Choosing to study in the UK as an international student is a big decision for students to make. Deciding to spend time away from your home and family to study abroad can be stressful enough as it is, without the worry of how to apply to a university. To help with this process, we have come up with the following UCAS guide for international students to follow to help with your application process.

If you are an international student looking to study in the UK, there is a lot of support available to you, so remember that you’re not alone during this process. For example, you can  get in touch with other students on forums such as the Student Room to get advice from previous students who have been through the process. 

Or, if you are looking for more intensive support, Melio has recently launched the University Preparation Program to help international students in the year before they come to study in the UK. Over the year-long course you will complete four modules; study skills, university guidance, career guidance and subject focus. Students who complete this course will receive guaranteed opportunity for progression at the University of Reading and a £1,000 discount on tuition fees to study there! To apply for the September 2022 intake on this course, click here. 

How does UCAS work for international students? | 3 key stages

The early stages to applying to a UK university as an international student are similar to those UK residents have to complete. This is helpful for those choosing to come and study in the UK as there is a lot of support and advice available to students during the UCAS process. So, even if your school isn’t well versed in studying abroad, you will be able to find plenty of resources and advice online. 

It’s important to start this process as early as possible as there is a lot to do and it’s a good idea to give yourself time to go back and review before you submit your application. 

Filling Out the Application Form

The first stage of your UCAS application is to fill out your application form with all your essential information - name, contact details, address, etc. In the early stages of this application form they will ask for your residency status; where do you live? If you need clarification on what to put here, visit the UKCISA website for more details.

The application will then go on to give you an opportunity to include your qualifications. This is where you put in the results of your exams and the courses you have studied, and your employment history. If you haven’t had a job, whether it be full time or part time yet, don’t worry! The employment history is less important than the other sections of the application form, so if you haven’t done any paid work then just leave this section blank. Don’t put any voluntary work you have done in this bit of the form - save it for your personal statement.

Once you’ve completed this key information section, you will then be able to include the course choices - this is the exciting part! You can choose up to 5 university options for your UCAS application. There is no preference order and the universities wont see where else you have applied until after you have replied to your offers. 

It is recommended that before you apply to universities, you go and do a tour of them to be able to experience the campus and city, however if you are an international student and aren’t able to do this in person, many universities offer a digital tour of their campus. Again though, go and explore the city and research the campus online; read reviews and hear from university alumni about what they thought of the university, research into accommodation options and look at lots of pictures! This will be your home for the next few years, so you want to ensure you’re choosing the best university city possible for you.

Writing Your Personal Statement

The next part of your application process involves submitting your personal statement. It’s important that you don’t just submit your first draft of this, take time to read over it, perfect it, get your teachers and parents to give you feedback to make sure it’s as good as it can be. In line with UCAS guidelines, you have 4,000 characters to work with or 47 lines (whichever comes first). 

This is your opportunity to sell yourself to the university and is the part of the application they focus on most (as well as your grades). Put in any volunteer work here and reasons for why you want to study in the UK on the course you have applied for. As you are an international student applying to university, make sure you write about what prompted you to choose to study in the UK and why this is such a good opportunity for you and your future career plans.

As every university you are applying for will receive the same personal statement, make sure you don’t include any specific university names in this and keep it as general as possible, only referring to studying in the UK. 

And you probably already know this, but make sure you are the person to write your personal statement (not your big sister or your dad), and make sure you don’t lie. You want the university to want you for you, not for any white lies or words that aren’t yours (that being said, it’s a good idea to ask your family members to proofread your statement for you). Also, if you end up interviewing at the university, they will draw on what you have said in your personal statement, so it’s always best to just be honest. 

Submitting Your Application

Once you have completed these sections of your UCAS application, it’s time to submit! You will be shown a full preview of your application before you click ‘submit’ so make sure you go through with a fine tooth comb, go over all the information you have included, double check you have put your correct email address in and you haven’t missed any silly typos in your personal statement. After all of this is complete you will be able to finally submit your application! Take a breath and let UCAS send your profile to the universities you have chosen; it’s time to sit back and wait for the offers to come in. 

UCAS deadline for international students

The UCAS deadline for international students applying to universities in the UK is the same as UK residents. If you are applying to Oxford or Cambridge, or for most courses in medicine, veterinary sciences and dentistry, the deadline is October 15th. 

Any other courses you are applying for, the deadline is January 26th (please note these are the dates for 2022 intake and may vary year on year). UCAS advice for international students is to not worry if you miss the January deadline, while the October one is usually inflexible for Oxbridge and medicine courses, many universities will continue to accept applications from international students until later in the year. 

However make sure you don’t leave it too late as you will still need to arrange your student visa and accommodation if you get accepted into your chosen university. It is best to use the UCAS deadlines as your own personal deadlines too so you are as prepared as possible for the next steps. 

UCAS Fees for International Students 

The cost of submitting your UCAS application is the same for international students as it is for UK nationals; for 2022 entry it costs £22 for a single choice or £26.50 for more than one choice (remember you can choose up to five). For the 2023 intake, it costs £22.50 for a single choice and £27 for up to five different course or university choices..

While the cost for this is the same as UK nationals, the tuition fees for international students are slightly different. Tuition fees for international students can vary quite significantly depending on the institution you want to attend and whether your residency is outside the EU. Use this UCAS search tool to find courses, universities and tuition fee prices. 

What happens after you’ve submitted your application? 

But what happens after you have submitted your application? You will hear back from universities typically within two weeks of submitting your application, but please note it could be shorter or longer than this, it really just depends on how quickly the admissions team gets to your application. 

After you have been sent an offer for the university you want to attend (and after you have celebrated), follow this UCAS handbook for your next steps. First of all, you need to apply for a student visa which you can do on the UK government website. Here, you will find a form to prove you have been sent an offer to study in the UK, that you have the right level of English required for your course and finances to pay for your course and living expenses.

Once you have sent this form off, it’s time to organise your accommodation for while you’re a student at university. Your chosen institution will send you details on the different options available and how you can go about reserving a room. This is the easiest way to arrange your accommodation, however, if you want to find somewhere that isn’t through your university, then get started looking at places to rent in the surrounding area, Right Move is a good website to start with. 

After this, arrange your flights which you can do by checking which airport is closest to your universities and looking at transport arrangements from the airport to your accommodation. You will be able to get your term start date from your university after you accept your offer to study there so you can book flights as soon as possible. Don’t forget to arrange travel insurance for yourself and the possessions you will be bringing to the UK! Of course, if you have any queries about this, then your university’s dedicated admissions and/or international student team will be happy to provide further assistance with anything you need.

Finally, all that’s left to do now is to start packing and getting excited for the next step of your academic journey!

Summary 

As mentioned above, Melio offers a unique course to help support international students who are planning to come and study in the UK. The University Preparation Program is a year-long course designed for you to complete alongside the end of your upper school studies or college work. 

Working with world-class experts, you will learn the ins and outs of the UK university admissions process as well as learning tools like critical thinking and how to write your personal statement. This course has been advised on by the University of Reading, a leading university in the UK and after completing this course students will receive guaranteed opportunity for progression at the University of Reading and upon enrolment, a £1,000 discount on your tuition fees.

For more information on how you can get support for your university application from Melio, visit our website. To register your interest in the University Preparation Program September 2022 intake, please co