British council India is conducting an exhibition about UK Education in the month of November in 2009 in few cities of India. Read more details about Education UK Exhibition.
- Decide which course(s) you are interested in studying. UK representatives will pay little attention to students who ask ‘What course do you think I should do?’ or ‘What course has the best job prospects?”. Instead, they want to speak to students who have thought seriously about their future, what subjects interest them, what subjects they are good at and what job they would eventually like to secure.
- Shortlist the institutions you are interested in. Not all the institutions exhibiting will offer the course you are looking for, so there is no point visiting each and every stall. Your time will be better spent focusing on those you know have courses you are interested in. Visit the institutions websites beforehand to help you shortlist.
- Think about how you will fund your study. Studying in the UK is a major investment of both your time and money. Of course there are various ways you can meet the costs –family savings, company sponsorship, bank loan or scholarship. It is important that you have considered each of these options before your visit to the exhibition as UK representatives will ask how you intend to pay for your course.
- Find out if you meet the entry requirements. Most university courses in the UK will require students to have high marks in their Indian school qualifications and an excellent level of English. It is important to be realistic about which course(s) you will be accepted for. If your grades are slightly lower than the entry requirements being asked for, there may be other options open to you such as foundation/access courses or vocational courses at further education colleges.
- Make copies of relevant certificates. As the exhibitions are usually very busy, representatives do not have time to wade through piles of paper. It will impress them if you have put some effort into arranging your paperwork. Bring copies of your school examination results and other relevant qualifications e.g. degrees or diplomas in a neatly ordered folder. There is no need for you to bring details of your curriculum, project work or other extraneous information.
About the Author: Sridhar Jammalamadaka is the editor of this blog, Interview Mantra. He is a professional blogger from Pune, India. He is an experienced programmer with expertise in Java, C and Micro Controller programming. He enjoys playing cricket and piano. Through this blog, he wishes to gather a large online community of aspiring Indians - students and working professionals. You can find him on Twitter at @sriavr 