Undergraduate entry requirements

Minimum entry requirements

Honours degree courses and Degree Apprenticeships

 You usually need two A-levels or an equivalent qualification such as:

• A BTEC Diploma or Extended Diploma
• International Baccalaureate
• Irish Highers
• Access to Higher Education Diploma
• T Levels.

However, there are other paths to entry – read on for more info.

Foundation courses

You usually need one A-level, or equivalent.

BTEC qualifications

To achieve equivalency to an A-Level qualification, you will need to have achieved 360 Guided Learning Hours (GLH).  In Reformed BTECs, unit sizes tend to be 120, 90 or 60 GLH. Your total number of GLHs will be determined from units you are studying / have studied to see if you can achieve the 360 hours required.

Some examples of the guided learning hours for comparison in your qualifications:

• Certificate (30 credits, 180 GLH)
• Subsidiary Diploma (60 credits, 360 GLH)
• 90-credit Diploma (90 credits, 540 GLH)
• Diploma (120 credits, 720 GLH)
• Extended Diploma (180 credits, 1080 GLH)

T Levels

We welcome applications from students studying T Level qualifications. Some courses require T Levels in relevant subjects, please check the entry requirements of your chosen course for more information.

Students with only a core or occupational specialism completed from their T Level are still required to have the equivalent of two full A-levels as part of our minimum entry requirements. As a result, if you are applying with only the core or occupational specialism, this may be insufficient as a stand-alone qualification.

Course-specific requirements

• We use the UCAS Tariff system to make offers to applicants. You can use the UCAS Tariff Calculator to convert your qualifications and grades into points.
• General Studies and AS-level subjects (not taken onto full A2) can be included towards your overall tariff score.
• For some courses we require specific subjects and grades. These are listed on each course entry.

GCSE requirements

Grade C/4 or above in GCSE English Language or Literature (or equivalent qualification) is required for entry to all undergraduate courses. Grade C/4 or above in GCSE Maths and/or Science (or equivalent qualification) is also required for entry to some undergraduate courses.

Some courses have higher grade requirements. Please check the entry requirements section of the relevant course page for the specific requirements.

We consider the following qualifications as equivalent to GCSE Grade C/4*:

• iGCSE (Grade C)
• Scottish Advanced Higher (Grade C)
• Scottish Higher (Grade C)
• Scottish Standard Grade Credit (Grade 2)
• A Level (Pass)
• AS Level (Pass)
• Access to Higher Education (12 Credits at Level 2 or 9 Credits at Level 3)
• IB Middle Years Programme (Grade 3)
• IB Baccalaureate Diploma English Standard Level (Grade 5)
• IB Baccalaureate Diploma English Higher Level (Grade 4)

We accept Level 2 Key Skills and Functional Skills as alternatives to GCSE for most courses. Please check the course pages for more specific information. Some courses have higher requirements at Level 2. We do not accept Certificates in Adult Literacy and Numeracy as alternatives to GCSEs.

If you do not have the GCSE requirement for your course and are unable to take a GCSE qualification, we will accept recognised equivalent qualifications such as those provided by Equivalency Testing, A Star Equivalency and Maths Made Easy (MME).

English Language tests not listed above (including the University's Online English Language Test) cannot be used as an alternative to GCSEs.

For postgraduate courses, if you are an International and EU applicant or English is not your first language, you are required to have a minimum overall IELTS (Academic) score of 6.5 with 5.5 in each component (or approved equivalent*).

For Degree Apprenticeship courses we can only accept a qualification that meets the Department for Education apprenticeship standard.

*This list is not exhaustive. If your qualification is not listed please contact our Admissions Team to check if it meets our requirements.

If you don't quite meet the requirements

Sometimes life gets in the way of study, or you change paths after school. That’s why we will consider evidence of personal, professional and educational experience that demonstrates your ability to study at degree level.

However, this may not be possible if the course has a specific A-level (or equivalent) subject requirement.

We also welcome students who are undertaking other qualifications like the Extended Project and AS Levels not taken onto the full A-level. We will include these in your total Tariff point score.

If you have any questions about our entry requirements, please contact our Admissions team and we can discuss your application.

Offer types explained

If you have not received your exam results, your offer from us will be conditional and will be subject to you achieving the tariff points/grades required for your course.

If you have already satisfied the academic entry requirements of your chosen course, you are likely to be made an unconditional offer.

Please note that we will only make unconditional offers if you have already achieved your qualifications. To make sure our applicants are academically prepared for when they start their studies here, we do not make unconditional offers to those that are still studying their Level 3 qualifications (such as A-levels, BTEC, Access or equivalent). We hope that this will encourage our applicants to value their academic achievements as much as we do.

Find out more information about offers, results and confirmation.

International applicants

UWE Bristol is a global university – we welcome enquiries and applications from talented people from around the world. To find out more about our entry requirements and how to apply, you can:

• read our country specific information
• contact your local British Council Office
• visit the Education UK website
• email the International Office your CV at international@uwe.ac.uk, confirming which course your are interested in studying, the details of all your qualifications including the examining boards, and grades or scores you've achieved.

Find out more

Read more on our entry requirement policies:

• Applications and admissions policies