A dictionary of resources that could aid you in the UCAS process
A
Alumnae: Approaching Malaysian (or Singaporean) alumnae or current students via social media for advice. I’m sure they would be more than happy to answer your questions.
F
Facebook groups: After being given an offer, you could flock to Facebook to check for groups uniting offer holders, incoming freshies and the Malaysian student society for your university.
I
IDP: An agent that submits your application at zero added cost. What they don’t do is give advice related to academic issues. They have partnered up with universities to encourage and facilitate international students to specific universities including some Russell Groups. These, however, do not include institutions like UCL, LSE or Oxbridge.
*I personally see it more fit that I complete my application independently as you would still have to submit your personal statement, reference letter and basic info to the agent, so there’s no effective difference.
P
Project Access: An NGO that aims to increase equal educational access by providing university application advice to students applying from overseas for free. You will get paired with a current student from top UK and US universities who is volunteering as mentor as well as help to improve your English for personal statement writing. Don’t shy away and do sign up if you are a first-gen university student!
R
Reddit: For university applications, check out r/6thform (a community of UK college a.k.a. pre-u students so UCAS is often a popular topic during university application season) and r/UniUk. Additionally, check out the respective subreddits for each individual university here.
T
Thestudentroom: A forum for students of all levels. You can ask questions within the community and meet other applicants of the same universities. Official representatives of many UK universities are also active on the site.
Y
Youtube: To get to know your campus and university of choice better, try to find Youtubers who have shared their journey as a student there. Here are two Malaysians who have studied at: University of Birmingham, London School of Economics and Political Science. Don’t forget to check out the official Youtube channels of your dream universities for more insight into their specific courses and colleges. Jesus College, Oxford, for one, has great videos for Oxbridge applicants sitting for the TSA.
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