ChevalNoir

Story:

My mother is English and she had me in America. I have been to England quite a few times over the years and all my family is there. I have family in America but they suck and treat me as though I do not even exist. My mother wants to move back, my grandmother wants to move back, my dad will move if my mom is intent on moving back and he's completely open to it because he is sick of his family as well.

I am 22 years old, never been to college. Dropped out of high school and got a G.E.D. (general education diploma). Dropped out due to medical issues and prolonged absence. When in class my grades were usually failing 55 = fail. On test though i routinely got A's and highest scores statewide. Main reason for failing was the fact participation took up 60-70% and I was absent and couldn't participate enough.

I ended up working as a receptionist, then an executive and finally as a commercial real estate consultant (I find millionaires and sometimes billionaires investors to well... invest in any number of projects) very nice paying job; however, it's not what I want to do.

I want to be a psychologist so I have to of course go to school. I considered getting BA in America and then doing masters in England; however, that would mean 4-5 years until I can move to England and I am rather fed up right about now with everything here. I honestly feel like a foreigner here. I sound English, and if I am not consciously trying to subdue my accent so people stop going "excuse me, what?" it's pretty obvious. Whoa, got sidetracked. Any way, If I were to move to England sooner, say a year, exactly what path would I take to becoming a psychologist?

I am 22, would i be too old for A levels? Also what exactly is an access to higher education diploma?

pompeyblonde

Hi there, presumably you are English by descent? So you could get a passport and apply to a UK university? Not sure about funding for that though as your not yet a resident, but I would check out a few universities, you'd probably need atleast to have fond an access course as you have no A levels or equivalent, and to register in UK you'd need postgraduate quals eventually...

Sally Redux

I used to work in further education but I'm out of touch I'm afraid - but have you looked at things like this?

https://ava.accesstohe.ac.uk/SubSite...ch/search.aspx

bilbos92

No one is ever too old for an A level.

I was 33 when I did my "Psychology" A level at my local communicaty college in Kent. I didn't do too well, in fact I ended up with a AS Level, (lower than an A level ) but it was still enough for me to go ahead and do a 4 year part-time "Psychology" degree with the OU. I could have got the same qualification in 2 years, doing 2 courses similtanously, but as I was working the work load was a little much, the 1 course per year was great.

I would encourage you to look at the OU website. Most of thier degree courses have a foundation course if you have no formal further education.

You would need to find out residency requirements for the course you wanted, as I know some of the courses are not available overseas, so moving back to the UK would be an option.

Good luck with your decision.

nun

There are a couple of things we need to know.

Where were your mother and grandparents born?

If you come to the UK you will initially be treated as an overseas student because you have not been resident in the UK.

robin1234

Move to the UK sooner rather than later, get your Access to Higher Education Diploma, get work in a related field (care assistant, maybe?) and when three years have elapsed you'll be able to go to university with the status of a UK resident, with lower fees and access to loans.
This page seems to give a pretty good intro to the Access to Higher Education Diploma..
http://www.accesstohe.ac.uk/home/explanation.asphttp://www.accesstohe.ac.uk/home/explanation.asp

Tel8

Hiya!

It sounds like we're in a similar situation.

I'm 22 as well, and I'm doing my masters in the UK. The Nun and Pompeyblonde are right- the funding situation is nearly non-existant for overseas students, which is what you'll be when you go back. You can get scholarships though if you look for them, but be prepared for some serious competition for those! There's also not as many that are available to overseas students.

Also- be warned about overseas tuition!!! It's ridiculously high at some places, near or definitely double what home students pay. Like the scholarships, it depends on the course though, but you'll want to watch for that exchange rate and make sure that the costs are justified. Chances are, it wouldn't be much cheaper to do a BA in the US, but it does depend on the school- I'd research some local colleges near you to get a feel for what their tuitions are like and compare notes with the Unis in the UK to make sure you're not going to spend more just for location.

Robin1234's idea sounds like the best one to me- sorry! I didn't read all the way through first, but if you can avoid the whole overseas thing, you'll be in a much better position!!

Confused1

Out of interest - what state are you in? Maybe chatting to some expats in your area would help you between now and when you leave for the UK (assuming you do)?

BritinFLUSA

Welcome to BE by the way! :-)

As suggested, if your Mother was born in the UK then you are British by descent and just have to apply for a British Passport through the British Embassy in DC.

As for education. It is my belief (notice, belief = my opinion only) from my experience in the US, that the education system is terrible here. The UK has a much better standard of teaching at all levels. I definitely think that you should study back in the UK. My advice would be, as suggested to get your British passport, move to the UK and work in a related to field to what you wish to work in and then study with the Open University - I did some OU Courses before moving to the US and they really are fantastic, the standard of teaching is excellent as are the resources and the community. Also you are able to learn at your own pace - in my case as my schedule allowed - I turned down a couple of good traditional UK University placements to work full time and study with the OU and don't regret it one bit! Some UK employers also recognise the stress that working and studying put on a person and can look favourably on someone who has studied with the OU versus a candidate for a job who went to say the University of Loughborough and spent three years drunk at the student union!

fulwood

I will just say I am a veteran of the US university system. I have 2 degrees and now going onto graduate school. I have found the education and schools I have attended have been excellent.

BritinFLUSA

Thank you for being nice about adding your two cents. :-) big big big thumbs up from me. We are all entitled to an opinion. I love good healthly discussion and advice on BE and not some of the usual heated emotionally charged debates.

nun

The most important thing is to make sure the OP is actually a UK citizen and this will depend on the citizenship status of his/her mother.