<p>Hi, So I have a pretty general question about UK Unis. What schools are the easiest to get into? I currently live in NYC, and am planning on moving to settling down in the UK. However, I don't have the most stellar grades because of putting other things before coursework, like the military, when I was in, and my soon to be ex-husband! (I'm 23, in case that matters to someone).</p>
<p>I'm just looking to make it into a very general university, so I can work my way up, and get into those big boy universities once I get my grades up, however I would like to get used to the UK experience, before I do, so that hopefully doesn't distract me like I hear about a lot of new international students.</p>
<p>Before I get the lecture from anyone, Yes I've been there, my 4 years in the military has taken me all over the world, and I fell in love. Also, the economy stinks in the States, it's time to look for a new land of opportunity! LOL</p>
<p>I have nothing tying me back to the states, so I figured the sooner the better. But I don't really know what to search for or how, So this was my first stop. There's nothing the opinions of those who have been there and done that! Thanks for your help and sorry for my novel!!!</p>
<p>Congratulations for making a very bold decision, I’m sure you came to it after a lot of thinking.</p>
<p>I’m a final-year Law student in England and have been through the entire process as an international student, so I’m happy to help.</p>
<p>The first thing you need to do is discover ucas.com which is your guide for undergraduate admissions in the UK. Most of the coming year (2013-14) undergraduate courses have already closed now (or will close by Jan 31st). So if you want to be in university in the Fall of 2014, you need to get cracking with applications.</p>
<p>The other thing is that you need to have a very clear idea of what you want to study at university in the UK, there are very few General Course programmes here and most students do a very specialised degree from the word ‘go,’ it’s very un-American in that respect. I, for example, am doing Law as an undergraduate degree (and many others read degrees such as Medicine, Dentistry, etc. at Undergraduate-level as well).</p>
<p>To find the kind of universities that are in your range will require a bit of research. League tables (though not the best indicators of how good a university is) such as Guardian’s List of Universities and The Complete University Guide UK can help you figure out which range of universities to look into and ucas.com has their admission requirements up for every course.</p>
<p>If there’s anything else you need, please feel free to send me a PM.</p>
<p>There’s not really any way to make your way up through universities - unless you mean attending a lower ranked undergraduate institution then a higher ranked postgraduate institution, which is possible provided you do well at undergrad level. </p>
<p>Transferring between UK universities midway through a degree course isn’t usually possible. </p>
<p>You won’t be able to stay in the UK after graduating unless you get a work visa sponsored by an employer. And the economy stinks here too!</p>
<p>I don’t want to burst your bubble but I agree with everything Laylah says. Also, how are you going to pay for it? There is very little financial aid available to overseas students in the UK, and the cost of living is very high, never mind the tuition. To get a student visa you usually have to show you have enough funds to pay tuition and support yourself throughout the full length of your course of study. Maybe you already have the funds, but if not you need to consider this.</p>
<p>There are some one year courses at British universities called access courses, which may be available to you as you will be over 21 when you start and therefore considered a mature student. If you complete such a course it usually guarantees you admission to a course 3 or 4 year degree. This is the only way I can think of to ‘move up’ UK unis during undergrad. But you need to check overseas students can enroll on such a course. Also, some access courses are only available to people who did not complete high school for whatever reason. So you may not qualify.</p>
<p>If you are looking for anything general, the UK education system may not be for you. Most people have effectively chosen their major at the age of 17, and they do not switch.</p>
<p>I don’t want to rain on your parade but I think this is all a lot more difficult than you imagine.</p>