Considering Pharmacy at LJMU - Worried About Understanding the Accent
Hi everyone,
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
Reply 1
Hi there,
Congratulations on reaching the interview stage for the MPharm course!
From my experience, lecturers speak clearly, and if you ever miss something, they’re happy to repeat or explain it differently. It’s completely normal to ask for clarification, both in lectures and group work, and you’ll probably find you get used to accents over time.
Liverpool is a very diverse city, and LJMU has a large student population across two campuses. Not everyone speaks with a strong Scouse accent—personally, I’ve met many students from Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and other parts of the UK. Liverpool also hosts lots of cultural events, like Chinese New Year and St Patrick’s Day, which students from all backgrounds take part in.
If you want to get a feel for the diversity of staff and students, you could search for Liverpool John Moores University on YouTube.
We also have a Pharmacy rep on Unibuddy if you would like to ask them: https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/study/undergraduate-students/chat-to-a-student
Hope that helps, and good luck with your interview!
Megan (LJMU Rep)
Congratulations on reaching the interview stage for the MPharm course!
From my experience, lecturers speak clearly, and if you ever miss something, they’re happy to repeat or explain it differently. It’s completely normal to ask for clarification, both in lectures and group work, and you’ll probably find you get used to accents over time.
Liverpool is a very diverse city, and LJMU has a large student population across two campuses. Not everyone speaks with a strong Scouse accent—personally, I’ve met many students from Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and other parts of the UK. Liverpool also hosts lots of cultural events, like Chinese New Year and St Patrick’s Day, which students from all backgrounds take part in.
If you want to get a feel for the diversity of staff and students, you could search for Liverpool John Moores University on YouTube.
We also have a Pharmacy rep on Unibuddy if you would like to ask them: https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/study/undergraduate-students/chat-to-a-student
Hope that helps, and good luck with your interview!
Megan (LJMU Rep)
Reply 2
Original post
by n33d2knowHi everyone,
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
Hello,
Congratulations on your progress.
As a LJMU student I also find that I miss things in the lecture sometimes. If I have, after my lecture I access the lecture recording that my lecturer has posted into canvas which means I can replay it if needs be as well as, slow it down. This is a very quck and effective process I have found.
I hope I have helped and please let me know if you have anymore questions.
Jack.
Reply 3
6
Original post
by LJMUStudentRepsHello,
Congratulations on your progress.
As a LJMU student I also find that I miss things in the lecture sometimes. If I have, after my lecture I access the lecture recording that my lecturer has posted into canvas which means I can replay it if needs be as well as, slow it down. This is a very quck and effective process I have found.
I hope I have helped and please let me know if you have anymore questions.
Jack.
Congratulations on your progress.
As a LJMU student I also find that I miss things in the lecture sometimes. If I have, after my lecture I access the lecture recording that my lecturer has posted into canvas which means I can replay it if needs be as well as, slow it down. This is a very quck and effective process I have found.
I hope I have helped and please let me know if you have anymore questions.
Jack.
Thanks for the insight jack! Does it affect your quality of study in anyway? Like do you find yourself behind the other students or such? Because that's what I'm most worried about, this directly affecting my learning (the whole point of going to uni lol)
Reply 4
Original post
by n33d2knowHi everyone,
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
I’m currently applying to study MPharm and have received an interview from Liverpool John Moores University. I'm genuinely considering going there, but I have one concern that’s been making me quite anxious.
English is not my first language, and while I can read and write quite well, I sometimes struggle with fast or strong spoken accents — especially regional ones. I’ve heard that the Liverpool (Scouse) accent can be quite strong, and I’m really worried that I might have trouble understanding the lecturers or even other students during classes or group work.
This isn’t meant to be rude or offensive at all — I completely respect different accents and dialects in the UK, I’m just being honest about something that might affect my learning experience.
Are there any current LJMU students here (especially those studying MPharm) who can tell me whether this is something I should be worried about?
Are the lecturers easy to understand, even for non-native English speakers?
Does the accent make things harder in lectures or tutorials?
Is it something you get used to over time?
I’d really appreciate any honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance!
Hi,
I’m a pharmacy student and I can say that our tutors and students are really diverse, not just from Liverpool. Lecturers usually use a microphone in lectures, so you can hear them clearly even from the back of the room. If you prefer, you can also sit closer to the front to make it easier to follow along.
Like any new environment, accents may take a little getting used to, but over time it becomes completely normal. Group work and interactions are friendly and supportive, so if you ever need clarification, people are happy to repeat or explain things.
Overall, it’s definitely manageable and shouldn’t stop you from enjoying the course.
Please do let me know if you have any other questions, I’ll be happy to answer either on here or UniBuddy.
Tayba
Student Rep
Reply 5
6
Original post
by LJMUStudentRepsHi,
I’m a pharmacy student and I can say that our tutors and students are really diverse, not just from Liverpool. Lecturers usually use a microphone in lectures, so you can hear them clearly even from the back of the room. If you prefer, you can also sit closer to the front to make it easier to follow along.
Like any new environment, accents may take a little getting used to, but over time it becomes completely normal. Group work and interactions are friendly and supportive, so if you ever need clarification, people are happy to repeat or explain things.
Overall, it’s definitely manageable and shouldn’t stop you from enjoying the course.
Please do let me know if you have any other questions, I’ll be happy to answer either on here or UniBuddy.
Tayba
Student Rep
I’m a pharmacy student and I can say that our tutors and students are really diverse, not just from Liverpool. Lecturers usually use a microphone in lectures, so you can hear them clearly even from the back of the room. If you prefer, you can also sit closer to the front to make it easier to follow along.
Like any new environment, accents may take a little getting used to, but over time it becomes completely normal. Group work and interactions are friendly and supportive, so if you ever need clarification, people are happy to repeat or explain things.
Overall, it’s definitely manageable and shouldn’t stop you from enjoying the course.
Please do let me know if you have any other questions, I’ll be happy to answer either on here or UniBuddy.
Tayba
Student Rep
I have so many questions but for now, how practical or useful is group work and do you guys have simulated learning through props and things like patient actors or not?
Reply 6
Original post
by n33d2knowThanks for the insight jack! Does it affect your quality of study in anyway? Like do you find yourself behind the other students or such? Because that's what I'm most worried about, this directly affecting my learning (the whole point of going to uni lol)
Hello again. I don't think it does affect my learning but instead enhances it! It means I'm revisiting the content again and looking at it in more detail. I also don't think you need to be worried at all about being behind anyone else on your course. It isn't available for other students to know how you are doing on your course and you may be doing much better than you think! The university provides you the chance to book a 1-1 session with your personal tutor to discuss any issues you may have and how to overcome them. I hope this helps!
Jack
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