Resources overview

Manual for Academic Communication Skills (only available in Dutch)

The Handboek Academische Communicatieve Vaardigheden (HACV; Manual for Academic Communication Skills), formerly known as Noordster, provides Dutch language support for lecturers and students in higher education.

• For students the HACV contains a great number of handouts with recommendations and guidelines on how to approach writing assignments and other communicative tasks in Dutch, such as holding a presentation or interview, writing strategies and making reference to sources.
• Lecturers are offered tools for training students in the field of Dutch communication skills (written and oral) as well as ideas and suggestions for integrating assignments in their subject teaching.

MAGICC: Modularising Multilingual and Multicultural Academic Communication Competence

The MAGICC project describes and conceptualises multilingual and multicultural communication competences including first language(s) for the higher education level, complements the Council of Europe's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and provides transnational tools for integrating academic, intercultural, and life-long learning dimensions in the graduate's multilingual repertoire building. It also enables shared understanding of reference levels and transnational harmonisation of alternative forms of assessment and supports recognition of students' multilingual and multicultural profile, and renders it visible to third parties. (European LLP 2011-2014)

Prepare for Success - Learning activities to prepare you for study in the UK

Prepare for Success is an interactive web learning tool for international students who are getting ready to come to the UK for study in further or higher education. It contains learning resources which are activity-based to help you find out about different aspects of academic life in the UK and the skills needed for effective study. As well as preparing you for what to expect during your studies, the activities provide scope for English language improvement*. (University of Southampton)

The Academic Word List (AWL)

The Academic Word List (AWL) was developed by Averil Coxhead as her MA thesis at the School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. The list contains 570 word families which were selected according to principles. The list does not include words that are in the most frequent 2000 words of English. The AWL was primarily made so that it could be used by teachers as part of a programme preparing learners for tertiary level study or used by students working alone to learn the words most needed to study at tertiary institutions. The Academic Word List replaces the University Word List. (Victoria University of Wellington)

The Academic Phrasebank

The Academic Phrasebank is a general resource for academic writers. It aims to provide you with examples of some of the phraseological ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing organised according to the main sections of a research paper or dissertation (see the top menu ). Other phrases are listed under the more general communicative functions of academic writing (see the menu on the left). (University of Manchester).