Where to send kids to university?

[Where next?]

We are in a dilemma. Our kids are born and educated in Asia, Singapore (international school) for the last 7 years, the plan had been to return to the UK for University but with the way things are in the UK (crime, poor educational standards, drugs etc) we are now not so sure.

It's difficult, we think of the UK as home but they have always been in Asia so don't have the roots or ties we do, so given the current situation why should they go there? What have other parents done? Where have you advised your kids to go?

[hi]

my kids are 3-4 years away from decision making........ but i think they have started thinking about uni even now. so do ask your kids. we are from south asia and it may be difficult to get admission in good uni there after s'pore but the kids choice is US as of now....

[Timetogo]

Some random thoughts..
At universities the world over drugs are available to those that want them.
Crime is probably more of an issue with the specific location of the chosen university rather than which country it is in, eg inner city versus countryside and campus versus non campus site.
I don't get the worry about educational standards, just pick a top university!
Are fees an issue? Compare likely costs.
If your children have actually got British nationality perhaps this is an opportunity for them to establish some roots there.

School will be advising the students on their options. If they are high flyers academically and want an English speaking environment then US or UK is the way to go IMO.

[Yae]

Singapore sent their top brains to US and UK universitites every year.

[anywhere]

You leave out a fair bit of information. What career are your children attracted to, how strong academically strong they are, where they might want to work etc.

I had my kids draw up a simple spread sheet for the universities/courses they were considering as a way of injecting some logic into the exercise, with costs, IB points required for entry etc. Bear in mind that the costs in the US will be roughly two and a half times (per annum) the cost for UK, Australia and Canada and most are four year courses not three. If they want to do post grad then America can get seriously expensive.

But given the points raised in your original post then maybe NUS or SMU might be options.

Also, should they want to return to work in Singapore then it will be really easy assuming a good degree from wherever they study.

[Uk Fees]

If your family have not been resident in the Uk 3 or 4 years they are not eligible for state subsidised university fees, so instead of GBP 3000 you'll have to fork out GBP 18000 to 22000 per year for the uni fees alone. May as well go to a US university and be hung for a sheep.

[according2me]

Your family should be looking for the university that best suits the child, regardless of the geographic location.  The decision should be driven by the student as long as any limitations are understood.  This is their first adult decision, not yours. 

[anywhere]

UK fees info is totally incorrect.

Depending on the UNI/degree most fees are between 7000-10000 GBP per annum

[Nope]

Those low fees will be for jumped up polys and their ilk. Top tier uni fees are 18 to 22k per annum.

To the joker above who reckons it's the kids' decision alone: Well great, perhaps they can go out to work and pay for their university education, upkeep, flights back,etc, for 4 years, themselves! Otherwise, I will be bang smack dab in the midle of the whole process and they'd better perform while they're there or I pull the plug. Which planet do you people come from?

[UK fees 2]

Actually, being out of the UK for several years does not necessarily mean you have to pay full fees. It all depends on your situation, i.e. do you still have property in the UK, how strong are your ties to UK, are parents here on tranfer or employed by non-UK company. We have been abroad for eight years, my contract is with UK based company, still have house in UK (rented out) and got 'home status 'for daughter without any problems.

[justdonethis]

Uni fees in UK depend on the course as well as uni. Arts are cheaper than medicine (by a lot)for example. And living fees will vary widely between eg between London and Manchester. This info is easily available from the universities to the OP. As we don't know what courses the children are interested in it is useless to generalise.
We like the previous poster managed to get home student status this year even though we've been in Asia 10 years. This was due to only being non resident due to temporary overseas employment and having a house in Uk (thus having an address). Company just had to provide letter stating current job is not permanent.

[ex-pat]

Perhaps they could go to University in Perth (Australia) as it is only a few hours flight from Singapore.  Maybe you could invest in an apartment there for them so you are able to visit them regularly.

[AGREEING]

Yes, Australia is always a good option. Crime relatively lower than the US and UK and quality of education very high and internationally recognised. Plus you are still close to the kids and it won't cost you as much money either.

[it depends]

I think the question you should be asking is "where can your kids go to university?"  In other words, taking into consideration their majors, what are the best schools they can get accepted in? This should be your first consideration, it is not a given that you can choose any location *and* the best schools.

Regarding the crime, I don't think it's worth worrying about for areas where the best schools are as they are usually safe. And the comment about Aus. - Beatings, murders, robberies, etc are happening in all kinds of areas at all times of day/night in W.A. It's much better to compare on a city by city or area basis than trying to compare regions or countries.

 

[Where next?]

Thank you for your constructive replies. Good points about crime and drugs. Probably reading to much UK news hype. We are English. My son wants to do law so really he should go to the UK. Luckily we still have a house there so hopefully that will qualify us as resident in the UK.