The cost to study in UK is dependent on factors, like institution, course, location and funding opportunities. The apparent cost advantage is the shorter duration of the programs.

Being one of the largest economies in Europe, the UK has seen a significant decline in the unemployment rate. This reflects that study in UK for Indian students is an impeccable opportunity for them to build fulfilling careers in the country.

• Part-Time Employment in the UK As per the rules of the government, enrolled students are given an allowance to work for up to 20 hours a week during term time and full-time, 40 hours, during holidays or vacation time.

While part-time employment is an option for students studying in UK, those students who are pursuing a course below the degree level are allowed to work only 10 hours a week (this was initially 20 hours but has been reduced since). Foundation Degree students are exempt from this cap and are allowed 20 hours. Students who are enrolled to study in UK from India can earn around £ 5 - £ 7/hour i.e., approximately £375 - £525/month during the term. They can also work 40 hours full-time during vacation time.

As UK education consultants, we often advise students to seek relevant employment opportunities by browsing through local newspapers and job shops, as well as the Universities and C career cells. While universities in UK assist students in seeking employment opportunities, they are not guaranteed part-time employment by the University.

As per the rules of the country, students looking to study in UK for six months or less, cannot work nor extend their visas further.

To attract international students, the UK government has altered its pre-set study visa rules for international students. Based on the new set of rules, international students from various countries, including India, are eligible to stay back for up to 2 years after the completion of their study program. Before the introduction of these new rules, students that completed their study in UK programs were allowed to stay back only for a maximum of 6 months. As a benefit to Indian students, the new visa rules apply to students who are enrolled to and are studying any subject at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. This new visa requires a student to make a new application, which compromises payments of visa and health surcharge.

A prominent benefit to studying in the UK for Indian students is that it now gives them an opportunity to stay back and seek employment within the UK. During the stay-back period, if the student secures employment, they may switch their visas to the skilled work segment, which is a route that completes itself at immigration or settlement. Moreover, this doesn't restrict the type of jobs students are permitted to undertake. Although universities have opened their doors to international students, academic qualifications are still the main focus for universities in the UK when it comes to accepting the academically eminent.

This new route was launched in 2021, and eligible graduates in the summer of 2021 (Academic Year 2020-21) will now be able to apply for this route. This also includes those who have already commenced their course in 2020.

Thus now, study in UK for Indian students includes an application under this route after the completion of the program. In the time allowance of the visa, the students have secure employment and then switch their visas to that of a Work one and gain exposure.

Graduates looking to build careers in the field of Information Economy, Oil & Gas, Construction, Graphic Designers, Animators, Health Care, Restaurants, Medical Consultants, etc. are those who are going to greatly benefit from this route.

To help students with tuition or expenses, there are a number of scholarships available that have certain requirements and eligibility criteria to be met to be awarded. Universities in UK are usually funded by the government. This means that, in some rare cases, as the funding is purely government based, the universities have very little leeway to offer monetary compensations that are available to disburse among students in the form of bursaries and scholarships. Regardless, there are many more universities that offer a certain number of awards to their enrolled students based on their merit and performance during the course.

There is a wide range of scholarships that are offered by individual departments within a university, but apart from these, there are many special awards available that are specific to students who study in UK from India. These scholarships greatly assist students financially and are purely for Indian students.  Apart from these scholarships offered by universities, there is another important source of scholarships that are available to aspiring students. These include the British Government-sponsored awards like the Chevening Scholarship, Commonwealth Scholarship, DFID scholarship. These scholarships are extremely competitive, and the deadlines are much in advance before the start of the intake.

Higher education in USA for Indian students means to be part of the world's most flexible education system. Students can study their area of interest as specialization.

Types of Institutions to study in USA

• Public Universities:

These are state-affiliated institutions which are financially supported by public taxes and are usually large in size. Tuitions fees are usually less compared to private institutions. Examples: Ohio State University, University of California, Kansas State University, etc.

• Private Institutions:

A private university runs without the control of any government entity. Tuition fees tend to be much higher than at public universities, Examples: Long Island University, New York University, etc.

• Technical Institutes:

These are schools specializing primarily in Engineering and Science and are particularly noted for their research and graduate programs. Example: M.I.T. (The Massachusetts Institute of Technology), NYIT (New York Institute of Technology) etc.

• The Ivy League:

Members of the Ivy League are: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania. All these schools are in the North-eastern part of the USA. Tuition fees at these private schools are among the highest in the country and admission is highly competitive.

• Small Liberal Arts Colleges:

These schools focus on undergraduate study of traditional Arts and Sciences disciplines: Humanities, Sciences and Social Sciences. Liberal Arts Colleges are often quite old and are usually private schools. Examples: Amherst College, Marist College, Swarthmore College, Manhattan College, Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, etc.

• Community Colleges:

Community College is an educational institution providing higher education and lower-level tertiary education, granting Associates degrees, Certificates, Diplomas. Example: Foothill and Deanza College, College of San Mateo, etc.

Grading System

The grading system followed throughout the United States is on a scale of 0 to 4. To convert the percentage into the GPA, a credential evaluation needs to be done.

Types of Degrees

• Associate Degree: It is an academic degree awarded by the Community Colleges, Junior Colleges, and Business Colleges. Usually for two years (60 credits).
• Bachelor's Degree: Commonly known as an undergraduate degree in India. The duration of the Bachelor's course is 4 years (120-150 credits). Students who have completed a part of their undergraduate degree and want to study in USA can apply as a transfer student. There are two types of Bachelor’s degree: B.A or B.S(120-150 credits).
• Masters' Degree: The duration of Master’s courses may range from a year or two depending on the university and area of specialization (30-48 credits). The binding requisite for Masters is 16 years of education.
• Doctorate: Commonly known as a PhD, the duration of the same may range from 3 to 5 years. Students can take admission for a PhD only after the completion of their Master's degree.
• Summer Program: These are study programs during the months of summer vacation. They usually last for 6 to 10 weeks depending on the school and the course of study.

•         To facilitate the growth of international education in the UK, the Immigration Route for students was reformed by the British government on 5th Oct’2020. The initial Tier 4 route has now been changed and is now being known as the Student Route.

  · The new Points, based Immigration System, comprises of the following:

  1. Students must highlight and display proof of receiving an offer from an approved educational institution, which can be found on the country’s website.

  2. Presenting financial prowess, the students have to show proof that they can support themselves financially during their study in UK and won’t face any financial difficulties during their stay.

  3. Students must display adequate English language proficiency by presenting their proficiency test score cards or reports.

  4. In totality, students are required to gather 70 points to secure a student visa.

  Beginning in 2021, this new graduate visa route is set to be launched. As per this new education route, students who have completed their study in UK are eligible to stay back for a period of 2 years. Students who complete their Ph.D. programs at universities in UK are eligible to stay back for 3 years.