Loesje22000 Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 With dd entering Grade 9 applying to a college / university seems to come a little bit more nearby. Being Dutch, home educated in Belgium with mostly courses in English dd considers the UK as an valid option to study. We have exit exams like the UK and our 'ASO' can be considered as 'A-level'. She choose the Classical-Modern Languages track and will have less hours in Math & Science. I only know Oxford, Cambridge and St. Andrews by name so I was able to check their admission rules, but I have no idea if their rules about grades (average of all subjects above 80% and for the three required subjects above 90%) is 'standard' for applying to universities in UK or is just something for Oxford / Cambridge. How can I find other Universities admissions rules without checking them all one by one? Are there huge differences between universities in the UK? Oxford and Cambridge are famous in the Netherlands so a diploma from them open doors. But I suppose UK have more good&solid universities in the field of languages studies / history, I just don' know how to find them. DD will attend (and pass) the Cambridge English Advanced Exam to proof her mastering of the English Language. I think that will be a first step in the process, what else she should consider? Another option is applying in the Netherlands, she doesn't want to study in Belgium. TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 Hopefully many others will jump in with suggestions but the League Tables are a really popular place to start. http://universityleaguetables.co.uk/. Another summary article ishttps://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/table-tables-university-cambridge-top-fifth-year-running. I know there is some way to sort by major. Dh has taken charge of university admission for the dc's. So I am a happy observer in this process. I am pretty happy to be observing. :lol: We are looking mainly at Universities that belong to the Russell Group, which is a relatively prestigious group of universities. Both of my dc's are planning on Maths (in some form) as their major. http://www.russellgroup.ac.uk/about/our-universities/ When you look at the admission policies for International students some Universities will spell out exactly what you need to have for their university, others will use the UCAS system. Here is a link explaininghttps://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/getting-started/international-and-eu-students. I hope this helps. ETA I figured out the sort for the league tables. Here is Linguistics for a starthttp://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=Linguistics 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 Another way to compare universities is by putting courses into Unistats: https://unistats.direct.gov.uk/ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 What period of history and what languages? I'm in the US, but like to dream about grad school in the UK. I'm looking mostly at Medieval British history. The University of York is one program that just looks wonderful. I have not studied their undergraduate program, however. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 What period of history and what languages? I'm in the US, but like to dream about grad school in the UK. I'm looking mostly at Medieval British history. The University of York is one program that just looks wonderful. I have not studied their undergraduate program, however. Calvin looked at York for undergraduate. He was put off by the style of assessment - something that you can see through Unistats. He prefers exams, as they help him to concentrate his mind. This is the York English page, as an example of the kind of information you can get for the OP: https://unistats.direct.gov.uk/subjects/study/10007167FT-UUBENGSENG3~UBENGSENG3/ReturnTo/Search 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 2, 2015 Author Share Posted November 2, 2015 Calvin looked at York for undergraduate. He was put off by the style of assessment - something that you can see through Unistats. He prefers exams, as they help him to concentrate his mind. This is the York English page, as an example of the kind of information you can get for the OP: https://unistats.direct.gov.uk/subjects/study/10007167FT-UUBENGSENG3~UBENGSENG3/ReturnTo/Search Thank you! That is an important thing to consider! @ Elegant Lion DD is - by now - interested in uncommon languages but with the requirements of her track (Latin, Greek, English, Dutch, French, German) we don't have much room for 'try outs' I didn't realise History could be specialized that early. In the Netherlands one studies 'History' and specialize during the years at college. Uncommon Languages are often paired with its culture and history in the Netherlands. I know what to do during fall break :) DD studying in the UK will be closer at home then some of other board children in the States... So it is comparable with a 'in state' or 'out state' decision I suppose ... I suggested DD also to study in Denmark (she can study for free there as EU student) but that was way too odd for now :) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 There are 'history' courses but also 'ancient history'. Durham (another very good and competitive university) has both, for example. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 An additional question: If a Scottish University requires an A or a B for subject, how can I translate that in a percentage grade? A+ = 100% A = 90% B= 80% ?? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 I found this table on the University of Sheffield website for entry requirements for EU students. http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/undergraduate/apply/international-qualifications. Hopefully that will help answer your question. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 Thank you!!! It explains also what I misunderstood I thought ABB should be: one subject with an A grade and two with a B grade.. :) That should be very doable :) Thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 Thank you!!! It explains also what I misunderstood I thought ABB should be: one subject with an A grade and two with a B grade.. :) That should be very doable :) Thanks! As with all these things, check that the individual university you are applying to uses the same criteria. Entrance requirements are usually a minimum, so it's good to find out the percentage who were accepted, and also what other criteria are used. Oxford and Cambridge, for example, require extra exams and an academic interview. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 Thank you Laura! Yes I noticed that, that there are several differences. Also that some studies / universities have different applying dates. For now it is important to know she has to get a high enough grade on her Cambridge Advanced English Certificate. Without that, it becomes impossible (almost). She will need that certificate also for the Netherlands to proof her English is above Belgian standards. She also has to work on a higher overall average if she wants to stick to this plan, and on higher grades for the required subjects. She got a feeling for the requirements now and they made sense to her. She decided to work for it. I think she was looking something to work for. In search for a goal. She lost some of her motivation this and last year with all the 8th grade exams, now she got some fire back :) She always can apply in Belgium, that should be no problem as they don't care about grades here at most studies But if she doesn't want to study here, she has to do something :) Meanwhile I can think about how to get a reference and think about extra curriculairs, things have changed since I studied... Glad I started investigating in time ... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saw Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 If you are interested in uncommon languages, King's College London and UCL run summer programs (they alternate summers) for two weeks doing languages like Coptic and Syriac. The program itself is not expensive, but they don't provide housing or anything. My dcs have done the program twice and thoroughly enjoyed it. As for applications to UK universities, dds are currently doing that. They are applying to Oxford (one for Classics and English, the other for Classics and Oriental Studies). For Oxford they are taking an exam (tomorrow!) and are also asked to turn in two papers they have written for school. One of them is not in the UK right now but is able to take the exam in the country where she is. They are also applying in the US and NL, and have Dutch eindexamen grades. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 As for applications to UK universities, dds are currently doing that. They are applying to Oxford (one for Classics and English, the other for Classics and Oriental Studies). For Oxford they are taking an exam (tomorrow!) and are also asked to turn in two papers they have written for school. One of them is not in the UK right now but is able to take the exam in the country where she is. They are also applying in the US and NL, and have Dutch eindexamen grades. If your DD wants to talk about Classics and English, that's what Calvin is studying at Oxford. I'm sure he would be happy to chat. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 If you are interested in uncommon languages, King's College London and UCL run summer programs (they alternate summers) for two weeks doing languages like Coptic and Syriac. The program itself is not expensive, but they don't provide housing or anything. My dcs have done the program twice and thoroughly enjoyed it. As for applications to UK universities, dds are currently doing that. They are applying to Oxford (one for Classics and English, the other for Classics and Oriental Studies). For Oxford they are taking an exam (tomorrow!) and are also asked to turn in two papers they have written for school. One of them is not in the UK right now but is able to take the exam in the country where she is. They are also applying in the US and NL, and have Dutch eindexamen grades. Thank you for the suggestions! Do you apply as independent? How do you find a referee? Or are you in the Netherlands now? The Belgian art teachers of dd can't write a reference in English and we don't have other teachers righ now and I don't expect to get IRL teachers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saw Posted November 9, 2015 Share Posted November 9, 2015 Thank you for the suggestions! Do you apply as independent? How do you find a referee? Or are you in the Netherlands now? The Belgian art teachers of dd can't write a reference in English and we don't have other teachers righ now and I don't expect to get IRL teachers. DDs are now in school programs. They finished up the staatsexamen via home-ed two years earlier than normal, but didn't want to go to uni that young. So they are doing a couple of different school years. One is in UK sixth form, but doing subjects she didn't do for staatsexamen. The other did a year abroad in China and now Italy, through a US program, also doing subjects she didn't do at staatsexamen. That has made the application process much much easier. They did have a tutor via Skype for subjects like Latin that I couldn't do who would have helped though, so maybe a Skype tutor would be an option if you don't have irl teachers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 9, 2015 Author Share Posted November 9, 2015 DDs are now in school programs. They finished up the staatsexamen via home-ed two years earlier than normal, but didn't want to go to uni that young. So they are doing a couple of different school years. One is in UK sixth form, but doing subjects she didn't do for staatsexamen. The other did a year abroad in China and now Italy, through a US program, also doing subjects she didn't do at staatsexamen. That has made the application process much much easier. They did have a tutor via Skype for subjects like Latin that I couldn't do who would have helped though, so maybe a Skype tutor would be an option if you don't have irl teachers. That makes a difference! She does have irl teachers but they are not able to write a reference in English. So I thought to ask for a reference in Dutch and pay for a legal and certified translation. But I have no idea if UCAS would accept that. We did not have plans to outsource anything, but it seems we have to, to get a reference.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 9, 2015 Share Posted November 9, 2015 That makes a difference! She does have irl teachers but they are not able to write a reference in English. So I thought to ask for a reference in Dutch and pay for a legal and certified translation. But I have no idea if UCAS would accept that. We did not have plans to outsource anything, but it seems we have to, to get a reference.... I don't think that you would need to get it certified. All the UCAS site says is that it must be in English, I would translate it, explain it back to them to make sure it reflects their views, then get them to upload the English without comment about translation. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saw Posted November 9, 2015 Share Posted November 9, 2015 We've done translated references before, seems to be fine. I don't think they need to be certified or anything. The only thing I would say is be sure the recommenders understand the nature of the reference -- I've seen a reference a teacher wrote for my dds. I know the teacher thinks extremely highly of the girls, but the reference was very middelmatig. I think it has to do with cultural differences, you know how it is. If you want to PM me, I can give you some names of people who have given us extremely helpful advice on the application process, particularly with respect to cultural differences 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted November 10, 2015 Share Posted November 10, 2015 DS (6th grade) also interested in UK unis so listening in. I am interested because i save on tuition and because I much prefer the nature of the admission process there, even at the super selective ones. Bump:) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 10, 2015 Author Share Posted November 10, 2015 We've done translated references before, seems to be fine. I don't think they need to be certified or anything. The only thing I would say is be sure the recommenders understand the nature of the reference -- I've seen a reference a teacher wrote for my dds. I know the teacher thinks extremely highly of the girls, but the reference was very middelmatig. I think it has to do with cultural differences, you know how it is. If you want to PM me, I can give you some names of people who have given us extremely helpful advice on the application process, particularly with respect to cultural differences I would like to PM but my PM is lost on the boards. You can PM Tress for my Email. I don't want to publish that on the boards. I think I live too long in Belgium ;) Belgium loves creating paperwork, and certifieing means here that an 'official' persoon sees both documents and confirms it is tranlated by a recognized translator. The translation wil got a stamp, it takes a few minutes and cost less then 50 euro cent per page. But I agree that nobody would have an idea what is important for such a reference. I have to admit it isn't that clear to me too. But I found on the UCAS site many helpful pages about the personal statement. That was great to find. For now the focus is on Scotland, it seems to become a better option for us then the Netherlands, financially. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 10, 2015 Share Posted November 10, 2015 But I agree that nobody would have an idea what is important for such a reference. I have to admit it isn't that clear to me too. I haven't seen UCAS recommendation letters, but professionally I see letters of recommendation for graduates of a UK university who are going on to further studies/jobs. If the writer thinks that the student is good, they really say it, things like: 'This student is among the top three that I have seen in ten years,' or 'Compared to other students I have seen, he would be in the top 10%'. Concrete measures of worth seem to be important, if possible. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted November 10, 2015 Share Posted November 10, 2015 If I can find it, I will PM you Calvin's personal statement. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saw Posted November 10, 2015 Share Posted November 10, 2015 I can email you my dds' statements as well (although who knows if they will do the trick!). You can either pm me or email me at momtoarc apestaartje aol punt com (hope that makes sense, I don't like putting in my email address as given). If you email me on that address, I can then respond with the one I generally use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 11, 2015 Author Share Posted November 11, 2015 Thank you Laura, I recieved your mail! (Thank you Tress for recieving and forwarding the PM) And saw, I send you a mail from 'busy.bee' in Dutch :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted November 11, 2015 Author Share Posted November 11, 2015 I don't know the reliability of this site, but I found some helpful answers at www.thestudentroom.co.uk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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