International Students in Higher Education in the UK: A Fact Check

According to the UK’s Higher Education Statistical Agency (HESA), in 2018-19:

• There were a total of 485,645 international (non-UK) students studying in the UK
• 342,620 students came from outside non-European Union countries
• 17,760 non-UK Indian students enrolled in the first year of higher education
• There has been a steady increase in the number of Indian students in the UK

Types of Master’s Degrees Offered

Taught Master’s

There are four main categories of taught programmes- Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MSc), Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Master of Engineering (MEng), with each lasting for 1-2 years.

Students need to attend weekly seminars, tutorials and lectures in taught programmes and are assessed on the basis of exams, dissertation or project.

Research Master’s

For a Research Master’s, students are expected to work on a schedule, submit a thesis by the end of their research and work under the supervision of a faculty advisor. PhD, Master of Science (MSc), Master of Philosophy (MPhil) and Master of Research (MRes) are some of the research degrees offered in the UK.

The best part about the UK universities is that, for MBA and Master’s programs, only 15 years of education is needed, which is equivalent to a three-year bachelor’s degree, unlike US and Canadian universities where usually 16 years of education is needed (equivalent to a 4-year bachelor’s degree)

Types of Master’s Degrees Offered

Traditional Master’s/Grad Programmes

Here are the main categories of taught programmes- Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MSc), Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Fine Arts (MFA) and Master of Engineering (MEng), with each lasting for 1-2 years. These include lectures, tutorials, interactive teaching such as site visits, projects, group work. Most of these programs include a dissertation.

Co-operative Education Programmes

Under such programmes, students can gain hands-on, paid experience in their field of study. These are available in all disciplines and provide significant work exposure.

Types of Undergraduate’s Degrees Offered

Owing to a 3-year bachelor’s degree offered by UK universities, the UK is a hit with undergraduate international applicants.

Apart from the 3-year bachelor’s degrees, the other types of undergraduate courses offered in the UK are:

• Joint or dual-hours undergraduate degrees as part of which students will get to study two different courses simultaneously
• Sandwiches courses – The duration of this course is 4 years out of which there is a one-year work placement related to the field of study
• There are also certain short undergraduate courses:
  • Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE): One year full-time and two years part-time
  • Diploma of Higher Education (DipHE): A 2-year full-time course