callé

hi Englishmum. ë, alt0235,
ok my daughter was 15 in june so she'll be 16 on arrival. she is in regular high school but takes all honors and AP(college credit) courses. she also will go into a medical field. My son was 14 in July so will be 15 on arrival. he has been in gifted program from year 1, and now attends high school at a college preparatory school. he definitely wants to attend college also but doesnt have any idea what he wants to do. (boys) well be going back to England. how did you manage to to have your daughter classed as UK resident? and do you know if there is any financial help available for mine with just attending a few years in the UK? do high marks count for any sort of scholarship or would they not be eligible? thanks for any help. )

Englishmum

OK. There are no tuition fees for university students in Scotland - so lucky you if you're going there! Sadly, if you live in England but your child attends uni in Scotland they do have to pay fees! If you're returning to England, then too bad, fees are payable. The good news is that they're nowhere near as expensive as the US colleges and all British universities (including Oxbridge) are public - I understand that there is only one private uni.

I would strongly suggest that your daughter takes a Gap Year if she will be retuning to the UK at age 16, as my daughter did. This will then satisfy the rule for Home & EEC students for fees purposes (as I know you are not on an temporary expat posting for employment reasons). Your daughter will also be able to obtain a Student Loan from the Student Loans Company, paid at the beginning of each term. If she is on a medical-based course the tuition fees are usually paid by the NHS for British students. I don't know much about scholarships in the UK but my husband was sponsored for his Electronic Engineering BSc by GEC (Marconi) and had to work for them during the college holidays - and was bonded to them for a couple of years after he graduated. It all depends on the course. Other courses give the opportunity to study abroad, in Europe, Down Under and the USA etc.

Students who have lived outside the EEC (aka EU, European Union) within a 3 year period prior to beginning their course are classed as International students for fees purposes and these are far higher (costs depend on which course is taken). At the moment tuition fees for all students from the UK & EEC attending universities in England and Wales are 1125 GBP per year, but by Sept 2006 this rises to 3,000 GBP at the discretion of the university:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onelife/...ion_fees.shtml

It really does seem a disgrace that non-British students from say, Spain or Germany can go to uni for the same tuition fee as a British student....yet a British student whom has lived overseas in a non-EEC/EU country is supposed to pay the full international fee which is considerably higher! For example, here are the fees for undergraduate and post-graduate courses at Essex University (science courses with lab work tend to be even more expensive):

http://www2.essex.ac.uk/academic/calendar/fees.html

On the other hand, I've seen lots of links on this board about the "Swaddling" decision for returning British citizens who wish to claim govt. benefits. The decision went in favour of the returning expats who have to be treated as if they had never left the UK...I don't know if this argument would bear any weight with university admissions deans though! (Do look up 'Swaddling' in the search engine for this board). If not, then you may need to have to pay the Overseas fee for at least the first year....

It's just occurred to me that you probably don't know what a Gap Year is! It's where the 18 year olds whom have just left High school take a year out before going to university and thousands of them do it. They usually spend some of the time doing a job (full or part time) and some of the time travelling and doing voluntary work/projects (my daughter went off to India and Nepal for nearly 5 months). The university admissions tutors generally encourage students taking a Gap Year (depending on the course - it's not usually considered suitable for prospective veterinary surgeons for example) as many are 'burned out' after High School and they're seen as being more mature and have some life experience when they do become Freshers. It's also considered valuable for CV's (resumes)

Here's some info on Gap Years:

http://education.independent.co.uk/g...p?story=419180

Examples of Gap Year companies. My daughter went with Venture-co which is listed here.

http://education.independent.co.uk/g...p?story=552114

Actually, take a look at the education sections of the online British newspapers eg. The Guardian, Observer, Daily Telegraph, The Times, The Independent (you may have to register with some of them). They're a great source of info of what's going on in British education today.

Sorry this turned out to be a long rambling post - but I hope it's of some help!

AmerLisa

Isn't it funny that American girls would be all over a British accent? Curious people aren't we? lol

AmerLisa

Been there, done that with a 16 year old. It was a very big nightmare and if I had to do it all again with my limited knowledge of how things were at the time, I wouldn't have done it. Its great there are these forums to ask questions. There may have been a forum when I was doing my research to move over to the UK, but I didn't look. Its always a big help if you can ask about others experiences, kudos to you for doing this. The best of luck.

linda 1

We sent our girls back to Scotland earlier this year (well we let them go back). Youngest turned 16 last month and is doing highers. She is having to work really hard, a big step up. She is getting 30 pounds a week from the goverment because she has stayed in school. Better that than having them on the dole, and more qualified, mature enough kids to go out into the world. We think it is a wonderful system, where else in the world would give you that.

Englishmum

Linda - are you the lady who is in New Zealand?

How are your daughters getting on in Scotland, are they happy there? Are you going over to see them or will they come over to visit you?

My daughter was 20 in June and returned to the UK at 16. I do think that teenagers seem more mature in the UK compared to their counterparts over here in the US where they seem to be 'babied' more by their parents (but that's my own personal view).

linda 1

Hi yes it's me. had a major problem with computer, got a new one, then couldent get back in here under Linda Max. The girls are doing great thanks. They say they will never come to NZ to live again. We have sold the house here, and are up to our necks in packing boxes. Trying to get a house in Scotland, (fingers crossed) and will be going back within the next couple of months.

callé

hi all. just want to say thank you so much for all your advice ( especially you Englishmum on the school issues). I will start checking the newspapers for education news. this is all hard enough to make such a big move. Dont know what I would do without my 'forum friends'. well yes I do. I would probably still be sitting here thinking 'gosh It would be nice to go back home' as I have done all these years. finding this forum has shown me that its possible and others do it as well. I honestly think that this would not all be real for me if I hadnt gotten the strenghth and all this information from all of you. your all such a wonderful lot!

Englishmum

Thanks - I'm glad that the info will be useful to you.

The way I see it is that we are on this Earth for such a short space of time. Life is too short to keep thinking 'what if'? and then in years to come regretting the things we didn't do. Even if you all moved to the UK and decided that it isn't what you hoped for, well unlike many people who lost their visa status at least you still have the option open to you to return to the States at a later date. It would be wonderful for your children to experience life in the UK, after all they are half-English and so it will be good for them to immerse themselves in British culture....plus of course they have mainland Europe at their doorstep and the flights on the budget airlines are incredibly cheap - what fantastic opportunities your kids have with both US and British passports (and probably don't realise or appreciate it yet).

As others have said on this board who left the UK and returned because it didn't work out - at least they're happy to have tried and failed, rather than never to have tried at all, and moving overseas has been a fantastic learning experience for them.

We left the UK almost 10 years ago (to go on a 12-18 month posting and we're still overseas!) but although not quite ready to return to England just yet, it's definitely where my heart is and I know for sure we will return there one day...would just love to leave this part of the US (New York metro area) and return to Asia or pastures new before heading back to Blighty!