What to look for when choosing a UK university suitable for you

Written by Rachel Chin, April 2017

So, you may have received your results from Polytechnic / ‘A’ Levels / IB Diploma.. or probably you are currently still studying, but you would very much like to have your undergraduate or postgraduate degree done overseas…With so many universities offering various kinds of courses, it might feel very overwhelming and confusing that you do not know where to start from. Does this sound like you?

Look at some tips below on what to look for while you are narrowing down your selection of universities:

• Location

• Entry Requirements

• Costs

• Subject interest

• Modules

Location

Do you prefer a city lifestyle or a campus lifestyle? While some students think that they love the buzz of city life, they might not feel as though they are living a university lifestyle. This is because some universities in big cities like London, might not have as many facilities compared to those universities on campus. Campus university is a university where all the accommodation, teaching facilities, student union, library, sports hall are situated on one site. Also, not to mention that living in the city requires you to have more money to cover your living costs too. 

Entry Requirements

Every university has different entry requirements but top universities like the Russell Group universities typically require higher entry requirements to progress into. If students do not have the required requirements to progress direct to universities, they can consider enrolling into pathway programs. A lot of the universities work with pathway providers which IDP represents - Bellerbys College, Cambridge Education Group (CEG), INTO, Kings Education, Navitas, Study Group and Kaplan International Colleges.

Costs

Tuition fees differ from institution to institution and are subjected to increase from year to year. An average fee per calendar year is as below:

Classroom (eg. Business, social sciences) - £10,000 - £16,000

Laboratory (eg. Sciences, engineering) - £12,500 - £20,000

Clinical (eg. Dentistry, medicine, veterinary science) - £18,000 - £35,000

In addition to tuition fees, average cost of living per year ranges from £8,000 to £11,000.

**Costs are approximate and can vary from areas in UK, and depend on lifestyle. This should only be used as a guide.

Subject interest

Which subject you choose now will depend largely on what your future career plans are. Ideally you will study a subject that you enjoy, that will discover your full potential and sets you on a successful career path. A good understanding about the profession and the industry is crucial at this point of decision in order for you not to regret your choice! Adequate research about the profession is recommended to provide a good level of understanding before embarking on the journey to your dream career.

Modules

Whilst so many universities are offering the same course, the modules covered in the course might be different, thus you will also have a different study experience. Dive deep into the sea of information (ie. Google / Education Fair) and compare among the courses offered by different universities before you decide on which university you want to enrol into!

Sandwich Course

Sandwich Course is a course with a year of work placement “sandwiched” between periods of study in the UK, thus the term. Whilst you might think that the earlier you graduate, the better chance you have when compared to the rest of the students, it might be an advantage for you to have a year of work experience in the UK. Here’s the best part – you will be paid as a full-time employer during this term and such industry partnership are often with highly reputable companies of the relevant field of your study. That can be the competitive edge when employers consider potential candidates, since they have overseas work experience. 

If you are still in the dark about what and where to study, talk to one of our friendly counsellors on a complimentary one-to-one counselling session!