DL Craniofacial Trauma Reconstruction |
IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing and speaking)
As this programme is delivered via Distance Learning, no Pre-Sessional course is offered.
|
|
DClin Dent Paediatric Dentistry
|
IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing)
A minimum overall IELTS score of 6.5 is required at the point of application submission.
No Pre-Sessional is offered for this course.
|
|
MSc Dental Science for Clinical Practice |
IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing)
A minimum overall IELTS score of 6.5 is required at the point of application submission
5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below. 9 week Pre-Sessional: is not offered for this course. 13 week Pre-Sessional: is not offered for this course.
|
|
MSc Endodontic Practice
|
IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing)
|
|
DClin Dent Periodontology
DClin Dent Orthodontics
DClin Dent Prosthodontics |
IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing)
A minimum overall IELTS score of 7.0 is required at the point of application submission
No Pre-Sessional is offered for this course.
|
Postgraduate research programmes – Dental
| Programme | IELTS |
| Research students undertaking non-clinical project | English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 6.5 (6.0 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
| Research students undertaking clinical project | English entry requirements No Pre-Sessional course needed IELTS 7.0 (6.5 in writing) 5 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 0.5 below 9 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.0 below 13 week Pre-Sessional: if any element or overall is 1.5 below |
Alternative qualifications
The following English language tests are also accepted to meet the English language entry requirements for an undergraduate or postgraduate taught programme of study at the relevant level. Please refer to the English language requirements above by subject area to find out what IELTS equivalent is required for your chosen course.
English language test |
Equivalent to IELTS 6.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.0 |
| TOEFL (internet based) | 79 overall (L18; S21; R19; W21) | 92 (L21; S23; R22; W24) | 100 (L22; S25; R24; W27) |
| PTE Academic | 57 (L,S,R, W 57) | 62 (L,S,R,W 62) | 68 (L,S,R,W 68) |
| Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE) | ISE II (pass with merit) | ISE III (pass) | ISE IV (pass) |
| Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English | 169 Not accepted from old marking system |
176 60- grade C (old marking system) |
185 70- grade C (old marking system) |
| Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English | pass | Pass Grade C (old marking system) |
185 Grade C (old marking system) |
QMUL also accepts the following qualifications at the relevant level to meet the English language requirements of a course. Qualifications used to satisfy the English language requirements should have been achieved no more than 5 years from the start date of the course of study.
| Qualification | Equivalent to IELTS 6.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.0 |
| GCSE (English language or English Literature) | C or 4 | C or 4 | B or 6 |
| Edexcel iGCSE – English as first language (including speaking and listening) | C | C | B |
| Edexcel iGCSE – English as a second language | B | B | A |
| CIE iGCSE – English as first language (syllabus 0500 & 0522)* | C | C | B |
| CIE iGCSE – English as a second language (syllabus 0510 & 0511)* | B | B | A |
| O level | C | C | B |
| Singapore O level | C | C | B |
| Singapore Integrated Programme (IP) | Language Arts grade C or CAP 2.0 | Language Arts grade C or CAP 2.5 | Language Arts grade B or CAP 3.0 |
| NUS National University of Singapore High School (English language component) | Grade B (grade point 3.5) | Grade B (grade point 3.5) | Grade A (grade point 4.5) |
| Irish Leaving Certificate (Higher level) (For qualifications awarded up until 2016) | C2 | C2 | B2 |
| Irish Leaving Certificate (Higher level) (For qualifications awarded from 2017 onwards) | H4 | H4 | H3 |
| International Baccalaureate (English component) | English A (HL/SL): Grade 4 English B (HL): Grade 4 English B (SL): Grade 5 |
English A (HL/SL): Grade 4 English B (HL): Grade 4 English B (SL): Grade 5 |
English A (HL/SL): Grade 5 English B (HL): Grade 5 English B (SL): Grade 6 |
| Indian Year 12 (English component - CBSE and ISC boards only) | 60% overall | 70% overall | 80% overall |
| European Baccalaureate (English as L1-L3) | 6 | 6.5 | 7 |
| HKDSE (English core component) | Level 4 | Level 4 | Level 5 |
| US high school diploma | CGPA 3.0 | CGPA 3.3 | CGPA 3.8 |
| French Baccalaureat (General- English writing and speaking combined) | 13 (bien) where the co-efficient applied to the subject is greater than 1 | 14 (bien) where the co-efficient applied to the subject is greater than 1 | 14 (bien) where the co-efficient applied to the subject is greater than 1 |
| French Baccalaureat (OIB English/American - overall) | 11 | 12 | 12 |
| Norwegian Vitnemal (English component) | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| German Abitur (English component) | 12 (gut) | 12 (gut) | 13 (sehr gut) |
| Dutch VWO (English component) | 7 (goed) | 7 (goed) | 8 (goed) |
| Finnish Ylioppilastutkinto (English component) | 4 (magna cum laude approbatur) | 5 (magna cum laude approbatur) | 5 (magna cum laude approbatur) – Advance course |
| Swedish Avgångsbetyg / Slutbetyg (English component) | VG or C (must include at least 300 credits combined) | VG or B (must include at least 300 credits combined) | VG or B (must include at least 300 credits combined) |
| Danish STX/HF/HHX or HTX (English component) | Writing 7, Oral 7 | Writing 7, Oral 7 | Writing 10, Oral 10 |
| WAEC (WASSCE) | C6 | C6 | C5 |
| Malaysian SPM 1119 | C | C | B |
* If you require immigration permission to study in the UK, you will need to send us copies of your final Certificate of Results and either a component score sheet from your college or a Supplementary Certifying Statement. You should keep the originals for your visa application and enrolment.
Your can request the Supplementary Certifying Statement from CIE - details are on their website.
PG guidelines
If you hold a degree from a majority English speaking country plus Canada you may use this degree to satisfy the English language requirements for entry, provided the degree was completed no more than 5 years before the start date of the course to which you are applying.
If a first degree is taught for at least 2 years fully in English, and no more than 5 years have passed since the student was taught in English, the Admissions office can consider the degree for English language acceptability. These degrees will be considered on a case by case basis. Students will need to supply academic transcript and confirmation letter from central university administration confirming the course is taught and examined in English for at least 2 years.
Degree programmes which are taught for 2 years in one country and two years in another country are acceptable only where degree is conferred by an UK institution.
Other qualifications not listed may be taken into consideration for meeting the English language requirements and will be assessed on an individual basis. For further queries regarding acceptable English language qualifications, please contact the Admissions team.