Hoping for some help from the UK

[nb100uk]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "jennl602" <jennl602 at y...> 
wrote:
> Hi...I mainly lurk on the main list but I have a quick question for 
> anyone who lives in the UK.
> 
> I am going to be a high school senior next year and am interested 
in 
> going to school in the UK.  I am hitting a lot of brick walls when 
it 
> comes to researching what are the best schools there because any 
site 
> I find seems to only want to concentrate on the US.  So I was 
hoping 
> that someone from the UK could tell me what some of the top 
> universities are over there (besides the obvious two...Cambridge 
and 
> Oxford).  I am interested in humanities and social studies mostly --
 
> English, history, or political science.
> 
> Any help would be much appreciated!
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> ~Jennifer

OK this is quite complicated!  First of all you need to go to the 
UCAS site (University and College Admissions Service) - www.ucas.com

There's an excellent part of this site which deals with international 
students and the requirements needed to study in the UK.  As a quick 
guide, if you're wanting to start uni in Sept/Oct 04 (after you 
graduate from high school), you need to start applying in Oct/Nov 
03.  Do your research now and draw up a short list of universities 
and their courses.

In the UK, you apply for a specific course, at a particular 
university and have 8(?) choices.  Have a good browse of the UCAS 
site and then go to the university websites.  A quick guide to 
British universities (not exhaustive and only slightly accurate I'm 
sure!).  This is rather elitist and not a reflection of how good the 
courses or people are in each place - 'Oxbridge' may have the 
prestige but when you compare to 'lesser' unis, they may have better 
facilities etc.

The premier universities (our Ivy League) are Oxford and Cambridge in 
England, and Edinburgh and St Andrews in Scotland.  These are 
the 'ancient' universities, dating back 700 or 800 years.  You need 
top class grades and something 'a bit special' to get in (and even 
straight A's won't always cut it).  They're incredibly selective and 
also have an entrance exam (which I failed despite having great 
grades)!

The next universities are the 'Red Bricks' - literally were built of 
distinctive red bricks in Victorian times.  They're based in the 
major cities - London, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Glasgow, 
Bristol etc.  If you want city living and great nightlife, these are 
the ones for you.  They're very big and usually have every course 
under the sun.  On the downside, the cost of living is high 
(especially in the south of England and London!)

There are the 'campus' universities, such as Lancaster, Warwick and 
Nottingham, where the whole university is on a leafy site outside the 
nearest town.  Everyone lives on campus and it's all self-contained, 
but sometimes a bit isolated, unless you're prepared to travel into 
nearby towns.

Finally there are the 'new' universities, which are based in almost 
every large town/city in the country.  They used to be classed 
as 'Polytechnics' but were grated university status about 10 years 
ago.  Often considered the poor relations, many have fantastic new 
buildings and great facilities, don't overlook them.

All in all, there are approx 120 Universities in the UK, most if not 
all will have a website (and brochures that they can send out).  Find 
out which unis offer the course you want, and then decide on 
geographical location - sometimes London may not be the best option, 
and choosing universities in other parts of the country will give you 
a fantastic insight into the 'real' Britain.  The best website I've 
found for doing quick searches is 
www.education.guardian.co.uk/universityguide  This site has league 
tables, student comments etc.

Finally, I strongly urge you to choose Warwick University - very cool 
place and one of the highest rated across the board in most league 
tables (and of course is the one I went to!!)  Good luck, and I hope 
you enjoy 3 years drinking your way through the pubs of your chosen 
university town!!

Nina