Program Overview

International Foundation Diploma

Key Facts

• Start dates: September 2025 / January 2026 / September 2026
• Location: Headington
• Course length: Full time: 2 semesters (24 weeks' teaching)
• School(s): Oxford Brookes Business School

Overview

Study this course if any of the following apply to you:

• You have less than 13 years of schooling
• You need to improve your academic skills and English to join an undergraduate course
• You haven't met the entry requirements for direct entry to the first year of a degree.

This foundation course is linked to a range of our excellent degrees in subject areas such as:

• Business and Management
• Arts
• Digital Media and Publishing
• Computing, Education
• Hospitality Management
• Law
• English and Modern Languages
• History
• Philosophy and Culture
• Real Estate and Construction
• and Social Sciences.

Over two semesters you choose a personal pathway of modules that build on your language and academic skills and reflect your own subject and career interests.

How to Apply

Entry Requirements

• Academic entry requirements:
  • Qualifications from your country
  • British A-levels: EE
  • British AS-levels: CCC
  • International Baccalaureate: 20 points
  • IGCSE: 5 grade Cs/4s
  • Applicants without the appropriate Maths GCSE grade (or equivalent), who wish to progress to a course that requires Maths GCSE (or equivalent), will need to take the compulsory Maths and Statistics module within the foundation year.
• Minimum age: The normal minimum age for this course is 18. We will admit 17-year-olds on a case-by-case basis if they turn 18 during the academic year in which the course runs.
• English language requirements: UKVI-approved SELT IELTS 5.0 with 5.0 in all skills (test must be taken at an approved test centre).

Application Process

Apply online directly to Oxford Brookes

Tuition Fees

• 2025/26:
  • Home (UK) full time: £5,760
  • International full time: £16,000
• 2026/27:
  • Home (UK) full time: £5,760
  • International full time: £17,250

Learning and Assessment

Over two semesters you choose a personal pathway of modules that build on your language and academic skills and reflect your own subject and career interests.

You will develop your knowledge of academic subjects through modules related to your future course of study.

You will also increase your knowledge of English and confidence in using it for academic purposes, and develop your study skills and critical thinking skills before beginning your degree course.

Student Support

Our student support team provides academic and pastoral student support services for all students across all Pathways programmes.

Study Modules

You must take and pass eight modules to complete the foundation year.

• Compulsory modules:
  • Academic Study Skills 1
  • Academic Study Skills 2
  • University Study Skills
  • Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
  • Communication and Culture
  • Extended Research Essay
  • Business Fundamentals (Business and Technology students)
  • Economics for Business (Business and Technology students)
  • Ideas and Ideologies (Humanities, Law and Social Science Students)
  • Foundations of Computing Programming (Computer Science Students)
• Optional modules:
  • Maths and Statistics for University Study
  • Development Studies (recommended for all students)
  • English Law (recommended for all students)
  • Global Issues (recommended for all students)
  • Tourism and Hospitality (recommended for Business students)
  • Literature, Art and Media (recommended for Humanities and Social Science students)
  • Perspectives on Britishness (recommended for Humanities and Social Science students)

Progression

Once you pass your foundation year with the required grades, this foundation diploma can prepare you for a range of degrees at Oxford Brookes that are listed below.

• Accounting and Economics
• Accounting and Finance
• Marketing and Events Management
• Biological Sciences (Genetics and Genomics)
• Biological Sciences (Human Biosciences)
• Biomedical Science
• Business and Finance
• Business and Management
• Business and Marketing Management
• Business Management and Geography
• Business, Enterprise and Entrepreneurship
• Communication, Media and Culture
• Computer Science
• Computer Science for Cyber Security
• Construction Project Management
• Criminology
• Digital Media Production
• English Literature
• English Literature with Creative Writing
• Early Childhood Studies
• Economics, Finance and International Business
• Economics, Politics and International Relations
• Education Studies
• Education Studies - SEN, Disabilities and Inclusion
• History of Art
• Geography
• History
• Equine Science
• Events Management
• Medical Science
• International Business Management
• International Relations
• International Relations and Politics
• Japanese Studies
• Law
• Marketing Management
• Biological Sciences
• Nutrition
• Philosophy
• Property Development and Planning
• Sociology
• Sport and Exercise Science
• Sport, Coaching and Physical Education
• Media, Journalism and Publishing
• Psychology
• Quantity Surveying and Commercial Management
• Real Estate
• Film
• Business Management and International Relations
• Artificial Intelligence
• Anthropology
• Biological Sciences (Zoology)
• Building Surveying
• Law with Business
• Law with Criminology
• Business and Law
• Criminology and Law
• Liberal Arts
• Information Technology for Business BSc (Hons) (Final Year Entry)
• Criminology and Education Studies (joint honours)
• Criminology and Sociology (joint honours)
• Economics
• Digital Marketing
• Modern Languages with Translation
• Anthropology and Communication, Media and Culture (joint honours)
• Anthropology and English Literature (joint honours)
• Anthropology and Geography (joint honours)
• Anthropology and History (joint honours)
• Anthropology and History of Art (joint honours)
• Anthropology and International Relations (joint honours)
• Anthropology and Philosophy (joint honours)
• Anthropology and Sociology (joint honours)
• Communication, Media and Culture and International Relations (joint honours)
• Communication, Media and Culture and Politics (joint honours)
• Criminology and International Relations (joint honours)
• Criminology and Politics (joint honours)
• Geography and History (joint honours)
• Geography and International Relations (joint honours)
• History and International Relations (joint honours)
• History and Politics (joint honours)
• International Relations and Philosophy (joint honours)
• International Relations and Sociology (joint honours)
• Philosophy and Politics (joint honours)