Higher education in Britain Higher education is education provided by universities and other institutions that award academic degree such as university colleges, and liberal arts colleges. After reaching 16, students can choose to continue their secondary education for a further two years, during which they usually study A-levels. It is common for students to study three or four A-levels that will be relevant to their chosen subject area at university. A-levels are necessary for all British students who want to study in higher education institutions. Undergraduate degree Most students enter higher education at the age of 18 to study an undergraduate degree. It usually takes three years for students in the UK to gain their bachelor’s degree. In 2009 university fees rose to a maximum of £9,000 per year for British students, while fees for international students usually cost between £10,000 and £30,000 per year, depending on the course and the subject they study. British education focuses heavily on developing writing and analytical skills. UK higher education: Postgraduate degree Once graduate students (grad student or grad in American English, postgraduate student or postgrad in British English) have obtained their undergraduate degree, they can apply for a postgraduate degree. The most common master’s degrees in the UK usually last for one year. However, some PhD qualifications can take up to seven years to complete. A British master’s degree requires intensive study, with research and critical thinking being a very important part of every postgraduate course. Apart from their classes, students will spend a significant part of their time researching their specialist subject area. Admission Institutions determine their own admissions policies and the minimum entry requirements for each programme. An applicant who meets the minimum admission requirements for a particular programme may be offered a place, but this is not guaranteed. Entry is competitive, with wide variations between institutions and programmes in terms of the competition for places. For some highly oversubscribed programmes, such as medicine, dentistry, veterinary science and law, applicants may be required to take an additional admissions test. From 2013, all applicants for initial teacher training courses are required to pass skills tests in numeracy and literacy before starting their courses. Top Universities Oxford and Cambridge (collectively ‘Oxbridge’) are not only the UK’s most famous universities, and two of its highest ranking – they’re also different to other institutions in a number of key ways. The first key ‘Oxbridge’ element is the college system. Oxford and Cambridge are each made up of colleges – more than 40 at Oxford, more than 30 at Cambridge – and prospective students usually choose a particular college to apply to. What is an Oxbridge college? It’s basically a collection of buildings, often historic and attractive, which form a small self-enclosed community. Within each college complex you’ll find student accommodation, common rooms, cafes and bars, library and computer facilities (often open 24/7), and offices for staff members. Most colleges have between 300 and 500 students at a time, usually at both undergraduate and graduate level, studying a broad range of subjects. The second element that sets Oxford and Cambridge apart is their focus on teaching in very small groups, and even one-on-one. Usually lasting an hour at a time , these small-group teaching sessions are known as tutorials in Oxford and supervisions in Cambridge. As you might expect, this also means a particularly intense workload. Depending on the subject, you can expect to have one or two tutorials each week – each requiring a significant amount of preparation. This means that the workload is generally much heavier than at most universities.
