University of Edinburgh – English Language Education

English Language Education at the University of Edinburgh teaches on the Holyrood campus. Its main teaching centre is Paterson’s Land, just off the Royal Mile and within walking distance of the Scottish Parliament. Reception is in the Old Nursery Building on the same campus, a useful distinction for a student arriving for the first time.

Pre-sessional academic English

The summer pre-sessional programme is for students preparing to begin a degree at Edinburgh. It develops the English needed for postgraduate study and offers a choice of routes according to the applicant’s current language level and intended subject. The longer route includes general academic English before the subject-specific phase. Students who already meet the relevant entry standard can apply for the shorter stage.

Subject-specific options group learners around academic fields such as arts and humanities, education and social sciences, or science, technology and medicine. The language tasks therefore relate to the kinds of material students expect to use after the course. Eligibility depends on the degree offer and applicable language requirements. For a visitor whose principal aim is ordinary conversational English, the academic purpose of this Holyrood programme is an important distinction.