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Northern Europe, capital London

How to Apply to Universities in United Kingdom (2027): Step by Step

The United Kingdom combines some of the world's oldest and most selective universities with a large, long established higher education system that teaches almost entirely in English. Undergraduate admission at nearly every university runs through the shared UCAS application service, while postgraduate admission is normally direct to the university. Tuition and living costs vary widely by university, course and city, with London the most expensive place to study.

Verified 7 Sep 2026 Sources
Public tuition, per year
£24,700 to £70,550
international students
Living cost, per month
£900 to £1,400
typical range
Work during study
20 h
per week
Post study work
2 yr
after graduation
Intakes
Autumn
main application cycles

Bachelor's degree (undergraduate)

  1. Register with UCAS and choose up to five courses at up to five universities or colleges.
  2. Write one personal statement covering all choices and arrange a reference from a teacher, adviser or other suitable referee.
  3. Submit the application by 18:00 UK time on 15 October 2026 if applying to Oxford, Cambridge, or a medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine/science course anywhere in the UK; otherwise by 18:00 UK time on 13 January 2027 for equal consideration.
  4. Sit any admissions test the course requires, for example the UCAT for most standard entry medicine courses, the LNAT for law at some universities, or the ESAT or TMUA for some science, engineering, computing and mathematics courses; these usually have their own registration and sitting windows that fall before the UCAS deadline.
  5. Attend an interview, or submit written work or a portfolio, if the course or university asks for one.
  6. Receive decisions through UCAS Track, then accept one firm choice and, where eligible, one insurance choice.
  7. Meet every condition in the offer letter, such as final exam grades and an English language test score, by the date it states.
  8. Once the place is confirmed unconditionally, apply for the Student visa and pay the immigration health surcharge.

Master's degree (postgraduate taught)

  1. Apply directly through the individual university's own application portal; postgraduate study is not offered through UCAS.
  2. Check whether the specific programme has a fixed deadline or accepts applications on a rolling basis until places fill; competitive programmes and scholarship linked places often close months before the course start date.
  3. Submit transcripts, a degree certificate or proof of current enrolment, a personal statement or research proposal, references and an English language test score.
  4. Accept the offer, satisfy any conditions, then apply for the Student visa and pay the immigration health surcharge.
Sources, checked 7 September 2026
  1. https://www.gov.uk/student-visa
  2. https://www.gov.uk/student-visa/money
  3. https://www.gov.uk/student-visa/work
  4. https://www.gov.uk/student-visa/family-members
  5. https://www.gov.uk/healthcare-immigration-application/how-much-pay
  6. https://www.gov.uk/graduate-visa
  7. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-student
  8. https://www.ucas.com/events/2027-entry-deadline-for-the-universities-of-oxford-and-cambridge-and-most-courses-in-medicine-475536
  9. https://www.ucas.com/events/2027-entry-deadline-for-all-undergraduate-courses-except-those-with-a-15-october-deadline-475546
  10. https://study-uk.britishcouncil.org/moving-uk/cost-studying
  11. https://study-uk.britishcouncil.org/plan-studies