Shabuj Global Education - Support for Students in Saudi Arabia - Studying in the UK

Shabuj Global Education (SGE) is a worldwide educational consultation, helping students from all over the world to global study destinations, with over 250+ Global Partners, SGE makes it easy for students who live in Saudi Arabia to access these vast array of universities.

You can visit our Shabuj Global Office, based in Jeddah:
Prince Sultan St. Nama Center- Al Khalidiyah District

This blog post is written by Adam Stockley, who has grown up in the UK, so I will highlight information about studying, living and working in the UK.

Studying in the UK

The UK provides a world class education, with its undergraduate and postgraduate courses recognised worldwide for international students. At SGE, you have access to over 80+ UK Universities, some are highlighted below:

From England, to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, you can choose to live and study in some amazing cities and towns across the historic island of the United Kingdom.

The Russell Group Universities are some of the most highly ranked universities in the world, with a focus on world-changing research. But at every UK university, you will graduate with a strong degree in your chosen field, and have the opportunity to live, study and work in the UK after you graduate.

Why Study in the UK?

The UK welcomes a large number of international students from all over the world. At every university you could go to, you will be greeted with students from almost every country! As mentioned, UK degrees are high quality and recognised worldwide for their high quality of education.

The length of undergraduate degree in the UK is as follows:

• Undergraduate Degree - 3 Years

• Undergraduate Degree (with work placement) - 4 Years

• Postgraduate Degree - 1 Year

• Postgraduate Degree (with work placement) - 18 months to 2 years

In many other countries, some degrees are 4 years, meaning it will cost more for your study, accommodation and living costs. Also it means that you can’t start work for another year. The UK provides a FULL degree from 3 years for Undergraduate and 1 year for Postgraduate. 

You can find some photos from all around the UK, places where you can visit very easily, by car, train or plane:

Snowdon - Tallest Mountain in Wales

Schiehallon Munro - Scottish Highlands

Bull Ring Shopping Centre, Birmingham

Belfast Castle - Belfast

Your Options to Study

There are many ways to study at a UK university, based on your grades, PLEASE NOTE all universities have different entry requirements

Direct Entry: If you meet the requirements on the university’s website, you can go straight into the first year of a 3 year program.

International Year One: If you don’t meet the requirements, you can do an international year one, essentially a focused year exclusively for international students, and after you pass, you will go into the 2nd year of your degree.

Pathways: Pathways are another way of accessing university, it adds an extra year to your study, but adds focus on English Language, targeted learning for your degree, and eases you into university life. Some pathways can be less than a year, depending on your situation.

Application Process

The application process to university can be overwhelming, there are many steps that need to be taken. Having guidance from SGE, it will make it much much easier.

UCAS is the application platform that is used to apply for all undergraduate university degrees. You can choose up to 5 courses, so that can be courses from the same university, or all of your choices can be different.

You have to write a strong personal statement which is around 600 words, telling the universities why you want to study that course, your skills and experiences and what you want to do with that degree.

After you have to provide different documents to the university, to check your eligibility, when you start receiving offers, then you can plan your next step. For UK Visa and Immigration, you will need to show you have enough funds to pay for your first year of tuition, the monthly living  costs for 9 months (£1,171 outside of London, or £1,529 inside London).

The usually VISA timeline is 8 weeks, but can take longer, with priority and super priority services available for extra cost. When you receive your student VISA, you can arrive 1 month before you commence your studies.

Work Experience Opportunities

You can work for up to 20 hours in a part time job, that could be in a retail store, cafe, restaurant, student ambassador at the university, and much more! Also when the university is closed for the holidays (usual December for 2 weeks, April for 2 weeks and May/June for 6-8 weeks), you can work unlimited hours. Part-time work is a great way to gain employability skills, but also some extra money to use while you are living in the UK. 

Work placements - many UK degrees offer a ‘year in industry’ meaning you are fully employed in a company around your subject area. This is a fully paid position, and gives you hand-on experience in your field of interest. Many international students receive job offers from working at their placement!

After you graduate, you have 1.5 years to work in the UK job market, going into any sector or job role. If you do a great job, you could get sponsored by your employer, and you can continue to live and work in the UK further. 

Getting Involved at university

Sometimes university can seem like you are just studying all the time, but that is not true. University is a chance to try LOTS of new hobbies and activities. From volleyball, football, rugby, tennis and much more. Each university has its own number of sport clubs and societies.

Societies are fantastic ways to make new friends and gain new skills, you have some differences, you can see below:

• Academic Societies: These are based on your degree, you can meet other students and you can help each other with your assignments, listen to guest speakers and even connect you with job opportunities. It is a great way to expand your network!

• Social Societies: This can be based on your interests, some examples include: dance, acting, video games, anime, and even very specific societies: Harry Potter society or the Taylor Swift society!

• Country Societies: There are many societies based on origin countries, meaning you can meet students from your country, share food and stories. Also societies that are faith based as well.