10 Reasons Why You Should Study in the UK
The first consideration when thinking about studying is the subject area you wish to study. Usually that’s the easy part, but deciding where you should study can be difficult and confusing, especially if you intend to study abroad.
In this article we will give you 10 reasons why studying in the UK is the perfect choice.
1. Renowned and Well-Respected Universities
UK universities are regularly featured in ranking league tables such as The Times’ Higher Education Rankings and the QS World Rankings. Many UK universities are featured in the rankings, with at least a third of the top 10 comprising of UK universities. Often the University of Cambridge, which is one of the oldest and most respected UK universities, holds the top spot.
2. Internationally Recognised Courses & Qualifications
The courses and the qualifications offered in the UK are internationally recognised and highly regarded by employers around the world. A qualification from a well-respected UK university is likely to give you the edge when pursuing employment opportunities in the future.
Recent changes to student visas mean that only recognised universities that offer quality courses are able to enrol international students. This ensures that you will receive the best education for your tuition fee.
3. Large Student Population
The UK has a large international student population, increasing year on year. 2009/2010 saw the number increase by 10% to 405,810. For postgraduate courses, international students make up the majority percentage.
With almost half a million international students you are certain to be studying with like-minded people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds.
4. Culturally Diverse
The United Kingdom is a friendly and tolerant place rich with diverse cultures. There are many international communities, especially in big cities, which provide a familiar and homely environment for inhabitants, offering both new experiences and the ability to share culture with the rest of the UK.
No matter what your culture or religion you will receive a friendly reception. Not only that but the UK also caters for your religious requirements, such as places of worship, and often provides translated documentation should you require it.
5. Opportunities to Work
The UK student visa allows you to work for up to 20 hours per week, thus giving you the opportunity to earn some much needed funds to help with your study and living costs.
The UK operates a minimum wage, which depending on your age means you are guaranteed a minimum hourly rate for your work. If you are over 21 that is £6.08 per hour, meaning you can earn at minimum £121.60 per week, before any deductions such as tax.
6. An Historic Land
The United Kingdom is steeped in history and makes for an extremely interesting place to live and study. With its many historic buildings, like castles, and historic towns there is always plenty to see and do.
7. Gateway to Europe
Thanks to the UK’s transport links with the rest of Europe you can be in Paris in less than two and a half hours by Eurostar.
8. Cheapest of the Big 3 Destinations
Out of the ‘big 3’ destinations (Australia, the USA, the UK) the UK is the cheapest. Tuition fees in the UK are substantially cheaper than in the USA and Australia, from £10,000+ compared to £12,000+ for the US, and £13,000+ for Australia.
More importantly, the financial proof requirement for a UK visa is less. This is the amount of money you are required to prove you have available in order to qualify for a student visa. In the UK this is £16,000+ compared to £18,000+ for the US and £25,000+ for Australia.
9. Free Healthcare for the Duration of Your Study
If you are studying in the UK for more than 6 months you are entitled to full NHS healthcare coverage. This means that, should you require emergency healthcare, you do not have to worry about any financial implications.
Healthcare in the UK includes anything from consultations with a GP (General Practitioner), family planning, to major surgery. Most universities have an on campus doctors’ surgery.
10. Olympic Hosts
In 2012 the United Kingdom will host the Olympic Games. This has resulted in large investment and regeneration and development of many major areas of London. The presence of the Olympics also means that there are many job opportunities for the lead-up to and duration of the event.
If you have applied to study in the UK in 2012 you should expect the Olympic Games to have a major impact on the UK. The United Kingdom will be very much in the international spotlight.
If you need any more reasons to study in the UK you will find StudyLink’s UK Universities & Studying in the UK guide very helpful. If you can think of any other reasons why the UK is the perfect place to study be sure to leave a comment below.
Sources:
http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/about/statistics_he.php
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/TheNationalMinimumWage/DG_10027201
http://blog.studylink.com/2011/05/10-common-student-visa-questions/
What is Proofreading?
A lot of people don’t understand why proofreaders and editors exist; after all, English isn’t really that important, is it? Well, this common misconception is just that, a fallacy about how important the process is. But, I believe it’s down to the fact that most people just don’t understand the process and many ask what is proofreading?
Proofreading, or ‘copy checking’, originally referred to newspapers, where an editor would take typeset paper and check the text for errors against an original manuscript. These days, even in newspapers and magazines, which often have their sub-editors proof on screen, it’s all done digitally. Two printed resources are rarely checked against each other. The notion of the activity itself is designed to address both issues of content and visual consistency.
In terms of student work, one takes an overall view. Proofreaders haven’t studied the subject themselves so trust that the author has composed their arguments having been given the correct teaching, has understood the subject and disseminated the information correctly in response to the question, brief or task. There are various reasons for employing a proofreader. A great deal of the work I complete is submitted by foreign students and, frankly, they’re all pretty clever, otherwise they wouldn’t have been funded or sponsored by their families, government or educational institution to even study abroad.
Dissertation Proofreading and Editing
Well, it’s that time again for undergraduate students in the UK and abroad to submit your dissertation research paper to your academic institution. At Supaproofread, we want to remind you that all of those endless nights spent in front of your computer screen shouldn’t be thrown away without hiring a dissertation proofreader to review your work.
You’ve finally done it, hurray! Starting the process of researching and writing your academic research paper was probably really difficult. I know it was for me when I attended university a few years ago; it was very daunting as an undergraduate, as I had only written three-thousand word essays in my first and second years, so ten thousand words seemed quite a lot! Also, the fact that I had to conduct lots of primary research for the paper made the entire process a hassle — oh, and the hypothesis had to be original... It isn’t until you get past the data processing and start to actually write an evaluation of the research that you have collected until you finally, I believe, gain a true sense of the research paper and overall process. Your mind is numb with the questionnaire or survey you changed at least 20 times, and SPSS annoys you because ‘it just doesn’t seem to work for me’. We’ve all been there, and some of us have chosen to return to do it time and again for higher qualifications such as a master’s degree or PhD. It does get slightly easier, but it’s also a pain.
Using APA Referencing in Practice
Writing academic papers will require a referencing style; Michael has touched on the use of Chicago, MLA and APA in the past but in this post I'm going to explain and outline the APA referencing system.
APA stands for the American Psychological Association and their referencing style is very common. I'll cover off UK and US referencing styles in future posts so don't think I'm singling APA out for special attention.
The APA system is broken into two main parts:
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In-text citations
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A reference list
Interviewing a Subject
It has struck me that having to interview a subject as part of an assignment is something that is not as straight forward as I thought. Interviewing someone for a job is not the same as interviewing a subject that you are then going to use to write up a piece, and in either case, interviewing is something that takes practice to get what you want out of the meeting.
Here are my thoughts on how to approach and conduct an interview with a subject. Note that these are born out of minimal experience interviewing a subject as part of my writing career so pitch in with your criticism and suggestions.
What is the Purpose of the Interview?
Establish what the objective of the interview is to be. Are you interviewing the subject because you are writing about them or will be featuring them in your commission? Are you looking to use the subject's knowledge and experience to support or counter the position you are taking with your commission?
Do You Have Your Writer’s Voice?
Read a paragraph from one of your favourite novel writer - then do the same with another.
Can you tell the difference between the two?
I like science fiction and Iain Banks is a favourite. I also like John Grisham novels when I'm on a transatlantic flight. the two writing styles are very different irrespective of the US/UK spellings.
The difference is their voice.
It may seem strange to ask if you have a voice as a writer - after all you are not speaking.
National Union of Journalists
Why I have never used their site I do not know - I stumbled upon it quite by accident and spent several hours tracing through the links and resources they have.
You can find the site here.
The link is to the media resources for the London freelancers part of the site, but this itself is only a small taste of what is on offer.
As a research resource it is brilliant and I particularly liked the help it gave on how to handle using translation engines. I frequently use Babelfish (Babel from the biblical tower where different languages were spoken and Babel Fish from the Douglas Adams invention in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy). I speak rusty French and Jurassic Russian, and use the site when I'm writing or reading material in either language as a check on my own understanding. The advice the NUJ site gives is to use more than one translation engine so you are able to comprehend better the "shadow of meaning" that the words convey. I like that phrase "shadow of meaning" and the advice is sound.
Blue Grammar
Periodically I research for myself on the subject of "writing"; that is a bit of a shocker as it is my chosen means of earning a crust.
I came across a site which you can find here - www.grammarbook.com - an American site again but informative and helpful if you just watch for those Americanized spellings.
One recommendation I found useful is avoiding the overuse of "there is", "there are" and "it was"; something I am perennially guilty of.
Remember one of the Supaproofread writing tips - if you can dispose of a word in your piece then remove it as long as your message is not affected. This is simply good practice to impart your ideas with economy so the message is not lost in an overgrown bramble of words.
Copywriting: Emotional or Intellectual Approach?
I worked as a salesman for many years and I was good at it - good enough to build my own company and flog it for enough beer tokens to keep me happy for the rest of my days. I know what I'm talking about when it comes to selling.
Writing good copy is something I have never mastered and I have a constant battle within myself when it comes to expressing the emotional nature of intellectual facts and features. I am by nature an analytical individual, I like facts and figures when it comes to making a buying decision and rarely does the emotional aspect of a purchase strike my consciousness. That flies against the general doctrine of advertisers and copywriters who believe that facts and figures only help to justify a purchase and the real decision is based upon emotions and feelings.
You can see this dichotomy all over the place - how many times have you come across web copy such as this for Sean Nalewanyj and his bodybuilding course. Very emotionally based, playing to the desire to be ripped and muscled, referring to "getting the girl" and a reader's feelings of self-esteem and perception.
Difficulty with Words and Spellings – All for Fun
Have you ever had to reach for the dictionary with word block and felt like kicking yourself when you found the result?
I had this with "could" last week; for the life of me I "cud" not remember how to spell it and looked it up and booked an appointment for an Alzheimer's test.
It happens to all of us but the following are the ones I frequently come across:
DIARRHEA
Dash In A Real Rush, Hurry or Else Accident
CONSCIENCE
Remember it as Science with a Con
DESERT or DESSERT
The Sahara only has one S in it - Desserts have SugarS
ECZEMA
Even Clean ZEalots MAy get spots
There is no X in this word - Simon Cowell has no Zits!
HAEMORRHAGE