norfolkgirl

I'm sorry if this is a thread somewhere else, I'm sure I'm not the first to ask.
We have been in SF Bay Area for 3 years and will need to decide in the next 6 months what to do next. We are enjoying ourselves here but have the usual family and friend pulls to the UK. The time crunch is because my daughter is a Freshman in High School - would be Y9 in the UK. this means next Sept she needs to either start GCSE's in the UK or we need to stay here. Son is in 6th grade, would be Y7 in the UK (difference in school year calculations!)
So, does anyone have experience of applying to UK universities from American High Schools? I am a bit concerned about curriculum covered but she is at a v good HS so academic levels aren't an issue. Son may find things harder academically to move between systems.
Thanks!

Yorkieabroad

I dont know about the academic side of it, but I seem to remember reading somewhere that if they haven't been in the UK system in the 5 years immediately preceding their application to university they will be treated as an overseas applicant and be charged accordingly....although that is probably still going to be cheaper than going to university here....

Hopefully someone will be along shortly to tell me thats no longer the case!

avanutria

I used to work in undergraduate admissions for a UK university, and attended high school/undergrad in the US and postgrad in the UK.

Your daughter will likely be treated as an international student due to living overseas for 3+ years before enrolling. She will not be expected to have GCSEs or A levels. Universities will look at SAT scores, ACT scores, and any university credit she achieves through advanced classes. If your high school offers AP classes she should take them, as AP examinations are considered to be equivalent to A Levels.

US uni will generally have a large liberal arts curriculum and the opportunity to explore lots of different subjects through electives, and in many cases easily change majors. UK uni (and here I can only speak from my experience as a UK student and UK administrator) will have little to no general liberal arts, be more structured into what she can take and, after a certain point, will not allow her to change majors drastically without starting over completely. However, she will probably be done a year eariler in the UK than she would be in the US. All of these things should be thought about before decided which uni to go to, but it won't hurt to plan for the AP classes and so forth anyway.

sir_eccles

A thought just occurred to me.

Assuming the student is a Greencard holder, are there any precautions to be taken to maintain residency if they are away at a UK uni for 3yrs?

katybluewater

I have 2 children who are green card holders and go to school/uni in the UK - they were already attending these schools before we moved over here, and we didnt want to upset their schooling. We have had to get a ' permit to travel' letter done, which states that they are being schooled in the UK - this way they can keep their green cards whilst they finish their schooling - hope this helps.

sir_eccles

Interesting, I only have a cat so this isn't an issue for me. It was just a hypothetical thought that crossed my mind. I figured there might be a special exemption like that. Thanks for the info.

Bob

It's 3 years, not 5.

Still relatively cheap, but do have to factor in cost of living and possible flights back and forth in the cost.

Bob

You'd get a re-entry permit before leaving, but if you don't plan on returning before 2 years, you'd then get a SB-1 returning residence visa.

Being a student back home is perfectly allowed.

Sally Redux

11,000 GBP per annum for the computer animation course my son is interested in - not that favourable compared to in-state tuition at a UC university.

avanutria

Plus cost of living of course, which as of a couple of years ago was estimated at 10,000 pounds for 12 months in central London.

Mummy in the foothills

But doesn't the US Uni take longer? A lot of UK degrees are three years verses the usual 4 here, or in the case of many UC and CSU colleges 5 years by the time you get all the classes needed to graduate.
We added up what it cost us here (US) verses the same degree in UK and it was a wash. It took Ds 4 years at a private uni thank goodness for fafsa and scholarships, we still spent $20,000 of our money over 4 years (plus food and supplies) and Ds has $26,000 of debt. Not too bad seeing it was $37,000 a year plus books and food. (dorm was included in the price)

Bob

Not all animation courses are equal... a lot of them are a bit crap, so make sure to check out the portfolios of the people doing the classes because often with them, it's a case of not getting the best or the most experienced but getting those with the degrees, which is a daft way of doing those courses.

For the UK, Newcastle and Cardiff are decent places.

Sally Redux

That's very true. Many people here are telling me 5-6 years to graduate, although that seems to be disputed on BE.
Thanks Bob.

RickWG

I'm in LA County. Students have the opportunity to do the lower level courses at community college & then upper level at Uni. Here in the AV you can do all 4 years of a Mech or Elec Eng BSc for less than $11K.. total

Celtic_Angel

I also have a freshman at high school , he'll be 15 soon ....so he hasn't already missed out on begining for the GCSE"S? I thought I remembered them being over at age 16. I was afraid that he was already too old to acheive GCSE"S ( if we did move realistically it would not be within 12 months)


If you do stay you might want to look in the IB program that is offered at many High Schools http://www.ibo.org/

I'm also feeling the time crunch ...good luck!!