Lancaster University

Undergraduate entry

All full-time undergraduate applications are made through UCAS using UCAS Hub, with personal details, qualifications, an academic reference and a personal statement. Offers are made on a rolling basis, and the Admissions team aims to decide within three weeks of receiving an application. Offers are based on actual grades, not UCAS tariff points; the University typically expects the equivalent of three full A levels, and some courses also require particular GCSE subjects (GCSE English Language at grade 4/C and, for many courses, GCSE Mathematics at 4/C, 5/B or 6/B). Typical offers sit in the AAA to BBB range depending on the course, with the following standard equivalences:

• A levels: three full A levels; a fourth A level at grade B, an AS level at grade B, a grade B in the Extended Project Qualification or a Merit in the AEA in Mathematics may bring a one-grade-lower alternative offer (for example AAB or ABB plus B in the EPQ).
• BTEC: Extended Diploma DDD for AAA and AAB offers and DDM for ABB and BBB offers; smaller BTECs can be combined with A levels.
• International Baccalaureate Diploma: 36 points with 16 at HL (AAA), 35 with 16 at HL (AAB), 32 with 16 at HL (ABB), 30 with 15 at HL (BBB); a required subject typically at HL 6.
• Scottish Highers: AAABB (AAA), ABBBB (AAB), BBBBB (ABB), BBBCC (BBB); a subject required at A level is typically required at Advanced Higher.
• Access to HE Diploma: from 45 Level 3 credits at Distinction (AAA) to 24 at Distinction and 21 at Merit (BBB).
• T levels: Distinction overall (AAA to ABB) or Merit overall (BBB).

Some courses require an interview and/or a portfolio, and admissions tests such as STEP for Mathematics may be taken into account but are not required. Medicine and Surgery has its own admissions process through Lancaster Medical School.

Contextual offers

The Contextual Offer Scheme applies to all undergraduate courses except MBChB Medicine and Surgery (which has its own contextual scheme and a Gateway Year route) and typically reduces the offer by up to three grades below the advertised requirements, with no separate application. Students completing the Lancaster Access Programme in Years 12 and 13 are typically eligible for a lower offer.

UCAS deadlines

For Medicine and Surgery, and for applicants also applying to Oxford or Cambridge, the UCAS deadline is 15 October 2026, 18:00 UK time. For other courses the equal consideration deadline is 13 January 2027, 18:00 UK time, and the final UCAS deadline is 30 June 2027, 18:00 UK time; later applications go into Clearing. Deferred entry is considered, and transfers into Year 2 are considered case by case (no entry into Year 3 or above).

International undergraduate entry

International school qualifications are assessed by country, with grades given as a range depending on the degree. Applicants who do not meet the entry requirements can take an International Foundation programme at the on-campus Lancaster University International Study Centre, run with INTO, which leads to Year 1 of a degree, and pathway routes are available through overseas partner universities. A two-week Study Start induction programme runs before the start of study.

English language requirements

The standard undergraduate requirement is IELTS Academic 6.5 overall with at least 5.5 in each element; TOEFL iBT 87 overall (minimum 17 listening, 18 reading, 17 speaking, 20 writing) for tests taken before 21 January 2026, or 4.5 overall with 4 in each element for tests from that date; Pearson PTE Academic 58 overall with 42 in each skill (test centre only); Cambridge C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency 176 with 162 in each element; LanguageCert Academic 70 with 60 in each element; Oxford ELLT 7 overall with 5 in each skill. Some science, mathematics and social work courses set different levels, and Medicine and Surgery requires IELTS 7.0 in every component or PTE 70 in each skill. Nationals of majority English-speaking countries are exempt. Pre-sessional English courses of 10, 5 and 4 weeks are available, the 10-week course requiring IELTS 5.5 with 5.0 in each element.

Postgraduate taught and research entry

Postgraduate entry requirements are set per course and expressed in UK degree classifications (First, 2:1 or 2:2), with equivalences for international qualifications by country. Applications are made through the University's online postgraduate application portal, except for the Clinical Psychology DClinPsy (via the Clearing House) and the International Master's Programme for Managers. There is no application fee. Applicants upload transcripts and degree certificates, a personal statement (maximum 500 words recommended), one reference for taught programmes or usually two for research programmes, English language evidence, a research proposal for research degrees and a passport copy for international applicants. Research applicants should identify a potential supervisor. For October 2027 entry, applications should be submitted by 28 July 2027; later applications are considered case by case. Some courses require a deposit to secure a place. English language levels vary by course; the accepted tests include IELTS, TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, LanguageCert, Kaplan, Oxford ELLT, Oxford Test of English Advanced and Cambridge exams, and WAEC/WASSCE English at C6 or above is accepted for applicants from Ghana and Nigeria.

Student visa and CAS

A CAS can be issued no earlier than six months before the course starts, once all offer conditions are met and the place accepted (undergraduates must hold Lancaster as their UCAS firm choice). Checks include passport details, academic and English language evidence, previous UK study, ATAS where required, TB test certificates for relevant countries and, in some cases, evidence of finances held for 28 consecutive days covering the current year's fees and maintenance (10,539 GBP); applicants may be invited to an online interview.

Bailrigg campus, Lancaster (main campus): a 578-acre parkland site south of Lancaster city centre, home to all four faculties, the nine colleges and the central services.

• Colleges and residences: eight undergraduate colleges and Graduate College for postgraduates, with 6,700 bed spaces for undergraduates, postgraduates and families, ranging from en suite rooms and shared flats and houses to self-contained studios; Alexandra Park forms the main residential area to the south of campus.
• Library: at the centre of campus, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week in term time, with print and digital collections, special collections and archives; winner of the 2025 SCONUL award for library spaces design.
• Sport: Sport Lancaster's sports centre has a climbing wall, swimming pool, 100-station multi-floor gym, squash courts and two multifunction sports halls, with outdoor pitches (some all-weather) and tennis courts.
• Health Innovation Campus at the north of the site, and research buildings including InfoLab21 and the Lancaster Environment Centre.
• Support and amenities: college staff on duty around the clock, the Disability and Inclusive Practice Service, Student Mental Health Service, ten University-owned cafés and bars, independent and chain restaurants, and a pre-school.
• International Study Centre: an on-campus centre run with INTO for international foundation and pre-master's programmes.

Lancaster city: Chancellor's Wharf halls for continuing undergraduate students.

Overseas and partner locations teaching Lancaster degrees:

• Lancaster University Leipzig, Germany.
• Lancaster University Ghana, Accra (established 2013).
• Lancaster University College at Beijing Jiaotong University, Weihai, China (first students in 2016): business and management and technology-related dual degrees.
• Deakin University Lancaster University Indonesia, Bandung: dual degrees in business and computer science.
• Sunway University, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (partnership since 2006): architecture, business and management, computing and communications, film, and medical and life sciences.
• University Academy 92 (UA92), Manchester, co-founded with the Class of '92.
• UK partner colleges with Lancaster-awarded degrees: Blackburn College, Blackpool and The Fylde College, and Furness College (Barrow).