If you plan to follow an undergraduate course at a university in the UK, you should make your application through UCAS (University and Colleges Admissions Service) www.ucas.com using ‘Apply online’, a web-based application system for international and UK applicants.  Please note strict deadlines for applying for undergraduate courses through UCAS.

If you plan to study at a postgraduate level in the UK you should apply to your intended university directly.

You can search a full database of courses in the UK on the EducationUK website www.educationuk.org

Useful information on different subject areas can also be found in the British Council Education Information sheets available here http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-education-information-sheets

The UK does not have an official system of university or course rankings. This would be very difficult with over 55,000 courses on offer in the UK. The Quality Assurance Agency for higher education (QAA) http://www.qaa.ac.uk/ reviews the quality of teaching and learning. The UK funding councils review the quality of research through the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). For further information about the RAE and past results please click here

Several newspapers, including Financial Times, Guardian, Times, Times Higher Educational Supplement and Sunday Times produce unofficial rankings or “league tables” using a variety of sources (including the above) for their data. These different types of information are not designed to be added together and averaged to give an overall mark and so you need to be cautious when using these rankings.

For undergraduate studies you can apply by 30th June. However, it is generally advisable to apply well before this deadline, as popular courses at popular universities fill up very quickly. If you wish to apply for courses at Oxford or Cambridge, or those concerning Dentistry, Medicine or Veterinary studies, your deadline is a lot earlier, on 15th October. All of this information is available at www.ucas.com.

For postgraduate studies it is a good practice to apply as early as possible since some will fill their places very quickly. This might be as early as the October or November of the previous year; ideally it shouldn't be any later than April, although some courses do accept students as late as August.

Yes, but these are largely for postgraduate study. British Council administers British Chevening Scholarships (www.chevening.com) funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office – FCO , aimed at future high fliers who have the potential to become leaders, decision-makers and opinion formers in their fields when they return to Croatia. These scholarships are open for applications in the autumn each year so watch our website for deadlines, application forms and further information. For general guidance on what makes a good scholarship candidate, please see here.

There are also other scholarships available for study in the UK. You can find more information about scholarships and other sources of funding for your studies on the following websites:

www.stipendije.info

www.britishcouncil.org/learning-funding-your-studies.htm

www.educationuk.org/scholarships

www.prospects.ac.uk

UK qualifications are recognised all over the world and so they are in Croatia, as long as they are awarded by one of the institutions listed on the Department for Children, Schools and Families website. To see which universities and colleges offer courses leading to recognised UK degrees go to http://www.dfes.gov.uk/recognisedukdegrees/

If you would like to know what your UK qualification will be equivalent to in Croatia, you should contact the Croatian ENIC (European Network of Information Centre) /NARIC (National Academic Recognition Information Centre) office at www.azvo.hr.

If your course of study is for more than 6 months, you must obtain a student visa at the British Embassy in Zagreb prior to your arrival in the UK.  If you are not sure about your visa status or need further information please visit https://www.visainfoservices.com/

If you are coming to the UK as a student for more than six months, you can take part-time or holiday work, but you must not:
• work for more than 20 hours a week during term time unless your placement is part of your studies, has been agreed with your educational institution and leads to a degree or qualification awarded by a nationally recognised examining body
• do business, be self-employed or provide services as a professional sportsperson or entertainer, or
• work full-time in a permanent job.
If you are coming to the UK as a student for six months or less, you must ask the Immigration Officer for permission to work.

To check your status and for further information, please visit https://www.visainfoservices.com/

Student accommodation varies from halls of residence to privately owned houses. Institutions usually provide information about accommodation available to their students and will normally have an accommodation office. In most cases accommodation will be arranged for you by your institution's accommodation office. If you have any questions about this, you should contact your university directly for information.

Useful information on accommodation is available at
http://www.ukcosa.org.uk/student/information_sheets.php

This depends on the type of subject and qualification that you are applying for, but most universities will require an IELTS score of minimum 5.0 - 7.5 for an undergraduate programme, i.e.  6.0 – 7.5 for a postgraduate programme. Universities will also accept other English language certificates, and for a full list check individual websites.

IELTS is a test of English language proficiency. It is a method of assessing the English language used by non-English speakers who want to study, train or work using the English language. IELTS tests either general language skills or academic language skills.

For further information, please visit www.ielts.org or IELTS section of our website.