Perks of studying in the UK (to convince parents)

I'm 23 years old so technically don't need my mother's permission to do a Master's degree in the UK (potentially MSW now)

However, I would like her to be on board with it. I'm nervous about bringing it up because I know she's not thrilled with the idea - she doesn't want me so far away for 1-2 years, it's completely unfamiliar territory (british school system), and she's worried about the quality of the degree itself (which comes from it being unfamiliar!)

So can everyone list the best things about studying in the UK, things you find better than US, perks, arguments you used to convince your parents, etc?

Well uni seems more difficult here. For example, I'm doing a dissertation in my final semester and all of my American friends studying all over the US do not have to do one. Also, a few of my friends went abroad from the UK to the US last semester and they had to be put in masters classes and got 90's there while they were struggling to get 70's here. Btw, in psychology modules you're lucky to get mid 80's here and that's if you've written something particularly impressive. But you only need a 70% to get the highest grade so I guess it's not that big of a deal.

I can't think of much else. I love it here though. It's been such a tough journey but it feels really worth it.

Oh and if you tell your mom you'll finish your master's in a year, that should impress her. America likes to drag studying out whereas here it's a lot quicker which I love.

If the schools you are applying to have awards, a particular ranking, anything special about them-then let her know! I researched as much as I could to make sure I was picking a good school and when I had a list of schools to apply to I asked my (English) boyfriend to ask around to find out the reputation of each of them.

The quality can vary with the school that you attend, but as far as teaching style I really haven't found things to be any different. It's a tad bit more independent but I was expecting that with any masters programme whether in the UK or the US. The grading scale is different but with a masters you won't be putting a GPA on your CV or resume, instead you will have a pass, merit, or distinction. Merit is most common with it being similar to a B average (this is approximate).

While it's true that you only have the summer to do your dissertation it is totally possible and they obviously take your time limitations into consideration when grading the papers--and just a tip--i've found originality scores major points!!

If your mom is nervous about you being in a different country all alone just know that a ton of the masters student are international students!! In my programme there are only 2 English people haha. So you won't be alone!!Good luck

I didn't bother convincing my parents of anything, I simply told them that I was going to the UK and pursuing a master's degree.  I had also been with my (british) boyfriend for over 4 years, so I think they had had the time it takes to adjust to the idea that I may not live nearby forever (although we were a 4+hour drive apart already..)

I wouldn't worry about the "quality of the degree" at universities in Western Europe.  It's quite a civilized place, and there are plenty of things that suggest that a British degree is equivalent to an American degree (and vice versa), depending on the course.  I think it depends on the university you go to as well, though. The university I went to here was one of the top 75 in the world, and ranked 2nd in the UK for my chosen field...so that probably played a factor in my parents' support of my decision. The ability to adapt to a foreign university is important in today's increasingly globalized society, so you could also use that to help "convince them"

I wouldn't say that university is more difficult here than in the US; just different.  In the US, you're constantly graded on coursework, whether it's homework assignments, essays, quizzes, or exams.  But in the UK, almost all of your grade is dependent on one final exam at the end. 

As far as grading goes, which GibbyGab touched upon, I almost feel like in the US, you start with a 100%, and professors take off for every wrong answer, but in the UK, you start with a 0%, and have to earn each and every point.  This isn't official, it's just what I've noticed.  I've also known British people who studied at my university in America, and they said that it was much more difficult/constant than their universities in the UK....which is quite the opposite of what GibbyGab's friends noticed.  I'm not saying either  is right/wrong, I think it just depends!

I believe by MSW, you mean you're looking into a Master's in Social Work?  I'm afraid Social Work is one area that seems to get a little bit tricky when it comes to how it is perceived in the US.  There are different laws in each country, and I think that's part of the problem, but I don't know much about this...I just know I've seen a few threads about on here in the past.  I'll try to have a look for you..

Thanks for the help everybody, I appreciate the quick responses!

As far as the MSW goes - my worry is more about getting into a program than anything else! I contacted the licensing body in my US state and they told me as long as it's a 2 year MSW program, foreign degrees are accepted for licensing (although they need to evaluate my coursework and I may need a few additional courses back in the US).

I'm going to do more research on that, but I'd like to get a dialogue going with my mom too so I don't blindside her!

In 2006 (I was 23), I announced to my parents that I was applying for a PhD in the US... which meant moving abroad for approximately 4-6 years. They didn't really say anything about it except that it was my choice (I'd already lived in the US on my own for a year in 2003/04).

It wasn't until 8 months after I'd moved there in 2008 and I'd decided I wasn't happy and wanted to move back to the UK that my mum even told me how much she missed me, how glad she was that I was coming home and that she never really wanted me to go in the first place .

I'd spent months over there feeling miserable and trying to make a decision about whether to stay in the US or leave the PhD and come home, but when I asked her why she didn't say anything sooner, she said she didn't want to influence my decision!

Well uni seems more difficult here.

Maybe it depends on the degree subject - when I studied abroad in the US in my third year of uni, the year I spent in the US was by far the most difficult and demanding of my entire degree. I worked harder in the US than in the other 3 years of my degree combined .

For example, I'm doing a dissertation in my final semester and all of my American friends studying all over the US do not have to do one.

A dissertation is pretty much required for any UK degree, whereas it isn't necessarily required in the US. Essentially, for a UK degree, if you don't write a dissertation, you can't graduate with honours (i.e. you can't get higher than a Pass degree).

This isn't strictly always the case, since certain UK courses may have alternatives to writing a dissertation, but for most degrees, the dissertation will count for a good percentage of the final year grade - I think mine was worth 60 credits, so 50% of my final year, and so without those dissertation credits, I wouldn't have been able to graduate with honours.

Also, a few of my friends went abroad from the UK to the US last semester and they had to be put in masters classes and got 90's there while they were struggling to get 70's here.

This happened to me... I went straight from second year UK classes to 400- and 500-level US classes.

However, I believe this is discrepancy mostly due to the fact that before we start university in the UK, we already have 14 years of full-time education (age 4-18) under our belts and we have already covered most of the content in 100- and maybe 200-level classes in our A levels... so there's no point in going into 200- or 300-level classes when we've already covered that material in the UK.

The way it seemed to work at the US university I attended was that the first year or two seemed fairly easy because it covered mostly A-level material and a little bit further, but then the last 2 years were really full-on and difficult because they were essentially cramming 3 years of a UK degree into just 2 years!

Regarding the percentage grades, a 70% in the UK is basically equivalent to a 90% in the US... it can be extremely difficult to get higher than a 70% in the UK, but then you're not really expected to be able to score much higher than 70% or 80% in the first place.

I had a GPA of 3.25 in the US and got mostly A's and B's in my classes... when my grades were translated into UK equivalents, I ended up with 66%, 63% and 50% (2:1 and 2:2 grades)! Even the classes I got 90-95% in were translated to 66% - an 'average' 2:1 in the UK.

Personally I thought it was unfair that all my hard work in the US ended up only being worth a low-2:1 average. Those grade translations cost me my chance of getting a 1st class degree, since they meant I would have needed to average 80% in my final year to get a First (which I didn't).

Yuck, the grade thing is definitely something I'm concerned about. I have a 3.45 undergrad GPA in the US but it sounds like when it's translated to UK equivalents, I'm going to be below average and I don't really want that attached to my masters degree!

Yuck, the grade thing is definitely something I'm concerned about. I have a 3.45 undergrad GPA in the US but it sounds like when it's translated to UK equivalents, I'm going to be below average and I don't really want that attached to my masters degree!

But the point is that it's not below average... you can't take the percentage grades at face value because they have different weightings in each country.

For example:
- in the US a 70% is a C, but in the UK a 70% is an A.
- in the UK, 60% is a good grade, but in the US it's a D.

A 3.45 undergraduate GPA would translate to an upper-second (2:1) class honours degree in the UK, which is considered a very good, respectable degree - usually the minimum requirement for a masters, PhD or a good graduate job is a 2:1 degree.

Having said that though, masters degrees in the UK aren't graded the same way as undergraduate degrees... most universities just tend to grade them just as Pass or Fail, although some may award Merit or Distinction to exceptional candidates (I don't think I've ever met anyone who has been awarded a distinction though).

There were 14 people on my masters course and everyone got a Pass. We didn't get percentage grades because our entire degree was awarded based on our final written thesis and thesis defence. After my defence, my examiners spent a few minutes in discussion before calling me back into the room and telling me that I had 'Passed' my degree... that's all I was ever told.

Yes, I got a 80% when I studied abroad and that exempted me from having to take the final because I did better than x% of the class.

Also, I know a few years ago there were big issues with Social Work programmes in the UK.  Not all of them, but some no longer had the support of local councils so people couldn't do placement, which meant no jobs.  I'm not sure what the situation in now, but there was a Social Work magazine we used to get at work.

http://www.communitycare.co.uk/social-work-degree-social-care-students/

and just a tip--i've found originality scores major points!!

Completely not the same on my degree course. Originality really gets you graded down because they give clear directions on what you should be doing and let you know that that's what they want to a high analytical level. I think this really depends on the type of degree program you're on.

I contacted the licensing body in my US state and they told me as long as it's a 2 year MSW program, foreign degrees are accepted for licensing (although they need to evaluate my coursework and I may need a few additional courses back in the US).

I realise that this thread is from a few months ago, but I wanted to weigh in on the MSW programs here in the UK.

I originally wanted to complete my SW training in the UK, but in the end I decided to go to Boston University instead. Here were my reasons:

1. The US MSW is completely transferable to the UK, as long as the school is accredited by the CSWE. My registration with the General Social Care Council (licensing/registration body that monitors social workers, soon changing to the Health and Care Professions Council) was simple and took about 5 weeks.

2. Social work theory and practice is not the same in the UK as in the US, especially with the MSW program. There is less of an emphasis on mental health and therapeutic interventions, which I found the US MSW to be centered around. Social workers here cannot become licensed clinical therapists as in the US, which may become an issue if you move back to the US and wish to obtain a license to practice. You won't have had the necessary coursework like psychopathology, clinical assessment and intervention, therapy courses, etc. As you said, it might be possible to make up this coursework in the States, but this will likely cost a lot in time and money!

3. As of late, it is difficult to get hired as a newly qualified social worker. The cuts to funding in local authority public services have caused councils to recruit people with a minimum of 2+ years of statutory experience with the relevant population (children and families vs. adults). Newly qualified social workers are finding it difficult to find work, and often have to do 'unqualified' social work such as family support (which doesn't pay as much and is considered social care, not social work).

I don't mean to discourage you, but I feel that it is important to be informed in order to make an educated decision. I'd be happy to speak with you more about this if you wish, xABC123x!