The controversial decision by Theresa May to extend two years of TIER4 student visas to foreign students in 2011 resulted in a 50% drop in the number of Indian students choosing as a university destination. The number went from 52,218 in 2010 to 22.757 in 2011, to 15.388 in 2017. Recently, Prime Minister Boris Johnson re-established a two-year work visa to reverse this decline.
Here are some reasons why students go to the United Kingdom. In the future, it will grow substantially:
Bachelor’s degree duration and cost: Unlike the United States, where most bachelor’s degrees are four years, most degrees are three years in the United Kingdom. It ensures that graduates can potentially save one year of tuition fees. For example, it takes only three years to complete a BSc degree in economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where tuition fees per year are $ 26,750. The annual tuition at the University of Pennsylvania, a similar, prestigious university in the US, is $ 58,000, with a family costing $ 2, 32,000 for their child’s full four-year degree course. By choosing a top U.K. university, parents saved about $ 1, 51,750 in tuition costs. (Note: Cost of living varies in different parts of the U.K. and U.S).
Besides, many universities in the U.K offer integrated master’s programs that allow students can complete four years of a master’s after finishing high school. For example, an integrated master’s program is a degree in molecular and cellular biochemistry at the University of Oxford, where all students graduate with a master’s degree. That is highly beneficial as students attain a higher qualification studying in the U.K. as compared to the U.S. in the same amount of time.
Similar Education Systems
India’s education system is identical to the education system in the U.K. Students select three or four subjects for intensive study in A-Level / Pre-U courses (U.K. 11th and 12th grades). Students studying the Indian board in classes 11 and 12, including ISC, HSC and CBSE, do the same. Therefore, the transition of the university to Indian students is relatively smooth.
Besides, there are degrees in the U.K. Run on the single track and students study only those subjects which are similar to India. It is very different from the liberal arts education required by all American universities in a core curriculum. Students, who study, for example, American Engineering, also take courses in the humanities, arts, and social sciences to gain credit to meet their requirements for graduate study. In the U.K., engineering students are only taking courses that are relevant to their major.
So, if students know what they want to study, then the U.K. is an excellent choice.
Besides, for students with multiple interests who wish to pursue a liberal degree, the U.K. Universities have also started offering this option. Colleges such as King’s College London, Royal Holloway, and the University of Bristol offer courses on “liberal arts,” which students can complete in three years.
Requirements for admission
Most universities in the U.K. make their admission decisions mainly based on a student’s academic ability, while the United States uses a more holistic approach. Students who are academically successful and not pursuing many extra-curricular activities have a better chance of being accepted into the UK’s top universities.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Vs. Non-STEM
Students in the U.S. who have not studied STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) in their undergraduate degrees can apply for a one-year extension of their student visa under the OPT scheme, while STEM students can use it and extend up to 24 months. It recently re-established a two-year extension in the U.K. for students studying subjects such as journalism, architecture, accounting, law and marketing. It is a better option. The two-year extension also helps employers because employers no longer have to think about their worker’s visa status.
Distance of India
It is an eight-hour flight from India; parents are relieved to know that they are close to home. Long distances to the US and Canada can be a hindrance for parents who are considering study-abroad destinations for their children.
Woodbridge Overseas Consultants is an overseas educational consulting organization dedicated to providing services to Indian students to make education accessible abroad. Woodbridge Overseas Consultants is a highly respected and highly professional consulting organization dedicated to providing career advice and authentic guidance to Indians. The company is recognized by many educational institutions abroad and has a large number of students who have been successfully placed in universities around the world.
Conclusion: Every year, the number of Indian students studying abroad is gradually increasing. More than 35% of the 586,183 students in the US are Indians. Now the United Kingdom is undoubtedly in serious controversy, and it has changed its immigration policy.