Welcome to Southampton

Southampton, an excellent place to study

The city of Southampton is on the south coast of England within easy reach of London by train. The city has a rich and varied heritage and is one of the great European ports. It has played a significant role in Britain’s maritime history from the sailing of the Mayflower to the fateful voyage of the Titanic. Today, the city is the home of ocean sailing. Southampton is the region’s main culture centre and is set amidst some of Britain’s most significant historical sites such as the ancient cathedral cities of Salisbury and Winchester, the prehistoric site of Stonehenge, and the picturesque New Forest, one of the oldest and most beautiful woodlands in Europe. The seaside resort of Bournemouth is only half an hour a way.

The University is one of the leading research-led universities in the country, with an international reputation for the quality of its work.

The Centre for Language Study at the University of Southampton is a long-established teaching centre with a considerable reputation for expertise in the field of teaching and learning languages. The Centre is technically advanced and is an acknowledged leader in the field of open learning and particularly multimedia and hypermedia applications.

Excellent social and cultural facilities

As a pre-sessional student, you are granted full use of the University's Students' Union facilities which include extensive recreational and catering facilities. You will have access to the University library and computer facilities including E-mail and the Internet.

During August and September there will also be a programme of regular excursions and social activities. This will include day trips to historic and interesting sites around Southampton and further afield (e.g. optional trips to Bath, Oxford and other places of interest). There will also be a range of evening and weekend activities.

Accommodation

During the course you will be accommodated in one of the University’s Halls of Residence, in self-catered flats with single studybedrooms, grouped around shared kitchens and other shared facilities. Rooms will be en-suite where possible. Halls of residence are situated within walking distance of the campuses.

Social organisers will be in residence for the Summer vacation courses and will be available to help you with any problems you may have, as well as arranging a number of social activites. Staying in Hall gives you many extra opportunities for informal English language practice.

Visit the Accommodation Service website.

Meet and Greet

A meet and greet service will run between London Heathrow and the University of Southampton on the day before a course commences. Details and how to apply for a place are available on our Meet and Greet transport application form.

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Arrive UK: A free online course preparing our international students for living and studying in the UK

Arrive UK is our highly successful course preparing international students for living and studying in the UK. This will be the fifth year that it is being offered FREE to students registered for a Presessional Course at the University of Southampton. Arrive UK lasts for five weeks and is delivered through the internet to you in your home country. This year we are also offering Arrive UK in a discipline–specific format for students on the School of Management Presessional Course– the course is called Boarding Pass.

We aim to make Arrive UK and Boarding Pass a fun experience and one which will also help you learn a lot about living and studying in Southampton.

In 2010 Arrive UK will run from 31st May to 2nd July (for students on Pre-sessional Course A) and 5th July to 6th August (for students on Pre-sessional Course B)

Boarding Pass will run from 26th April to 28th May (for students on 15 week School of Management Presessional Course) and 31st May to 2nd July (for students on 10 or 5 week School of Management Presessional Course)

These courses will:

• allow you to meet and make friends with other students coming to the University
• allow you to meet British tutors from the University of Southampton
• help you get ready for the changes that you can expect when moving to a new country
• answer many of the questions you have about your future life and study in Southampton
• introduce you to your future place of study - the University of Southampton, and the city where you will live
• help you prepare you for the Presessional Course in English for Academic Purposes

Try out an example activity now! 

If you have registered for the Pre-sessional Course you will be sent a username and password and access details a few days before Arrive UK begins. We look forward to meeting you online! Arrive UK is not compulsory and will not be formally assessed.

What do students say about Arrive UK?

In 2009 over 200 presessional course students paid their deposits in time and took up the offer of this free online course.

When students finally arrive in Southampton to start the presessional course they meet their online tutors and other international students face-to-face. Here are just a few of the comments made by students about their Arrive UK experience:

"It is really fantastic as a first-time-used online course!" 

"It was great experience for me to do this online course. I received lots of benefits of talking online and sharing ideas and information."

"The exercises and materials are very interesting and helpful. I got much information about life in Southampton from these."

"Arrive UK is excellent and I did get some information about my School and knew my classmates as well."

"It was very good, fantastic!!! Making it easy to create your profile and uploading photos are excellent ideas!"