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Every year, millions of students from all parts of the globe study for a degree through a language other than their first, usually English. In 2023, 25% of all higher education students in the UK were international students.

The understanding is that the incoming students will have, or develop, enough proficiency in English as a second language to study engineering, history, physics and other courses taught in English.

English-medium courses are also offered in countries where English is not the first language. In Sweden, where English has no official status, 66% of master’s programmes were taught through English in 2020. Universities in France primarily attract overseas students from Francophone Africa, to study in French, but they also offer courses taught in English.

Where domestic and international students study together, even those students who stay at home get to have an international experience when they meet students from other countries.

In some parts of the world, English is preferred over local languages for domestic students, in the belief that this will equip them for their professional lives.

Learning plans

If you’re planning on taking a degree taught in English and it’s not your first language, you already know that it will probably be more challenging than learning in your mother tongue would be.

Following what is being explained in lectures may be more difficult, and you may come up against unfamiliar vocabulary in the course literature. Group work can also be hard if students have varying levels of proficiency in English.

Lecturers may also be uncomfortable helping students with English, and do not see themselves as language teachers, even though all students need to become familiar with the specific language used in the field they are studying.

Group work comes with challenges but can also allow useful collaboration.
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Fortunately, there is a lot you can do as a student to meet the challenges of studying in a second language.

Continue to work on your academic literacy. Vocabulary development is key to understanding academic texts and lectures.

Keep a list of key concepts and expressions related to the field you are studying as you come across them in your reading and lectures. Add translations into your strongest languages. Use a dictionary to get the exact meanings of words.

Do the assigned reading in good time. During your reading and lectures you can take well-structured notes in any or all of your languages. Use technology to support your reading, but be careful of mistakes made by automatic translation.

Research effective reading and note taking strategies. Use any study support your university offers. Practise writing in English regularly – free writing or copying out paragraphs from your set texts will develop your writing fluency.

Before lectures you may be able to access the lecturer’s slides. Make sure you understand them. Annotate them in your first language. Becoming familiar with course materials before a lecture or other activity can support learning by reducing the amount of new information you need to deal with in class.

If possible, arrange a study group with other students who share your first or another language. You each read the course literature and then discuss it together in the languages you choose, to make sure everyone is on board. If the lecturer has made summaries of the literature, or shares lecture slides, discuss them before or after lectures to make sure you have understood the main points.

Consider multilingual collaborative note taking with other students, so that you all can access and contribute to a shared document, possibly based on the lecture slides (but be aware that these notes cannot replace your independent classwork).

You may be reluctant to ask questions in class, but it is important that you are clear on what you are expected to do. Your question helps the lecturer see what is difficult, and others are probably wondering the same thing.

Plan and write a first draft of written work using any or all of your languages. This is called translanguaging – using all the language skills that you have at your disposal to think freely about your work. If you stick to what you can easily express in English you may limit your thinking.

You don’t need to do all your studying only in English. Use your linguistic resources to make the most of your opportunities.

Una Cunningham does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.