What are your reasons for applying to UK universities?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My niece is targeting colleges in the UK due to the cost savings. Depending on the college, the tuition can be much cheaper than the U.S. even when adjusting for COL. Also, for some degrees, she is able to combine/shorten number of years in school.

OP here - that makes sense. Thanks.

+1. small liberal college in the US just accepted kid for $80K total a year. St Andrews for about $44K total (locked for 4 years) and Edinburg is even less than that. guess which we are flying to visit after being accepted. oh, as a bonus kid may also have a better chance to complete college experience without crossing path with some deranged idiot with an AR-15 who decided to go down in flames bringing some students with him. we considered also a great school for my kid's field of interest in the Netherland, tuition there would have been like 2000 euro.

cost of college in the US is beyond nuts and the idea that you can only study in the US because, other than Oxbridge, schools abroad are not that highly retated, as a poster seems to suggest, is dumb. so many kids in my kid's 12th grade class in DCPS who applied, and got accepted by, schools abroad, mostly England, Scotland, Netherlands, Australia are applying abroad

+1

Better experience, all around.

DP I have first hand experience with Oxford. But by all means stay here and complain about the extremely rare chance of getting shot. Chances are the other problems listed above will be a problem, not a shooting. It’s cold, expensive (you have to buy everything anew -DC was sent off to Oxford with one large suitcase. Everything else had to be purchased over there. Because of the energy crisis, all costs have surged and students have protested at Oxford and other schools about no heat in their (often) stone dorm rooms with antiquated windows. Food prices are obscene. Women are indeed marginalized. St Andrews four year program, while different from the regular three year program, still expects students to be better educated and better writers than they are. The drinking culture is a much more serious problem than in theUSz. You have a lecture at 11 and the sherry trolley is rolled out at noon. Good luck but go into it with open eyes and remember everyone knows St Andrews started this courting of rich American students after it almost perished post WWII. This is all googleable. It’s not as dreamy as you think. Which is why Kate and others went there. It’s not for serious students

The St Andrews hater really manages to spend all of their time on DCUM

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My niece is targeting colleges in the UK due to the cost savings. Depending on the college, the tuition can be much cheaper than the U.S. even when adjusting for COL. Also, for some degrees, she is able to combine/shorten number of years in school.

OP here - that makes sense. Thanks.

+1. small liberal college in the US just accepted kid for $80K total a year. St Andrews for about $44K total (locked for 4 years) and Edinburg is even less than that. guess which we are flying to visit after being accepted. oh, as a bonus kid may also have a better chance to complete college experience without crossing path with some deranged idiot with an AR-15 who decided to go down in flames bringing some students with him. we considered also a great school for my kid's field of interest in the Netherland, tuition there would have been like 2000 euro.

cost of college in the US is beyond nuts and the idea that you can only study in the US because, other than Oxbridge, schools abroad are not that highly retated, as a poster seems to suggest, is dumb. so many kids in my kid's 12th grade class in DCPS who applied, and got accepted by, schools abroad, mostly England, Scotland, Netherlands, Australia are applying abroad

+1

Better experience, all around.

DP I have first hand experience with Oxford. But by all means stay here and complain about the extremely rare chance of getting shot. Chances are the other problems listed above will be a problem, not a shooting. It’s cold, expensive (you have to buy everything anew -DC was sent off to Oxford with one large suitcase. Everything else had to be purchased over there. Because of the energy crisis, all costs have surged and students have protested at Oxford and other schools about no heat in their (often) stone dorm rooms with antiquated windows. Food prices are obscene. Women are indeed marginalized. St Andrews four year program, while different from the regular three year program, still expects students to be better educated and better writers than they are. The drinking culture is a much more serious problem than in theUSz. You have a lecture at 11 and the sherry trolley is rolled out at noon. Good luck but go into it with open eyes and remember everyone knows St Andrews started this courting of rich American students after it almost perished post WWII. This is all googleable. It’s not as dreamy as you think. Which is why Kate and others went there. It’s not for serious students

The St Andrews hater really manages to spend all of their time on DCUM

You’re just envious because you can’t post anything like that

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oxbridge are cream of the crop and equivalent to top 5-10 in the US. Any other UK unis, I’m going to assume you couldn’t cut it a top US school so had to hop the pond. I know for a fact I’m not the only one who thinks this way.

Imperial College London is STEM-focused and ranks in the same tier as MIT & Caltech. I’d hire a CS/EE grad from there in a heartbeat. All the FAANGs (and other tech companies) recruit heavily there for jobs worldwide. Be warned though, any STEM degree from ICL will require MIT/Caltech levels of effort and it has a similar pressure-cooker environment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My niece is targeting colleges in the UK due to the cost savings. Depending on the college, the tuition can be much cheaper than the U.S. even when adjusting for COL. Also, for some degrees, she is able to combine/shorten number of years in school.

OP here - that makes sense. Thanks.

+1. small liberal college in the US just accepted kid for $80K total a year. St Andrews for about $44K total (locked for 4 years) and Edinburg is even less than that. guess which we are flying to visit after being accepted. oh, as a bonus kid may also have a better chance to complete college experience without crossing path with some deranged idiot with an AR-15 who decided to go down in flames bringing some students with him. we considered also a great school for my kid's field of interest in the Netherland, tuition there would have been like 2000 euro.

cost of college in the US is beyond nuts and the idea that you can only study in the US because, other than Oxbridge, schools abroad are not that highly retated, as a poster seems to suggest, is dumb. so many kids in my kid's 12th grade class in DCPS who applied, and got accepted by, schools abroad, mostly England, Scotland, Netherlands, Australia are applying abroad

Actually your costs are $57,720 not including airfare and hotels plus same for relatives going over to set up the dorm and for graduation. You didn’t include all the costs in excess of tuition. After all, your $80k cite is “ all in”. So
Let’s compare apples and oranges.And good luck with the fact that Americans, especially women, are treated as second rate. How about the Housing crisis at St Andrews. And how about that massive drinking culture? Your kid is far more apt to return to the states a victim of date rape and an alcoholic . And without a job because the careers office there doesn’t reach to wall street

Even if we assume $57k is true, that's still $23k less than $80k

Did your kid have a bad experience at St Andrews? I'm very sorry for what seems like traumatic stuff based on what your comment implies, but that experience simply is not universal. St Andrews is top in the UK for student experience.

Who says women and Americans are treated as second rate? In my personal experience I have seen no evidence of this. Again, an anomaly is not universal. The housing costs are less than DC, less than NYC, etc. Alcoholic? really? Drinking is more prevalent, but more controlled, supervised in pub/club settings, and because it's not happening in a frat basement. I've heard way more horror stories of heads smashed and crashed cars and stomachs pumped from drinking in American schools than I have heard from St Andrews.

"And without a job because the careers office there doesn’t reach to wall street"
Hahaha please.
If your DC wants a job on Wall Street, yourschool's career center isn't going to be the defining factor.
Being well-connected is one way. But the harder way is to start early—your DC should be doing spring insight and other events run by firms from year 1 and year 2. Taking on analyst roles in student funds or investment societies from y1/y2. Ideally get some sort of finance internship or role for summer after y2, and then network and apply for summer analyst roles for penultimate summer. Then get the return offer—not many other easy ways to get a desired role on Wall St. It's not the fault of the St Andrews career center that your DC doesn't work on Wall St

Re: last paragraph

Logistically, how would an internship work for an American student @ St A when the summer breaks don’t align with US summer internships? The US students can’t work in the UK or the EU as the Tier 4 visa prohibits employment and companies don’t sponsor.

[Anonymous]

Business/finance/economics students at UK unis can (and do) get between term internships in the City of London, which is the UK’s equivalent of Wall Street. They can do so with all the big global players, not only US-based firms, but also firms based in Europe or Asia/Pacific. UK labor law is different to the US; it is possible for a non-UK national students to get such an internship.

[Anonymous]

Hmm, I thought US students are limited (due to the terms of the Tier 4 visa) to 20 hours/week during term breaks. Big internships are full-time and then some.

Yes, I’ve heard of the City 🙄

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind that most US employers cannot name the “other” universities in Britain and don’t hold Oxbridge in a HYP level of esteem.

This may be true in that most US employers are small and local. But recruiters at large or prestigous US companies have a very good idea of the relative merit of UK universities. I can assure you that Google or Facebook employ tens of thousands of graduates from the UK and Europe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind that most US employers cannot name the “other” universities in Britain and don’t hold Oxbridge in a HYP level of esteem.

This may be true in that most US employers are small and local. But recruiters at large or prestigous US companies have a very good idea of the relative merit of UK universities. I can assure you that Google or Facebook employ tens of thousands of graduates from the UK and Europe.

+1 I work at a FAANG, have done for almost 20 years. We have people from all over the world working in the US and, of course, all over the world. They recruit locally.

How can posters on dcum not realize this? I thought dcum posters were sophisticated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind that most US employers cannot name the “other” universities in Britain and don’t hold Oxbridge in a HYP level of esteem.

This may be true in that most US employers are small and local. But recruiters at large or prestigous US companies have a very good idea of the relative merit of UK universities. I can assure you that Google or Facebook employ tens of thousands of graduates from the UK and Europe.

+1 I work at a FAANG, have done for almost 20 years. We have people from all over the world working in the US and, of course, all over the world. They recruit locally.

How can posters on dcum not realize this? I thought dcum posters were sophisticated.

Most dcum posters are provincial fools who believe the Earth rotates around the WH.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind that most US employers cannot name the “other” universities in Britain and don’t hold Oxbridge in a HYP level of esteem.

This may be true in that most US employers are small and local. But recruiters at large or prestigous US companies have a very good idea of the relative merit of UK universities. I can assure you that Google or Facebook employ tens of thousands of graduates from the UK and Europe.

+1 I work at a FAANG, have done for almost 20 years. We have people from all over the world working in the US and, of course, all over the world. They recruit locally.

How can posters on dcum not realize this? I thought dcum posters were sophisticated.

Most dcum posters are provincial fools who believe the Earth rotates around the WH.

maybe it's because there are so many government workers here.. IDK.

it's really interesting being in meetings with these people. You hear all kinds of accents and interesting anecdotes. Met my spouse and good friend who are from Europe at work. Neither went to Oxbridge type btw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But by all means stay here and complain about the extremely rare chance of getting shot.

This comment is so off base...there was a shooting this week at MSU, where many DMV students attend. There was a shooting at UVA in October, There was a shooting last April at Edmund Burke School, in DC. Sadly, this is not so rare at all and you should talk to your kids. Mine think of shootings far more than you would think and are very aware that this is a real danger. Gun violence is not as prevalent in other countries, that's just a fact. And for some kids, it is a reason to look elsewhere for their studies. The OP didn't ask us to debate the merits of people's reasons, they asked what the reasons may be. For us it was in no order...adventure, broadening world view, excitement about certain academics, lower risk of gun violence, and cost was an added bonus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, I thought US students are limited (due to the terms of the Tier 4 visa) to 20 hours/week during term breaks. Big internships are full-time and then some.

Yes, I’ve heard of the City 🙄

My DC holds a tier 4 visa. The work limit is 20 hours during term. Full time is permissible during all vacation periods.

[Anonymous]

I am from the UK and went to a UK university. My kids have been educated entirely in the USA from pre-K thru HS and we're all Americans now. One of my kids at least, will apply to UK universities for the fact he definitely won't want to do a range of courses as required by us colleges (math / science / language etc), but just one focused course that interests him deeply, right from the start. He will also want a single bedroom from the start, which most UK universities can offer, rather than a sharing situation. These are the main reasons.
While UK university tuition for overseas students does offer some respite from US costs, it's not comparable to in-state tuition savings and you obviously have the price of travel. Many universities will not allow you to stay in your dorm during certain vacations in the UK either, so you have the cost of moving your stuff out and finding somewhere to stay if you don't return to the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am from the UK and went to a UK university. My kids have been educated entirely in the USA from pre-K thru HS and we're all Americans now. One of my kids at least, will apply to UK universities for the fact he definitely won't want to do a range of courses as required by us colleges (math / science / language etc), but just one focused course that interests him deeply, right from the start. He will also want a single bedroom from the start, which most UK universities can offer, rather than a sharing situation. These are the main reasons.
While UK university tuition for overseas students does offer some respite from US costs, it's not comparable to in-state tuition savings and you obviously have the price of travel. Many universities will not allow you to stay in your dorm during certain vacations in the UK either, so you have the cost of moving your stuff out and finding somewhere to stay if you don't return to the US.

We have the same situation. My spouse has family/friends in the UK, and DC would've stayed with one of them for some of the breaks. But, after covid, I didn't want DC that far. Still, it was an attractive alternative.

[Anonymous]

Anyone in the U.S. with a kid applying to U.K. universities needs to understand the major difference: In the U.K. the student goes to university to study effectively a single subject for three years. This is not a system for any student who leaves a U.S. high school and is at all unsure what they want to do in college, or who simply has varied interests and wants to explore them in college before settling on a major. That is just not how it works there.

So your high school senior had better be certain that the subject is the one in which he or she wants to work or get a grad degree, because there is no such thing, in the American sense, as a freshman or sophomore year with general courses, or really even electives to let you try other subjects. It's a good system if you know exactly what you want to do at the age of 18 but not good for a kid who might change his or her mind. But it's something students really have to grasp before they start making applications. Again--great for certain people. Terrible for others. Maybe there's more flexibility in some fields and/or at some unis, I'm sure, but generally it's very different from the four-year American course of study where you often don't declare a major until your junior year, and have some options for switching majors etc. Source: DH is from the UK, all our family and friends are there and we have two nieces who just graduated from uni, I went to grad school there, etc.