David Willetts hints that university students will face higher fees
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Students should consider university fees 'more as an obligation to pay higher income tax' than a debt The universities minister tonight gave his clearest indication yet that students could soon be forced to pay higher tuition fees. In an interview with the Guardian, David Willetts warned that the cost of hundreds of thousands of students' degree courses was a "burden on the taxpayer that had to be tackled". Willetts said he did not want to pre-empt the recommendations of Lord Browne's independent review into whether fees should rise from £3,225 a year. But he added that students should consider university fees "more as an obligation to pay higher income tax" than a debt. His words angered the National Union of Students (NUS), whose president-elect, Aaron Porter, said Willetts had failed to understand that graduates were leaving with debts of £22,000 on average and that this felt "very much like debt to them". A debate over fees will cause huge divisions in the coalition government. While Willetts has strongly suggested they might rise, the Liberal Democrats have promised to scrap "unfair" tuition fees. Willetts said the system – whereby universities charge fees, the Student Loans Company pays them and students repay only when they have graduated and earn over £15,000 a year – was "unsustainable" and in need of "radical change". Labour had "catastrophically failed" to explain to students how the system worked, he said, and the universities were given too few incentives to focus on excellent teaching, he added. "It is not a matter of simply changing the fees," he said. "The system doesn't contain strong incentives for universities to focus on teaching and the student experience, as opposed to research." Nick Clegg, the Lib Dem leader, and Vince Cable his former deputy have pledged not to vote in favour of higher fees. To avoid division, the coalition government has agreed to allow Lib Dems to abstain from voting on the issue in parliament. The review into fees, which is being led by Browne, the former chief executive of BP , is likely to report in the autumn. A coalition document, published last month, outlined the government's priorities. It included ensuring the sector was properly funded, increasing social mobility and advancing scholarship. Ahead of a speech he will give to Oxford Brookes University tomorrow, Willetts said: "The so-called debt [students] have is more like an obligation to pay higher income tax." He said he had asked the Higher... Read more...

Guardian University guide 2011 for UK
Tuesday, 08 June 2010
Guardian  University guide 2011 for UK The Guardian announces every year the University Guide and rankings. See the table below. The full table..

Oxford tops Guardian's 2011 university league table
Tuesday, 08 June 2010
Oxford University remains at top of league table for sixth year running Oxford University today tops the Guardian's university league table for the sixth year running, with arch-rival Cambridge holding onto second place. Warwick comes third and St Andrews fourth – the pair have switched positions from last year. University College London, Lancaster, Imperial College, London School of Economics, Loughborough and York are in the top 10. London Metropolitan has come last. The tables, published in full on our website today, rank universities according to the following measures: how satisfied their final-year students are; how much they spend per student; the student/staff ratio; the career prospects of their graduates; a value-added score and what grades pupils have to achieve to stand a chance of being offered a place. The tables provide vital information for the more than 600,000 university applicants who this year face the toughest ever competition for places. Britain's oldest universities still dominate the high rankings, although several have dropped many places from last year. The University of Manchester, which was formed in 2004 from two universities that were established in the 19th Century, has fallen to 51st place out of 118, from 32nd last year. Edinburgh has gone down to 15th place from seventh last year and Bristol has fallen to 33rd from 29th last year. Some universities founded in the 1960s, however, appear to be on the rise. Lancaster has climbed from 16th to sixth this year, the University of East Anglia has risen from 35th to 19th and York has gone from 11th to joint ninth place with Loughborough. Every year, final-year students score their universities according to how satisfied they have been with their courses, as part of the National Student Survey. The tables, compiled by independent consultancy firm Intelligent Metrix, heavily weight the results of this survey when compiling the rankings. Other league tables concentrate on research ratings. The tables reveal that Kingston has fallen the highest number of places from last year – from 73rd to 98th, but Huddersfield is the biggest climber, having risen from 96th last year to 54th this year. Hertfordshire has also shot up, from 97th place to 60th. There are separate tables to show which universities are best – and worst – for particular subjects. Oxford comes top for medicine, maths, modern languages, law, politics, economics and English. University College London is the best for... Read more...

Video guide to new student visa UK based on the "point based system" [VIDEO]
Sunday, 06 June 2010
Video guide to new student visa UK based on the "point based system" [VIDEO] Help about the new VISA regulations in UK for international students.   ENGLISH CHINESE (Mandarin) CHINESE (Cantonese) KOREAN ARABIC

The University of Northumbria at Newcastle in 2010 OFFICIAL SHORT FILM
Thursday, 03 June 2010
The University of Northumbria at Newcastle in 2010 OFFICIAL SHORT FILM  

Study Abroad Blog Posts on Miledar
Tuesday, 04 May 2010
Your Study Abroad Blog Articles on Milestone Education Advisor Do you want to get an idea about study in UK? Do you want to hear experiences from a fellow international students and share yours? All in one place. Stories , advices for the first steps tips and tricks. Informations about everything you need to know, food, places what to do, what not to doo. Do you interested in work during your study? Fancy to share your opinion or experiences? Please read our partner's blog articles and don't be afriad to share your opinion! Click and join to them!

Taught postgraduate powerhouse: Northumbria confirmed as one of UK's ten biggest providers
Thursday, 11 February 2010
Taught postgraduate powerhouse: Northumbria confirmed as one of UK's ten biggest providers A major study of British higher education has placed Northumbria University in the United Kingdom’s ten biggest providers of taught postgraduate degrees.   Northumbria’s campuses in Newcastle upon Tyne host the North East’s largest community of students studying for a higher award. Taught postgraduate numbers exceed those in Durham, Newcastle, Sunderland and Teesside, and Northumbria today sits alongside institutions like University College London, London School of Economics, The University of Manchester and Warwick University with the largest concentrations of students enrolled on taught postgraduate courses. The report – published jointly by the British Library and the Higher Education Policy Institute – assesses current numbers of postgraduate students, examines profiles and trends, analyses regional disparities and discusses costs and benefits. It will provide vital information in support of the Government's current review of postgraduate education. The UK’s postgraduate sector has increased by 12% since 2002-03, with the biggest growth area in Masters’ degrees, where numbers have surged by 27%. The report shows that the top ten institutions for postgraduate taught student numbers are now: 1. Birmingham2. Leeds3. Manchester4. London School of Economics5. The Open University6. University College London7. Nottingham8. Westminster9. Warwick10. NORTHUMBRIAThe Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Northumbria University, Professor Andrew Wathey, said: “This is a substantial piece of research, undertaken by two organisations renowned for the quality of their work, HEPI and the British Library. “It provides welcome evidence of Northumbria University’s strength in taught postgraduate education, and demonstrates the scale of delivery on our campuses. “Taught postgraduate provision is a key indicator on several measures - a marker of a University's contribution to professional and executive education, higher level skills, the local and national economy, knowledge transfer and the application of research that makes a difference.   “Across the breadth of our institution, but especially in professional disciplines such as Law, Business, Design, Architecture, Surveying, Engineering and Health, we have seen sustained growth in the number of Masters and other postgraduate taught students. “Newcastle Business School at City Campus East is... Read more...

New UK Tougher Student Visa rules announced
Sunday, 07 February 2010
New UK Tougher Student Visa rules announced The number of visas granted to students from outside the EU is to be cut in a crackdown on abuses of the system, UK Home Secretary Alan Johnson has said. The most important changes: 1. Successful applicants from outside the EU will have to speak English to a level only just below GCSE standard, rather than beginner level as at present. 2. Students taking courses below degree level will be allowed to work for only 10 hours a week, instead of 20 as at present. 3. Those on courses which last under six months will not be allowed to bring dependants into the country, while the dependants of students on courses below degree level will not be allowed to work. 4. Additionally, visas for courses below degree level will also be granted only if the institutions they attend are on a new register, the Highly Trusted Sponsors List. Full article...

Explanation of new tighter rules for UK universities, colleges, and their students
Sunday, 07 February 2010
New tighter rules for UK universities, colleges, and their students The UK Border Agency  new rules regarding UK higher education institutions and foreign students studying under a student visa. These amendments are tweaks to the student visa points-based system aimed at closing loopholes and reducing the number of bogus student visas. Universities and colleges will have to monitor the attendance of overseas students enrolled in courses in their institutions. These measures are intended to help curb what the media (and the UKBA to some extent) is saying is rampant abuse of the student visa system for immigrants to come into the UK to work instead of study. Universities and colleges will be asked to limit the number of resits that foreign students are allowed on exams, in order to prevent students from trying to purposely extend their stay in the UK. This will help deter and curb the problem of immigrants coming in under the student visa to work instead of study. In addition, attendance monitoring will have to be conducted to ensure that foreign students are actively participating in lectures, labs, and other requisites of their courses. At many universities, attendance taking is non-existent for both domestic and foreign students at the moment. Many fear a big-brother style environment if attendance recording, or “roll call”, is taken. In addition, this segregation or special treatment for foreign students might result in tensions or resentment between local and foreign students, who have up to now been integrating and interacting well on campuses nationwide. This new measure will only work to catch bogus students enrolled in legitimate higher education establishments, which is at the moment very rare because of the high tuition fees in legitimate universities as well as the strict academic entrance criteria. These measures will be less effective or entirely useless in bogus or sham colleges, who enrol students with no intention of providing them with an education, and make their money from immigrants who want to obtain a student visa to enter and work in the UK. These sham colleges will in all likelihood be able to orchestrate false attendance records. More details on the measure will be announced next year. Three schools at the University of Edinburgh are undertaking attendance monitoring pilot schemes on behalf of the UKBA to evaluate the effectiveness of such a scheme. (resource: ukvisahelp.co.uk)

Changes to student applications from February 2010
Friday, 29 January 2010
Changes to student applications from February 2010 From 22 February 2010, any student who applies by post or at one of our public enquiry offices, to study in the UK under Tier 4 of the points-based system must possess a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from their prospective sponsor. You will not be able to apply under Tier 4 using a visa letter from that date, even if the visa letter was issued before 22 February 2010. Until 21 February 2010, you can continue to apply under Tier 4 using a visa letter, even if your course of study will start after 22 February 2010. For more information about applying to study under Tier 4 of the points-based system, see the link. (c. UK Border Agency)