Regulations for Pre-sessional English Programmes

August 2023 - July 2024

1.1 Introduction

These Regulations apply to Pre-sessional English (PSE) courses delivered by CU Group (Coventry University College Limited) on behalf of the Coventry University. Throughout these Regulations, ‘the University’ is used to include Coventry University and its subsidiaries and branch campuses.

The Pre-sessional English courses are for non-UK students holding an offer for a degree course at Coventry University which is conditional only upon achieving the required English language entry level; who need to improve their English language skills to meet the University's English language admissions requirements for postgraduate and undergraduate courses; and/or to cope with the learning demands of a course leading to a Coventry University award. These requirements also reflect the English language levels required by the Home Office for a Student Route visa.

1.2 Pre-sessional English framework

1.2.1 The PSE programme varies in length, from 5 to 15 weeks, depending on the level of English proficiency a student has at enrolment, as demonstrated via a Secure English Language Test (SELT) (see box below). The courses are for students who are about to begin their academic course or research at Coventry University or its subsidiaries.

1.3 Admission

1.3.1 To secure a place on a Pre-sessional English course, students must have a valid SELT which is listed on the UKVI’s ‘List of approved tests and providers’ and hold a conditional offer of a place at a university.*

1.3.2 The Pre-sessional course that a student may be admitted to is dependent upon the SELT score already obtained and the degree course/programme for which the student has a conditional offer to study. Students need to check these requirements carefully with CU Recruitment and Admissions (CURAL). Professional bodies may require a higher standard of English, which will be stipulated in the Course Specification.

*Students who do not need a Student Route visa may be accepted with equivalent scores on Cambridge Preliminary, FCE or CAE; PTE Academic; TOEFL iBT; or the Coventry University English Test (CUET), or other English Tests designated as acceptable for entry purposes by CURAL, on a case-by-case basis.

1.4 Enrolment and registration

1.4.1 General

Students are required to enrol at the University and register for a PSE course in accordance with the arrangements notified. Course definitive documentation shall specify what the course entails.

1.4.2 Attendance Requirement

a) It is an expectation of the course that students attend all timetabled sessions. This will be monitored on a continuous basis.

b) If attendance consistently falls below 90% attendance, students may be withdrawn from their course and will not be eligible for a refund, according to the procedure notified.

c) The University has a legal duty to monitor and record the attendance of students on Student Route visas in line with the compliance responsibilities of its Student Route Sponsor licence. It is required to report students to the Home Office who are withdrawn for not meeting its attendance requirements. For students on a Student Route visa, withdrawal from their course will lead to the curtailment of their visa.

1.4.3 Withdrawal from Course

a) It is the student’s responsibility to inform the University of the withdrawal through the procedure notified.  Where a student indicates a desire to permanently withdraw (including for reasons of extenuating circumstance) from a PSE course, the date of withdrawal shall be taken as the date on which the appropriate senior member of administrative staff (or nominee) signs, dates and actions the withdrawal confirmation; retrospective withdrawal dates shall not be accepted.  If the student wishes to return to the UK and still requires a PSE qualification, they will be required to re-enrol for the entire programme at later iterations if appropriate.

b) The University reserves the right to require a student to withdraw, where the student has not fully engaged with the course or not complied with their financial commitment to the University. Examples (not exhaustive) of not fully engaging include: repeated non-attendance at teaching sessions and/or not taking part in (formal or informal) assessments and not responding to requests sent by the University to explain such non-attendance.

c) Under section 1.4.3b, a student may submit an appeal, within two working days of the date of the letter confirming the withdrawal, on the basis of material irregularity or if there is significant new evidence of mitigation against the student’s non-engagement. The appeal must be submitted in writing to an appropriate senior member of administrative staff (or nominee). The decision of the appropriate senior member of administrative staff or equivalent (or nominee) is final.

d) The University reserves the right to require a student to withdraw in circumstances where the student is clearly not at the language level presented on their SELT, or other test of English used for PSE entry, upon arrival at Coventry, or upon starting their PSE course, and is therefore unable to cope with the level of the PSE course upon which they have been enrolled; or when a student on a longer PSE course is not able to demonstrate sufficient progress at key points within the course i.e. at the end of a ‘block’ of teaching on the 15 week course. In these cases the Course Leader will present evidence as to why the student is being withdrawn to the appropriate senior member of administrative staff (or nominee). In the case of insufficient language level on arrival, or insufficient progress in language level, the University’s decision in these cases is final.

e) The University expects students to exhibit the highest standards of behaviour whilst undertaking their English Language studies. Students whose behaviour falls below acceptable standards shall be subject to the University's Disciplinary processes as defined in Appendix 7 to the General Regulations.

1.4.4 Duration of Registration

a) The maximum duration of registration will be determined by the length of the PSE course.

b) In the case of Student Route visa students, the duration of study agreed at the time when a visa was sought must be adhered to. A Student Route visa student can be withdrawn from study at any time should they fail to comply with the terms of their visa and this will be reported to the UKVI by the University, this may result in the ‘curtailment’ or cancellation of their Student Route visa by the UKVI.

1.5 Progression

1.5.1 Attendance on a Pre-sessional English language course does not automatically guarantee progression to a degree course. To progress from the pre-sessional English course to a degree level course a student must meet the required IELTS equivalent level for either a postgraduate or undergraduate course/programme via the Pre-sessional assessment process.

1.5.2 Successful completion of the programme is dependent on students achieving the required standard (see 1.2.1). If the required score is not met, the offer on the degree course may be withdrawn and the University will be required to inform the Home Office that the student has not progressed to the main course.

1.5.3 Exceptionally, a student who fails to attain the required IELTS equivalent level for course entry via the Pre-sessional assessment process and is no more than half an IELTS band (equivalent) below the required overall score (see 1.2.1) may, at the discretion of the Admissions Tutor, be permitted to progress onto their degree with mandatory in-sessional English support, subject to the recommendation in the PSE tutor’s report. This is on condition that the student has achieved a minimum of 5.5 equivalent/CEFR level B2 in each individual language component, as required under Student Route visa rules. The Admissions Tutor must set out his/her reasons for this decision within five working days from the date that the borderline results were supplied to the Faculty/Subsidiary representative (via a progression meeting or email) and share the decision and reasons with all relevant teams (CURAL, International Student Support, International Student Compliance, PSE team) within the same time limit. They must include details of the mandatory in-sessional support that will be provided in a case report, which must be retained on each student’s main course admissions file, to be made available for UKVI scrutiny.

1.5.4 A student who is not successful in meeting the required level of English will only be permitted to re-enrol on a further PSE course at a later date, having left the University to improve their level of English, in order to comply with Student Route visa regulations. This improvement must be evidenced by submission of a new SELT, must show academic progression as defined by the Home Office and must have been approved by the CURAL Associate Director – Admissions, Advice and Immigration, or their nominee.

1.6 Assessment

1.6.1 A student shall be deemed to have passed the course on obtaining the required level (see 1.2.1) in each of the following components of the PSE assessment: Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening plus the overall grade derived from these components. The student’s progress on the course will be monitored by the tutors via continuous assessment and be recorded in a portfolio of student coursework and assessment papers, which will capture the outcomes of all formative and summative assessments. The tutor will provide an overall score based on the entire portfolio, including the component grades, and a recommendation as to whether the student has passed, failed, or has marginally failed and may progress to the academic course at the discretion of the relevant Admissions Tutor and with the proviso that in-sessional English Language support is provided. There is no appeal against the academic judgement of the PSE tutor.

1.6.2 A copy of the individual student report shall be given to all students following completion of the course.

1.6.4 Any suspected instances of academic misconduct shall be investigated in accordance with the procedure notified.  Academic misconduct is defined as any attempt by a student to gain an unfair advantage in an assessment.

1.6.5 If a student is found to have attempted to gain an unfair advantage in an assessment, this will be reflected on their individual student report, and a judgement on the severity of the penalty to be applied will be decided by the relevant Admissions Tutor in liaison with the PSE Director or Associate Director, informed by the investigation of the academic misconduct (see 1.6.3). This may result in the student not progressing onto their destination degree programme.

Languages & EAP (LEAP) Team, CUC ltd/Academic Registry July 2023