We accept a range of English Language certificates for entry to our pre-sessional courses. Entry requirements for our pre-sessional courses are shown for IELTS scores.
You can use the information on this page to check which certificates we accept, and to find out the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) equivalencies for certificates other than IELTS.
Please carefully consider which test you take, as it may affect the type of visa you are eligible to apply for. Read more about visas.
We accept the following English Language certificates for entry to our pre-sessional courses:
- IELTS (International English Language Testing System) Academic or IELTS for UKVI (United Kingdom Visas and Immigration) (Academic). Please note that we cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study. The requirements must be met through a single IELTS test, or via a single test and One Skill Retake. We do not accept IELTS Indicator.
- PTE (Pearson Test of English) Academic or PTE Academic UKVI Please note that we cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.
- LanguageCert Academic. Please note that we cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.
- TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test). Please note that we do not accept TOEFL MyBest scores and we expect candidates to have met the relevant requirements from a single TOEFL test. We do not accept the TOEFL iBT Home Edition or the TOEFL iBT Paper Edition. We cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.
- Trinity College London ISE (Integrated Skills in English). Please note that we cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.
- NCUK English Language Test. Please note that this qualification is no longer offered but we can accept existing results as long as they will be no more than two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.
- A suitable Cambridge English qualification
- iGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) English as a first or second language.
Find your equivalent IELTS score
Entry requirements for our pre-sessional courses are shown for IELTS scores.
If you have a Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic, TOEFL iBT or LanguageCert Academic test, use the following tables to find the IELTS equivalent for your test score. If you have another certificate from the previous list, email the Language Centre at langc@leeds.ac.uk.
Then visit our pre-sessional entry requirements pages for undergraduate applicants, Masters applicants or research applicants to find the length of pre-sessional course you should study.
Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic
| Your Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic score | Equivalent to IELTS 4.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 4.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 43 | 48 | 54 | 59 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 |
| Reading component | 43 | 48 | 54 | 59 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 |
| Writing component | 43 | 48 | 54 | 59 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 |
| Speaking component | 43 | 48 | 54 | 59 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 |
| Listening component | 43 | 48 | 54 | 59 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 |
TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test)
You must have at least the given score in each component, as well the overall score:
| Your TOEFL iBT overall score |
Equivalent to IELTS 4.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 4.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 50 | 57 | 63 | 72 | 80 | 88 | 95 | 103 |
| Reading component | 9 | 12 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| Writing component | 13 | 15 | 16 | 19 | 21 | 22 | 24 | 25 |
| Speaking component | 16 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Listening component | 12 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
LanguageCert Academic
| Your LanguageCert Academic overall score | Equivalent to IELTS 4.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 4.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 5.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 6.5 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.0 | Equivalent to IELTS 7.5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 45 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |
| Reading component | 45 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |
| Writing component | 45 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |
| Speaking component | 45 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |
| Listening component | 45 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |