Getting in
How UCAS actually works
Five choices. 25,399 courses. One application.
Guides
How applying to a UK undergraduate course works, for applicants from outside the UK. Each guide says who sets each rule, the date it starts, and when we last checked it.
Costs and money
6 guides
The scholarship that comes with a job
Some of the most generous funding for a UK degree is repaid in years of work. Here is what each one asks.
What a UK degree actually costs
£118,308 in costs but the fee page says £21,795.
What a UK scholarship is actually worth
The median award is £3,000. The median degree costs £118,308.
What the extra year really costs
A placement year usually costs about £2,500. A foundation year usually costs a full year.
Who will actually lend you the money?
We checked 444 lenders in 37 countries. 68 can fund a UK degree.
Will your government help pay for it?
We checked 59 schemes in 34 countries. Eleven can fund a UK degree.
Getting in
6 guides
Does your gender affect whether you get an offer?
It depends on the subject — and the university.
Getting a UK Student visa
What to show, what to pay, and why the last four weeks are the tight ones.
How UCAS actually works
Five choices. 25,399 courses. One application.
What happens after you get an offer
Two replies, one results day, and the deadlines that arrive before either.
Where to be ambitious, where to be safe
Most UK universities make offers to most applicants. The skill is knowing which ones don't.
Will a UK university accept your qualification?
Because not everyone does A-levels
Tests
2 guides
The tests nobody tells you about
Admissions tests, interviews, portfolios and auditions — which courses ask for them, and the dates that come before the UCAS deadline.
Which English test will a UK university accept?
Nearly every university names IELTS. Far fewer name the cheaper, faster tests — and the score that counts is often not the overall one.
Choosing where to apply
5 guides
Do rankings matter?
Yes — at the top, and in your subject. Much less everywhere else.
Noor's choice: the scholarship or the bond?
One student in Doha, five UK engineering courses — and three very different ways to pay for them.
Rayan's choice: the UK or the US?
One student, one subject, two countries — and the numbers behind the decision.
Shu Wen's shortlist: economics, from Singapore
One student, five UK economics degrees — the cost, the competition, and the scholarships that fit.
The shortlist that looked right
One student. Five universities. Six questions that changed the list.
By country
10 guides
Applying to UK universities from Canada
What they ask of each province, what they will pay you, and how Canadian student loans work abroad.
Applying to UK universities from Hong Kong
What they ask of HKDSE students — and the scholarships that can pay for the whole degree.
Applying to UK universities from India
What they ask of Class XII, what they will pay you, and who will lend you the rest.
Applying to UK universities from Japan
Why the high school certificate often isn't enough, what your government will lend you, and the routes that work.
Applying to UK universities from Malaysia
What they ask of STPM, UEC and Matriculation students — and the fourteen ways Malaysian families can pay.
Applying to UK universities from Singapore
What they ask of A-level, diploma and NUS High students — and the scholarships that come with a commitment.
Applying to UK universities from the United States
What they ask of an American student, what they will pay you, and how your federal loan works abroad.
Paying for a UK degree from Europe
Germany, France and Ireland after Brexit — what changed, and what still works.
Paying for a UK degree from the Gulf
Governments, employers and personal finance — three ways Gulf families pay for a UK degree.
Who will fund a UK degree from your country?
148 ways to pay, in 31 of 37 countries — and where each one comes from.