Should we all study abroad?

The UK is not the ideal place to study a degree. The weather is awful, the government buries you under a mountain of debt and when you graduate, employers usually tell you to do one if you haven’t completed hours of unpaid work experience. Watching this higher educational apocalypse unfold increasing numbers of students have decided that enough is enough: it’s time to study abroad.

It’s all this guys fault.

Over the past decade there has been a general increase in the number of people who would consider studying for a degree overseas, rather than at a UK university.

In a recent survey more than 2500 students were asked if they would consider studying abroad, with 37% answering ‘yes’. This was an increase from 20% in a similar poll last year according to the BBC. This is a staggering amount for a country that prides itself on an internationally competitive, high-quality education system.

We all just want to catch the sun don’t we?

The increase in tuition fees explains why more of us want to study outside the UK. Of those who said they would consider studying abroad,  57% said the increased tuition fees had affected their decision. Since the introduction of £9000 tuition fees, 18 year olds have undoubtedly looked overseas for cheaper opportunities.

But what options are out there?

Studying in the UK is too much for some

Norway offers non-Norwegian students tuition fees at no cost whatsoever. While there are certain requirements to meet, this seems like a pretty good bargain for an alternative University experience.

According to one Newcastle student, who spent several months in Norway during his year out, Norwegian students ”bloody love the outdoors,  constantly skiing and going on trips into the mountains even on weekends. They love being outside and in the cold.”

Interestingly, he was also told that ”although they never say it, all Norwegians feel slight pity for anyone from another country and they know they have it better than most with the huge taxes spreading the enormous wealth across the country, including all uni fees working out at about 60 pounds per semester.” 

Of course the costs and experience for a UK student with be slightly different to their Norwegian counterparts should they look to study in Norway. Nevertheless, in terms of a cheaper, interesting and more adventurous University experience this does not sound too bad a deal.

Despite this, the USA remains the top destination for students studying abroad at 33%. Maybe their Spring Break holidays are the largest attraction for UK students? Chris Knights, a second year ancient historian, told The Tab that the main reason he wanted to study in the US was “the number of chicks out there.”

Or is it the food?

However it should be remembered universities abroad might not meet the expectations UK students would hope for.

Former student Mike Buckby was so dissatisfied with the Universidad Alfonso X el Sabio, a Spanish university in Madrid, he left halfway through the semester. Despedida!

While he enjoyed the ”food, blue skies, foreign girls and the fact that people were ridiculously nice”, the Spanish university life is slightly different. ”There was no freshers’ week, no ‘societies’ as such and everyone works much harder in contrast to the UK”.

You can do this in Magaluf, but not at a Spanish university.

Similarly, I was informed that in Norway ”they work crazy hard, like totally different to first years here in the UK… Norwegians believe in hard work before play and they have a regulated approach to indulgences”.

It should be noted Mike’s university was private so it is not a general overview of what Spanish university life is like.

Although, along with the comments on Norwegian working mentality, it does bring attention to the risk factor when applying to foreign universities. How many UK students will be fully aware of the culture at a foreign university? How many would be let down by the lack of Jägerbombs?

Just as British footballers are reluctant to ply their trade abroad (Señor Bale is a glaring exception), British students remain reluctant to study elsewhere. Of those polled, 34% put ‘not fitting into the culture’ as the biggest factor for not studying abroad.

There are many reasons why Big JT should probably avoid studying abroad.

I’m torn between seeing this as a sad indictment of our insular national culture or as a confirmation of just how much we love getting pissed in our own town centres on a Friday night. It could well be both.