<p>Any Americans on here going to study in the UK this fall? Anyone going to the University of Buckingham in particular? Can I get an opinion on that university? I'm interested in going there, but would their fast track 2 year undergraduate degree be recognized in the states? (I'm going to do English lit and politics) (They English department is supposed to be top 10)</p>
<p>Any British students on here care to give me their 2 cents about this uni? Should I go here or apply somewhere else? What's the uni like? Any relevant info will be much welcome!</p>
<p>I’d never really heard of it. A quick google shows it’s one of 3 private unis in the UK. According to some students at the student room (english student website), the social scene there is terrible, so if you’re looking for a good time, definitely don’t go there. As far as English rankings, completeuniversityguide has it at 90th, but Guardian has it at 14th.</p>
<p>Well I suppose that’s a little sacrifice to make. I just want to know how my degree will be viewed in the States. Will it be recognized as an undergraduate or associates degree? Because when I graduate it will only state BA English Lit but not how many years I did it.</p>
<p>British Bachelor’s degrees are usually recognized as Bachelor’s degrees in the US. However, some American universities still insist on a 4-year degree (or a European Bachelor + Master) to be admitted to their graduate programs.</p>
<p>The real question is what you want to do with the degree. If you want to go to graduate school in the US, the two-year degree will hurt you because you’d have less time to get strong letters of recommendations and relevant experience (e.g. research experience) for your graduate applications. If you want to go on the job market, you’d be at a disadvantage because you’d have less time for internships. Regardless of length of degree, just a degree from a foreign not-so-well-known university is a huge disadvantage in itself: you won’t have the local networking opportunities that a student at an American university would have, and you won’t have the name recognition of Oxford or Cambridge either.</p>
<p>British universities award degrees with “honours” to differentiate student achievement. There’s first-class honours, upper second-class honours, lower second-class honours, and third-class honours.</p>
<p>High school grades don’t really matter in the UK. What matters are A-level results. AAA, As on three A-levels, would be the “closest” to a 4.0 GPA. However, that really compares better to getting 5s on six different AP exams.</p>
<p>I meant in college, like our grades are measured in the 4.0 gpa system, so I was wondering what’s their equivalent. I’ve noticed most of their bachelors have an honors attached to them. Like BA (Hons) Psychology. It’s hard to find a degree without that so I thought it was…a common thing over there?</p>
<p>I can give you a general view of Buckingham- I’m a British student and its fairly highly regarded here (not sure about abroad). The only thing I would say is its in a VERY quiet town. If you are planning on being 100% studious for two years it would be perfect but theres not much to do in the surrounding area. It is possible to travel to places like Oxford but theres nothing that nearby. Like I said, its a good university and for some the shortened degree is a major benefit.</p>