Research life at University of Birmingham

I applied to universities predominantly within the UK. I applied to 5 universities and got acceptance from 4: University of Birmingham • University of Chester • Nottingham-Trent University • Cranfield University The one I applied to but got no response from is • University of Warwick I am not sure why my application wasn’t approved by Warwick. I hired a consultancy to fill out my application for me and had no overview of Warwick’s application process and the data that was sent to them. • This university is part of Russell-group universities, a group of the most prestigious universities in the UK. This grants me a massive career boost on my resume for employers both inside and outside of the UK. • The application typically involved filling out personal questions and uploading legal documents, marksheets and SOP. Then, a local partner of the university called me to have an informal interview, asking me what my purpose of studying in the UK was, why the University of Birmingham, etc. Thereafter, I was forwarded a conditional letter from them to upload my undergrad pre-degree for the letter to upgrade to unconditional. I received it shortly after I uploaded the required documents and my admission was confirmed after I asked my consulting agent to send a positive response. For admission a strong overall profile was required of the individual. No other exams were required except for IELTS, of which the score had to be 6.5+ and the academic score had to be a First Class Honours. I had to face no challenges, as my admission procedure was mediated by the consultancy. I just had to provide the required documents, whichever they asked of me. Hence, the procedure was quite seamless for me. September 2023. My course just had 1 intake period. We applied to the university in October 2022 Received conditional from UoB in November 2022 Sent provisional degree in June 2023 Received unconditional in July 2023 Sent positive response in July 2023 Received confirmation and got link to fill in ID card details in August 2023 Hereby my application was successfully done and accepted into the University of Birmingham....Read More

I applied to 12 universities in the UK. Most of them I got a conditional offer letter; for a few I got an unconditional offer letter. I received my offers from the University of East Anglia, University of Exeter, University of Leeds, University of Bristol, Aston University, Coventry University, Durham University, Newcastle University, University of Bath, Lancaster University, University of Birmingham and University of Bath. I rejected the rest by keeping in mind the interest of the module, familiarity of the Indian population and food, availability of Indian groceries, racial discrimination index, University ranking and affordability. I chose this university as it has better modules, societies of my interest, activities and opportunities of my interest, a better world ranking, and is part of russell group. The admission process required you to provide documents like an IELTS, TOEFL, or PTE certificate of 6.5 bands with 6 band each for english language proficiency; a CV and Statement of Purpose wherein you explain your passion for why you want to do this course and join this particular university; two reference letters from a university or job; and a provisional or degree certificate. If you get accepted, there are some other requirements, like an English language minimum requirement, passing of undergraduate university level with their set percentage, or provision of a reference letter. They give you a conditional offer letter, which needs to be made an unconditional offer to get the CAS letter to proceed with the student visa application. This process takes 2 weeks to 1 month depending on University. Then when the CAS letter is given by University, we need to make partial or full payment of tuition fees, keep specific funds in the bank account to file, and provide a TB test (which takes 1 day to 1 week to get the result) for the UK visa application. The requirements of the English test and university marks vary from course to course. For M.A. International Relations, it's 6.5 bands on IELTS (I only took IELTS), with an exception if a student got 75% in the English language in 12th standard from CBSE or IGSE or ICSE board and 80% from the State or NIOS board. The university requirement is 75% at the undergraduate level from India. The overall experience was excellent; the professors are extremely supportive. I had a wonderful experience with the society and events; however, I struggled to ace my assignments, as their method is very new to me and they have higher expectations and I couldn't get more marks even with utmost efforts. I applied for the 2024 September intake and I wanted to specialise in my own field, BA international Relations (hons.) to MA international Relations for better job prospects. Collecting documents ( Reference letter from university professors)—1 month. Provisional degree (2 months after final exam) TB test (on the same day) Conditional offer letter to Unconditional offer letter (2 months, as my results were not out) Visa application (3 weeks waiting for approval). I started in October 2023 (Ielts test as the first step) and ended it by July 2024 with visa application. By August 2024, I got my Student Visa....Read More

Applied to Australian universities and got accepted, but 2 years is expensive in the country. I have got acceptance from Melbourne, Monash, and UNSW. UoB can be completed in a year and it was a lesser cost compared to the others. Did not get admission in 2 American universities. I did not write my GRE but I am happy because the situation is really bad for immigrants in that country. It is a good university and the subject is advanced statistics-related, which is fundamental to ML. I had emailed the professors prior to the admission and they were very responsive. I had written my IELTS and received an 8/9. There are other requirements like Letter of recommendation, a statement of purpose and a resume. This led to the admission. The management is responsible, in my experience. I applied for the fall intake, which started at september 2023. I want to upgrade my career as I was a software engineer and I wanted to be proficient in AI and ML. I applied in December 2022 and I received a response in March 2023. I had received the scholarship with march 2023 response; it did not require a separate application. The admission process is smooth. The finance and management team is cooperative....Read More

I applied for the following university: University of Birmingham—Shortlisted I didn't apply to any other university as I was not having an option. Only UoB provides a 4+1 LLM Pathway for the 5-year law course in India. Hence, I only applied to this university and I got shortlisted. Due to the tie-up with Symbiosis Law School, I applied to this university and we were not having any other university that would save us 1 year. I selected UoB because I did not have an option. Only UoB provides a 4+1 LLM Pathway for the 5-year law course in India. Hence, I only applied to this university and I got shortlisted. Secondly, I was also awarded various scholarships, which funded most of my tuition fees. The admission process was very simple. Starting with the application form and then we have to wait until we receive our conditional offer. The English proficiency test was waived off; instead, 80+ marks were asked in our 12th CBSE/ICSE board exams. I applied to the September 2024 intake and my major factor that influenced my decision for applying to this university was its good QS ranking and its alumni presence in the legal sector. Secondly, as there was a tie-up between the universities, it helped me to understand the University of Birmingham in a better way, as they visited our campus to clear all doubts we had before admission and provided us with great support....Read More

I had applied to 3 UK universities The colleges I applied to were Queen's University, Leicester University and the University of Birmingham Queen's University - unconditional offer, University of Birmingham – conditional offer, Leicester University – waitlist I received admission from Queen's University Belfast and the University of Birmingham I did not receive a rejection from any universities The University of Birmingham had a high QS ranking. I had a friend who previously studied at the University and said positive things about it. The city was central to travel to other cities. The modules offered for the LLM program were very interesting, which made me choose the University of Birmingham I made the application online and got a conditional offer. I had to write the PTE exam, and once my scores met the criteria, I had to pay a deposit. This made the offer unconditional. Then I received the CAS letter. The English requirement test was any one of these: IELTS: Overall score of 6.5 TOEFL: 88 overall PTE Academic: 67 overall Cambridge English (Advanced): Minimum overall score of 176 Making the fee payment was challenging, as it needed to be done with Western Union or a foreign bank transfer. The application process was smooth. I applied to the September intake as I heard it was the best intake to get into, as a larger number of students join during this time. My application was accepted at the end of June 2022. Immediately after I applied for the PTE exam, I took it. Applied for my UK visa in August 2022 and left in September 2022, and arrived on time for welcome week....Read More

I applied to the University of Warwick, Manchester City University, the University of Birmingham, and UCL, but UCL was the only one where I didn’t gain admission. I think UCL expected a more well-rounded profile beyond just academics. Since I wasn’t very strong in sports, my extracurricular involvement wasn’t as robust as it could have been. This might have impacted their decision, as they likely preferred candidates with diverse experiences alongside academic achievements. While researching universities, I found that the University of Birmingham had some of the best tech programs and was a leader in my field of study, making it an ideal fit for my goals. Additionally, being a big fan of Peaky Blinders, Birmingham held special appeal since it’s the famous setting of the show and represents the characters' hometown. This connection gave the choice an extra layer of personal meaning and made the decision feel even more exciting. I applied for the September 2023 intake, as it aligned with my academic plans and gave me ample time to prepare for my studies abroad. I submitted my application in March 2023, and the admission process took several months. After submitting my application, I received an offer in May 2023, which gave me sufficient time to arrange funding, accommodation, and other logistics before starting my program in September. The overall admission process took around 2-3 months from application to acceptance....Read More

I received conditional offers from several universities, including Sheffield, Leeds, Queen Mary, Bristol, and Birmingham. However, Birmingham was the only university that confirmed my admission. I did get rejected by the University of Edinburgh, and I think it might have been due to a few reasons. My IELTS score wasn't particularly strong, and my marks from the 10th and 12th grades are not outstanding either. Plus, it’s possible that my application form could have been stronger, so that might have affected my chances as well. I choose the University of Birmingham over other universities for several reasons. First, Birmingham has a great reputation and is highly recognised in the UK. Plus, I didn’t want to live in London due to the high living expenses there. Birmingham, being the second-largest city in the UK, offers plenty of opportunities while being more affordable. I also really loved the university’s beautiful campus and infrastructure. In the end, Birmingham was the only university that gave me an unconditional offer, which made my decision even easier. For my application, I took help from SI-UK in Jaipur. I visited their office, and they were super helpful throughout the whole process. My main criteria were to get into a university ranked within the top 150 globally, so we applied to about 5-6 universities. SI-UK assisted me with everything, including writing my Statement of Purpose. Once I decided on the University of Birmingham, I had to pay a £2,000 deposit in August, and by September, I received my CAS. The eligibility criteria for the University of Birmingham vary depending on the course. For my specific program, I needed an IELTS score of 7. Overall, the admission process was quite lengthy and required a lot of patience because the university took its time at each stage. Also, having to pay the £2,000 deposit upfront was a bit stressful. Also, the cost of on-campus accommodation is quite high, which is something I wish had been better. But despite these challenges, the experience was worth it because I got into my preferred university. I applied for the 2023 intake at the University of Birmingham, and the entire admission process took about four months. I started the process in June by submitting my application. A month later, in July, I received a conditional offer letter from the university, which was exciting but still required me to meet some conditions, like clearing my IELTS. In mid-August, I saw my name on the list and I had been selected for the Rajiv Gandhi Scholarship for Academic Excellence, which covered my tuition and provided a monthly living allowance. This scholarship was a big boost and solidified my decision to move forward with the university. By the end of August, I cleared my IELTS exam and submitted the results to the university. After that, I paid a £2,000 deposit to confirm my place at the university. Once the payment was processed and my IELTS results were confirmed, I received my unconditional offer and CAS early September. Overall, the admission process took some time and involved multiple steps, but once everything fell into place, I felt relieved and excited to start my journey at the University of Birmingham....Read More

The following are the colleges I applied to: 1. University of Adelaide, Adelaida, Australia - Unconditional offer 2. University of Technology, Sydney, Australia - Unconditional offer 3. Monash University, Melbourne, Australia - Unconditional offer 4. Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Australia - Conditional offer 5. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK - Unconditional offer, accepted 6. University of Southampton, Southampton, UK - Rejected 7. University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK - Unconditional offer 8. University of Leeds, Leeds, UK - Unconditional offer 9. EPITA University, Paris, France - Rejected 10. Jonkoping University, Jonkoping, Sweden - Unconditional offer I was rejected from Southampton because my profile did not match their requirements for the course I had applied for (MSc in Data Analytics). I was rejected from EPITA because they had better applications for this year. The University of Birmingham's computer science department is one of the best in Europe. The content of the course was the biggest reason I chose the university. Besides that, Birmingham is great for students. After applying online, I received a mail in about a month saying that I have been accepted to the university, on the condition that I pay the 2000 GBP deposit before January 31, 2024. Once I did that, I received an unconditional offer. Then in May, I received my CAS certificate, and the university regularly sent me information about the next steps and how I needed to prepare myself for coming to the UK and settling in. The eligibility criteria was to hold a Bachelor's Degree in Science or Engineering from a good college, with a background in programming. Along with it, an IELTS overall 7.0 was required. I'd say that my overall admission experience was very smooth. The university was very responsive, and they gave me regular updates about everything. The information was very concise. I did not face any issues during my admission process. There is only one intake for my course at UoB—the September intake. I chose this intake as this is the only intake available. The application process took about 2 months from application to acceptance. I applied to the University of Birmingham in October 2023, after which I received an email saying that they would review my application (which took about a month). Then, I received an email saying that because of the large number of applications, it is taking them longer than expected to come to a decision on my application. Then in December 2023, I received a conditional offer from the university. The condition was to pay the 2000 GBP deposit amount to officially accept my offer, which I did in January 2024....Read More

I got shortlisted in UOB, sheffield, Liverpool. UoB was confirmed as it was under the top 80 in world rankings and the Deloitte challenge, with some programme excursion options in mexico and spain options. Also, the fee was fine as compared to others. And also got a scholarship of 10000 GBP. Rejected at University college dublin in ireland. Reason: Because my agent did not upload the required documents on time. It is one of the russel group institute. Application and shortlisting – admission and application for scholarship. I got a 7.5 on the IELTS, but the requirement is 6.5. but there is a waiver. If you have 75+ in english in 12th, it will be waived for you. But needs a good SOP. It was fine; just the timeline overlaps a lot with other universities and makes it difficult to make a selection. I applied in sept 2024 intake. And the factors that influenced my decision were the admission timeline, fees, ranking, weather and accessibility. The admission process took 2 months and included the fees and accommodation booking, along with some welcome events and travelling. I applied in January, got my acceptance in mid-February, paid fees by the end of February and booked the accommodation....Read More

I applied to 5 universities, which are as follows: University of Birmingham (Admitted) University of Manchester (Shortlisted) University of Sheffield (Shortlisted) University of Nottingham (Shortlisted) University of Warwick (Rejected) I had a lower predicted score than the requirement of the university. The university expected me to score 95+ but my predicted grades were 88 and I scored 93. The decision for choosing the University of Birmingham for pursuing my Law degree was one of the most difficult ones. From choosing to apply to different universities by completing a thorough application to waiting for the university’s response. I selected this University because I wanted to study at a university whose degree would be valid and respected in India, as I want to return to India after completing my studies and practice as a lawyer in India. So, it is one of the universities whose law degree is recognised by the Bar Council of India. Moreover, it has a CEPLER (Centre for Employability, Professional Legal Education and Research), which opens doors to gain various skills and experiences along with studies. The strongest point about selecting this university is that it is classified as a Russell group university in the UK. I applied for the September Intake. Majority of students come and start their course in September so it makes the biggest cohort each September. It is the time when a large number of freshers come and join the campus. The whole admission process took nearly 6 months. The application deadline was the first week of January, with the offers made until February and the acceptance to be made till the dates mentioned in the offer letter (as these vary). Submission of results in May (if received early or later, may change). Confirmation letter (CAS) received in June....Read More