Tell me about St Andrews in Scotland

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s not really that much of a bargain when you factor in the incidentals, but they like to say it is. Lots of extras add up.

It is still a significant bargain…
Tuition at a US university is $60,000+ while tuition at St Andrews is around $35,000 for an international student. You’re telling me the “incidentals” are over $25,000 a year?
I can tell you personally from someone who has attended St Andrews that they are not…

[Anonymous]

Is St Andrews easier to get in as an American? Yes
Do Americans get a different education than the other students? No

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from St Andrews relatively recently. A couple of points:

1. Many highly qualified St Andrews students turned down offers from ivies. One of my best friends from the states turned down an offer at Penn. My freshmen year roommate who was also from the states turned down a scholarship from Dartmouth. One of my other good friends got into Columbia. I’m not suggesting St Andrews is better than these schools- I believe school selection should depend on a students needs and aspirations. I do believe St Andrews is objectively a prestigious university. The material I was learning in my fourth year classes was more advanced than my friends studying the same subject at prestigious US schools. First year classes aren’t too bad, however the honors courses in third and fourth year can be very demanding.

2. You cannot judge St Andrews by the QS/US news rankings. St Andrews is known for its undergraduate education, it has a relatively small number of graduate students/programs. The QS/US ranking uses factors that favor larger institutions that have large graduate programs. Many smaller reputable schools in the US (Brown, Williams, Dartmouth) also do very poorly on the QS/US news rankings for the same reason. Use the UK rankings to judge St Andrews. Traditionally St Andrews has been significantly easier for Americans to be accepted compared to UK students, however, that gap is quickly closing.

3. St Andrews does not have the same name recognition as the ivies in the states mostly because people haven’t heard of it (name recognition is growing). However, most top companies understand that St Andrews is an academically prestigious school. I had no problem securing interviews at top consulting firms (BCG), investment banking firms, and Fortune 500 companies. Most of my friends studying computer science work at Apple, Meta, Spotify, Goldman, etc. My friend who went to St Albans for HS started working at Bain and Co right after graduation. Many of my friends from St Andrews have gone on to study at prestigious graduate programs in the US (Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, Wharton, Georgetown Law, etc.)

4. St Andrews academics and lifestyle is very hands off compared to US institutions. It has its pros and cons. Pro: the majority of my fellow classmates living in the US noticed that after graduation we were considerably more mature and independent than our classmates who attended prestigious universities in the US.

5. St Andrews is truly a unique experience. I have good friends from all over the world. I’ve attended numerous black-tie balls, fashion shows, dinner parties, wine and cheese tastings (our wine tasting team travels all over the world for competitions). I’ve seen Obama golf on the Old Course. I’ve met Hilary Clinton when she visited. I’ve traveled to so many countries in Europe and had so many memorable adventures. The list goes on..

Let me know if you have any questions!

So many people commenting here who have not attended St Andrews. Listen to students who have actual experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s not really that much of a bargain when you factor in the incidentals, but they like to say it is. Lots of extras add up.

It is still a significant bargain…

Tuition at a US university is $60,000+ while tuition at St Andrews is around $35,000 for an international student. You’re telling me the “incidentals” are over $25,000 a year?

I can tell you personally from someone who has attended St Andrews that they are not…

Just curious. What did housing cost and which housing was that ? What about a meal plan ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s not really that much of a bargain when you factor in the incidentals, but they like to say it is. Lots of extras add up.

It is still a significant bargain…

Tuition at a US university is $60,000+ while tuition at St Andrews is around $35,000 for an international student. You’re telling me the “incidentals” are over $25,000 a year?

I can tell you personally from someone who has attended St Andrews that they are not…

Just curious. What did housing cost and which housing was that ? What about a meal plan ?

This can be found on the university website under accommodation. “Catered Standard” will provide housing and accommodation for about 8,000 pounds = $10,000. Much cheaper than US schools.
Most 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year students live in their own apartments with roommates and cook themselves/eat out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. What did housing cost and which housing was that ? What about a meal plan ?

This can be found on the university website under accommodation. “Catered Standard” will provide housing and accommodation for about 8,000 pounds = $10,000. Much cheaper than US schools.
Most 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year students live in their own apartments with roommates and cook themselves/eat out.

I asked precisely because most upper-year students have to find housing on the local economy, not from the university. This means the university’s costs for university housing are not helpful for estimating upper-year housing costs. Planning permission restrictions mean such housing is scarce in/near St Andrews.

[Anonymous]

St Andrews is a fine old school that has become a “thing” for a certain type of wealthy American who is smart enough to do the work and be admitted as a seat filler so the underfunded school can pay its bills.

The kids who do not have to worry about tuition costs are simultaneously driving up the cost of living. Their parents are buying houses and flats for them in town, because the pool of student rentals is drying up. Golf tourists pay more to stay in properties that were once student rentals but are now air bnb’s.

Wealthy parents buy flats for their students and flip them for a profit after graduation.

Sure- tuition is a relative bargain. Kids who go all in on the St Andrews social scene tend not to worry about money, anyway.

If you’re playing that game you’ll need gowns or tuxedos for the black tie balls, tickets to those balls, your riding clothes, your tennis whites, your shooting clothes, flights to the continent for weekends away, pocket money for travel, rent, (if you can find a flat, if not maybe a few towns over and then bus fare) groceries, flights to and from the states, books, heat, utilities, etc etc etc.

Yes- the tuition is cheaper

[Anonymous]

Yeah none of that adds up to 90k a year

[Anonymous]

Who’s counting anyway- the tuition savings at St Andrews is not important to a lot of the American parents. This school has a hugely wealthy student body, especially the Americans and the Europeans.

[Anonymous]

Recruiting at American boarding schools. These parents have already paid tens to hundreds of thousands in private school tuition fees since nursery school

[Anonymous]

Our student’s boarding school college office has recently become a lot less enthusiastic on St Andrews fwiw. St Andrews is growing in popularity, but falls short in so many ways for Americans compared to American university undergrad programs.

I think it boils down to boarding schools truly caring about where their students end up, and wanting the best for them. Some of these other posters have stories about problems with the administration at St Andrews, and the way Americans are barely tolerated. They are lured in with the beautiful town and the perceived prestige of the University, and the bargain tuition.

My student’s boarding school has heard too many similar stories about how things have played out for students once they enroll, and now is just lukewarm about St A. They are not going out of their way to recommend it.

[Anonymous]

The greatest value you will receive from St Andrews in my opinion is the graduate prospectus and international experience.

Graduate prospectus: St Andrews alumni place very well at reputable companies and graduate schools. The UK league table scores St Andrews at 90% for graduate prospectus, just shy of Cambridge and Oxford (93% and 92% respectively).

International experience: The St Andrews student body is significantly more international than US schools. The international experience is tremendously formative and something you won’t receive at a US school.

St Andrews definitely won’t provide the same hand holding and resources compared to a US school. It’s best suited for independent/proactive students who are outgoing and can handle the coursework.

[Anonymous]

it's hugely popular in nyc. very smart kids who don't have a fake passion project or aren't a recruited athlete.

it's not as easy to get into as some of you think

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:it's hugely popular in nyc. very smart kids who don't have a fake passion project or aren't a recruited athlete.

it's not as easy to get into as some of you think

St. Andrews international students get laughed at for being dumb but rich enough to pay for it. It's okay to say that they cannot get into an actual top school, so they need an "international experience." If the kids were intelligent, they'd go to Oxbridge or LSE, or...a top American college.

[Anonymous]

you're the oxford dad, right? I can tell bcs you really love to lean into "everyone is laughing at you" thing. which is bizarre. shaming kids is not really a cool thing to be known for.