CTland

I think we ended up calling them

Sue

Ok, thanks. Didn't even consider trying that. Just believed what we were told. Just goes to show one should double check these things. Thanks for the tips.

Bob

Depends on the course...some will be covered, others won't be. I know when the missus was looking at studying in the UK, what she was interested was covered at York and the uni of Buckinghamshire, which is weird as that's private I thought.

They don't cover any post grad study though.

Sue

Just wanted to update on this for anyone sending kids from the US. Thanks to CTlands' helpful advice I've found the FAFSA code for the UK uni that my son is hoping to attend. The university actually have a very helpful page on their website that provides all the information and a step-by-step guide. Wish all the uni's offered such clean and concise info. So my advice to others looking is to really dig around the univerisity's website, and if you can't find the information you are looking for on funding that way, then call them.

Also in answer to the mabsy's original post, I found this info earlier whilst anwwering another member and it looks to me that in order to apply for UK Gov student loans you have to have been resident in the UK or the EU for 3 years prior to apply. Here is the link to the info.

CTland

Glad to be of help.
Watch for the fafsa application deadlines for your state- in CT ours was mid feb which did help focus the mind on getting tax returns done quickly (for us!)so that we got current info in on first go around!
Seems like a few forumite kids heading off to Uni this year..we should have got together and applied for bulk discounts

fific

Hi - its important to read through the government rules on classification.

As Dunroving has said you need to be ordinarily resident in the UK for the three years prior to commencing your university course. However there are a whole range of exceptions including - moving temporarily with your parents employment. If your contract is permanent then you may need to find other evidence which shows that your intention has always been to return to the UK.

Having a house, pensions etc all help with your case.

We returned to the UK last year after being in Aus for three years - our son was awarded home status as my husband returned to his previous employers who gave him continuation of service and his employer in Aus wrote to say that he was only there temporarily.

We are now making a case for our elder son who remained in Oz to complete his degree - so our case hinges on two exceptions - temporarily abroad with parents, and remaining abroad solely for the purposes of study.

Different universities interpret the rules more leniently than others - you need to prepare ahead - also call UKCISA who act on behalf of students and can advise you about the sort of information you can put in place to help when your daughter does apply.

Good luck to all.

mabsy

thanks so very much

gwyyyyn

I would strongly advise you to leave your daughter behind in england, maybe boarding school? I am 20 years old, and british, but because I was not in england for the last 3 years before uni I was classed as an international student. Costs would have been around £20,000 a year for living expenses and tuition. For that reason I decided to go with open university, a corespondence course which is cheaper. I applied everywhere for a student loan but was refused at every turn. I got great grades at school and worked very hard to get accepted at university, and to be told that I ccouldnt go because no one would grant me a loan and I was classed as internation, was very disappointing.

I wish my parents had put me in a uk school for those 3 years, it would make my life so much less complicated. Please, for your daughters sake, think very carefuLly and do all the research before you pull her out. She will CERTAINLY be classed as international, 3 years prior to your course starting you need to be living permantly in the uk. Or else you're international. Paying those sorts of fees is insane, I hope for your sake you look at your options very carefully bvefore going ahead, because she will be international and therefore unable to get loans. :/ I am sorry, hope this helps!

CTland

Deadlines seem to be coming around so fast...US schools wanting a deposit by May 1st or UCAS replies by June 7th
We were hoping to get another visit to UK in the next month or so but Easter then AP exams seem to be in the way
How is everyone else doing? all decided?...it all seems so daunting

Sue

We are still waiting for 2 more responses from UK universities. So far our son has had two offers and one No. According to the UCAS site as he applied before Jan 15th they have to let him know by May 5th (at least I think it's the 5th or thereabouts).

He got 3 offers from US uni/colleges too and they are now sending us stuff left, right and center. My head is swimming

Sally Redux

Very similar for us, with swimming heads too

Sue

Our latest update:

We heard back from the two last universities on Thursday and Friday.

In the end my son had 3 conditional offers and two no's. However the conditionals were based on two subject SATS he took in December and January (as he had not yet taken them at the time of application in November) and he got good scores on both so meets the conditions on all three offers. So over the weekend he replied to his offers and he is off to Uni in the UK in September (I won't post where out of courtesy to him as he would not be happy with me posting all his "beeswax" on a public forum ).

Now we just have to figure out how to pay for it

Best of luck to everyone else waiting to hear.

mabsy

delighted for him

CTland

Congrats to him, its got to be a weight off your collective minds
Our daughter has been flip flopping on choices to the point where we wondered if there a subconscious issue that she was unsure if she really did want to be in the UK or stay in US...not long to go before that one will ultimately play out!
We also got positive confirmation back on the Fafsa but still trying to collect more info on the loan options. Understanding is that most UK Uni's want the cash up front in Aug...

Sue

Our son has had his mind set on the UK for over a year now. Just hope he remembers to pack his brolly.

The uni he has been accepted to will allow payment of fees over 7 monthly installments, which is going to be a big help. We are still waiting to hear from FAFSA.