1. Check course requirements

Academic requirements

Academic requirements vary by programme – check our course pages for details. Evidence of relevant personal, professional and educational experience may be taken into consideration. Generally an undergraduate degree will be required, but we may be able to consider experience-based qualifications on a case-by-case basis. Contact the academic school directly for further information.

International and EU students can find guidance on alternative qualifications on our country-specific webpages.

English requirements

All applicants, both home and international, are required to hold English language qualifications at an appropriate level in order to study at the university. If you're a native English speaker, or you have studied in an English-speaking country or institution, we may be able to accept your academic qualifications as evidence of your English language ability. 

IELTS requirements are detailed on our course pages, though we also accept a variety of alternative qualifications.

If you require additional support to develop your language skills, you may be able to attend a pre-sessional course at the Centre for English Language Education.

Any other requirements

Some courses require work experience, or other entry requirements, or to demonstrate knowledge of the course. Please check our course pages for details.

2. Check key dates and deadlines

Teaching for most postgraduate taught courses starts late September, while some have alternative start dates. Check course pages for details on start dates and course specific deadlines.

For standard late September starts, the application deadline is usually around six to seven weeks before the start date for international applicants. For specific dates for international and home applicants, please check our application deadline information.

We will endeavour to make a decision on your application within six weeks of submitting your application and paying your application fee (if required).

International students

International applicants, you should apply as early as possible to ensure that you have enough time to apply for your student visa. If you are successful in receiving an offer, you will need to accept it and meet any outstanding conditions by early September (for our late September start), or as advised by the admissions team.

Funding deadlines

An offer of study is required for many funding opportunities. You should check deadlines for applications carefully, as these are often early in the year. Please apply early and allow time for any fee payments and your application to be processed to avoid disappointment. If you have a known deadline for funding (for example, scholarship, sponsorship etc), we encourage you to make us aware of it in your application.

3. Submit your application

You can apply directly through our online system. You will receive automatic confirmation once you submit your application and can track its progress.

Make sure that you upload clear scanned copies of your degree certificate (if completed) and final or current transcript, as well as any other supporting documents. We will not be able to assess your application without them. Please do not send us the original copies in the post, as we will be unable to return these.

Depending on the course you are applying for, you may also need to provide two references, including at least one who can comment on your academic ability. These must be dated within two years of the date of your application and, if not submitted directly by your referee, signed and on letter-headed paper. We may also require a personal statement. If you aren't sure what to include or need more help, please refer to our guidance or contact us.

Applications for teacher training are made through DfE Apply and MA Social Work are made through UCAS.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Your application provides an opportunity for you to articulate the skills and experiences you have that make you suitable for a place on our courses. We understand that AI tools can be beneficial in terms of helping you to structure things such as personal statements, or to check for readability. However, please be aware that an over-reliance on AI carries risks, such as falsely generated claims and the potential for the generated work to be of poor quality. Generating all, or a large part of your application submissions and communications regarding your application, using an AI tool and presenting this as your own work or words could affect the outcome of your application.

Application fee

There is an application fee of £50 for postgraduate taught courses.

Your application will not be assessed until the application fee has been paid and processed.

For application deadlines and early course closures we require the application fee to be paid before the date stated on the course page. We do not consider your application as being fully submitted until your application payment has been made and processed. It can take up to five days for your application fee to be processed, so please allow time for this with any application or funding deadlines.

Apply online

4. Track your application

You can log in at any time to track the progress of your application.

Track your application

Tuition fee deposit

International students who are planning to start a full-time postgraduate taught course will be required to pay a tuition fee deposit of at least £3,000 as part of the visa process.

We will waive the tuition fee deposit requirement for students who are fully sponsored by a recognised sponsor. If you are fully sponsored for your course fees, you must email us a copy of your sponsorship letter, quoting your full name and application ID.

The university will only accept sponsorship letters from recognised sponsors such as overseas governments, international businesses, universities, trusts and charities, and not from friends/family members.

Further information requests

Admissions may, at their discretion, ask applicants to provide further information in order to assess their application fairly and accurately. This can include CVs, references (academic and professional) and clarifications regarding their previous and current education. In such cases you will be contacted by admissions via email with a more information request.

Application outcome

When we have made a decision on your application, we will send you an email and let you know what you need to do next.

Details on accepting your offer, accommodation and other helpful hints and tips can be found our guidance for applicants.