Learn English for Academic Purposes (LEAP)
What is Learn English for Academic Purposes?
Learn English for Academic Purposes (LEAP) is a programme which is primarily designed to help international students with their academic English skills.
LEAP offers a range of free online English Language and skills workshops, 1-2-1 tutorials, and help and support that you can benefit from whilst studying here at the University of Salford.
Our online offering is designed to support your academic English development, so that your work is of a higher quality.
About LEAP
LEAP gives you the opportunity to develop your academic English language skills, so that your academic work is of a higher quality. Our online workshops are student-centred and interactive, allowing you to practice your skills.
Depending on the online workshop you choose, you will develop academic fluency for speaking, listening, reading, and writing. You will do this through a combination of tutor input, discussions, and practical activities with students from a range of disciplines across the University.
Our online workshops, which are usually 30-40 minutes in length, take place via the Microsoft Teams virtual learning environment. At the end of your workshop, you will have the opportunity to ask your teacher workshop-specific questions, and for extra practice materials. If you are based on campus, you can also benefit from dedicated learning space in the Language Resource Centre, on the 9th floor of the Maxwell Building.
There are no formal assessments on our LEAP course, but there are a lot of informal activities which take place in each session so that you can monitor your progress and receive feedback from your LEAP tutor.
LEAP is delivered by passionate, highly qualified, and experienced English language lecturers who make sure that every session is enjoyable and valuable. Our sessions are also accredited by the British Council to provide you with the assurance that you are receiving the highest level of teaching and support.
Our online workshops run at various times throughout the week in trimesters one, two, and three, and are open to both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
The workshops focus on challenges that are commonly encountered by international students adapting to the requirements of academic study in the UK.
Benefits of LEAP
English language competency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking enhances the quality of your academic work, which is crucial for success during your study at the University of Salford.
Highly competent English Language communicators are more highly valued by employers in whichever country you plan to work in when you graduate.
LEAP helps you interact with people from different backgrounds and enables you to make new friends. This will have a positive impact on your mental wellbeing.
Our LEAP sessions are designed to be interactive and help you practice your academic skills, so that you can communicate more effectively with your peers, tutors, and wider academic communities.

How will I Learn?
Depending on which online workshop you choose, you will cover a range of topics.
Our current online workshops are listed below and are bookable through Advantage by clicking on the workshop title. If a session has no remaining spaces, you can email LEAP@salford.ac.uk to register your interest.
The only thing we ask is that you attend all online workshops that you have booked onto (unless you have a valid reason for absence, such as illness).
Should you know beforehand that you will be absent, please cancel your tutorial slot on Advantage, so that another student can make use of it.
LEAP workshops are added on a regular basis, so keep checking back to see what’s new!
What topics do we cover?
Academic Listening:
- Notetaking strategies
- Notetaking skills
Academic Reading:
- Reading Strategies
- Understanding writer stance
- Reading critically
Academic Writing:
- Using hedging and cautious language
- Linking ideas in writing
- Paraphrasing
- Citations
- Referencing
- Signposting ideas
- Planning and organising written work
- Synthesising ideas
- Thesis statements
Academic Speaking:
- Presentation essentials
- Using your voice effectively
- Engaging your audience
Study Skills:
- Academic Word Lists
- Useful websites for Academic English
- Understanding and using teacher feedback
- Understanding and using assessment documents.
- Learning independently
Research Skills:
- Structuring your PG dissertation: An overview
- Structuring your Introduction section
- Language for your Introduction section
- Structuring your Literature Review section
- Language for your Literature Review section
- Structuring your Methodology section
- Language for your Methodology section
- Structuring your Findings section
- Language for your Findings section
- Structuring your Discussion section
- Language for your Discussion section
- Structuring your Conclusion section
- Language for your Conclusion section
- Defending thesis in Interim Assessment
- Defending thesis in Internal Evaluation
- Defending thesis in Viva Voce
1-2-1 LEAP tutorials
If you have questions about your own work or you would like help about a particular problem, our 1-2-1 tutorial slots are bookable through Advantage. Tutorial slots are added on a weekly basis, so please check back here if the sessions are fully booked up.
The only thing we ask is that you attend your 1-2-1 tutorial once you have booked onto it (unless you have a valid reason for absence, such as illness). Should you know beforehand that you will be absent, please cancel your tutorial slot on Advantage, so that another student can make use of it, and email leap@salford.ac.uk, so that we can inform your tutor to rearrange your 1-2-1.
Courses we offer
- Bespoke LEAP Courses
The LEAP team may be able to offer bespoke courses to Programme Leaders who request them for their students, as part of their academic programme.
Please contact LEAP@salford.ac.uk for more information.
- Undergraduate-focused LEAP Course
(LEAP) is offering a new five-week course on practical Academic Writing skills for all undergraduate students whose native language is not English.
If this is something you are interested in, please book your place using the links below. Please only book onto one slot.
Places are limited and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. If you wish to cancel your place, please email LEAP@salford.ac.uk.
LEAP online workshops
1.0. Academic Reading: Reading Strategies. [Online].
Starts: 2 Oct 2023, 10:00 amFinishes: 2 Oct 2023, 10:40 amRemaining places: 16This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.5.1. Structuring your PG dissertation: An overview. [ONLINE].
Starts: 2 Oct 2023, 4:00 pmFinishes: 2 Oct 2023, 4:40 pmRemaining places: 20By the end of this 40 minute online workshop, you will have:
- identified the different components of a dissertation.
- understood what to write in each chapter.
- gained an insight into how to structure a dissertation coherently.7.0. Academic Writing: Planning and organising written work. [Online].
Starts: 3 Oct 2023, 5:00 pmFinishes: 3 Oct 2023, 5:40 pmRemaining places: 9This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.1.0. Academic Speaking: Presentation Essentials. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 10:00 amFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 10:40 amRemaining places: 26In this LEAP online workshop, you will review some essential elements of a good academic presentation.5.2. PG Dissertations: Structure of the Introduction. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 12:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 12:40 pmRemaining places: 28By the end of this online workshop, you will be able to:
- understand the purposes of writing different components in an introduction chapter.
- analyse the language features of a thesis introduction.
- prepare to write your research aims, objectives, & questions.10.0. Academic Writing: Effective communication via Email. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 12:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 12:30 pmRemaining places: 28This 30-minute online LEAP workshop will help international students improve their written communication skills, focusing on the features of effective emails. Emails are an essential tool for communicating with academic and administrative staff within the university.9.2. PG Dissertations: Language for the Introduction. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 1:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 1:30 pmRemaining places: 28This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.5.2. PG Dissertations: Structure of the Introduction. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 2:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 2:40 pmRemaining places: 30By the end of this online workshop, you will be able to:
- understand the purposes of writing different components in an introduction chapter.
- analyse the language features of a thesis introduction.
- prepare to write your research aims, objectives, & questions.9.2. PG Dissertations: Language for the Introduction. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 3:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 3:30 pmRemaining places: 29This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.1.0. Academic Writing: Hedging/Cautious Language. [Online].
Starts: 4 Oct 2023, 3:00 pmFinishes: 4 Oct 2023, 3:40 pmRemaining places: 30This 40-minute online LEAP session will help students improve their academic writing by focusing on expressing ideas clearly and accurately using cautious language, or hedging.1.0. Academic Listening: Notetaking Strategies. [Online].
Starts: 5 Oct 2023, 11:00 amFinishes: 5 Oct 2023, 11:40 amRemaining places: 28This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.8.0. Academic Writing: Synthesising Ideas. [Online].
Starts: 10 Oct 2023, 5:00 pmFinishes: 10 Oct 2023, 5:30 pmRemaining places: 30This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.1.0. Academic Writing: Hedging and cautious language. [Online].
Starts: 11 Oct 2023, 12:00 pmFinishes: 11 Oct 2023, 12:30 pmRemaining places: 30This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.2.0. Academic Writing: Linking ideas in writing. [Online].
Starts: 11 Oct 2023, 3:00 pmFinishes: 11 Oct 2023, 3:30 pmRemaining places: 30This online workshop is aimed primarily towards international students who would like to enhance their Academic English skills.
Extra support outside LEAP
LEAP is a service directed primarily at international students, but we have collated below resources which may be useful to members of staff.
Wordscope
Skills for Life
EAP
- Using English for Academic Purposes for students in Higher Education
- eapfoundation.com
- Academic Phrasebook
- The Purdue OWL® - Purdue OWL® - Purdue University
- Academic English Online
General
British Council - Learn English online
Listening
TED Talks
Terms and conditions
All LEAP sessions are bookable through the Advantage system, and sessions are completely free of charge for current University of Salford students! The only thing we ask is that you attend every session that you have booked onto, unless you have a valid reason for absence (which, in this case you should cancel your booking via Advantage).
Please be aware that we may have to cancel, suspend, or terminate a session if any circumstances beyond our control prevent or delay its delivery (including but not limited to staff shortage) or if participant numbers fall below a sustainable/viable level. By completing your booking, you are deemed to accept these terms and conditions.
Contact us
Should you have any queries, please email them to the LEAP administration team: LEAP@salford.ac.uk.
We aim to respond to all queries as soon as possible.
Leap feedback survey
Have you attended any of our LEAP sessions? We would love to hear your feedback!