Razumi, če moreš

Research in other countries has shown that L1 speakers understand legal and administrative texts much better when they are written in accordance with the principles of plain language, but there have so far been no such studies in Slovenia and there is a general scarcity of studies involving L2 speakers. This paper investigates the comprehensibility of administrative texts related to university enrolment among international students at the University of Ljubljana, focusing on Slovene and English versions in both original and plain language formats. Drawing on a mixed-methods cross-sectional design, the research combines a reading comprehension test and a survey administered to 112 students, primarily South Slavic L1 speakers, enrolled in Year Plus Slovene courses. The results show that plain language texts significantly improve comprehension, with the Slovene plain version yielding 68.8% correct answers and the English plain version 67.2%, compared to 55.8% and 34% for the original versions, respectively. Slovene texts were generally better understood than English ones, suggesting that language choice and linguistic proximity play a role. However, the style of language – plain vs. original – proved more influential than the language itself. The study highlights challenges faced by international applicants in the process of university enrolment and suggests that plain language versions of key documents could enhance their experience. These findings contribute to discussions on functional literacy and linguistic accessibility in higher education, with implications for institutional communication practices and internationalization strategies.