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What's the average age to start university??

I'm going to be 21 when I go Uni, I'm really looking forward to seeing the 'baby' 18 year old students on my course. Because I'm most likely already doing the thing they're going to Uni to study. I'm just goin Uni now for career development really lol. I intend to take mentor a younger student. So if your going to either NTU or LJMU next year to study Sports Science and Managment, then add me, because I'm going to one of them in 2012 and I already work for a Professional football club and have links to others and I'm, eager to mentor a young coach whilst I'm at Uni :-)

Reply 41

Blazara

17

Original post by James142

I'm going to be 21 when I go Uni, I'm really looking forward to seeing the 'baby' 18 year old students on my course. Because I'm most likely already doing the thing they're going to Uni to study. I'm just goin Uni now for career development really lol. I intend to take mentor a younger student. So if your going to either NTU or LJMU next year to study Sports Science and Managment, then add me, because I'm going to one of them in 2012 and I already work for a Professional football club and have links to others and I'm, eager to mentor a young coach whilst I'm at Uni :-)

Necro-ing a thread from 2008... why lord why?

Reply 42

Annipie

Original post by WokSz

Here in Switzerland, the average starting age was 22 last year due to national service. Over 50% of Swiss males tend to take gap years between the Maturité (School leaving exams) and starting University.

I'm 22 and I'll be starting Uni this fall so I fall into the Swiss average, but I am above the British average :frown:

.

Well. I'm also Swiss but as it is we all finish our Matura at 19 unless you've repeated a year, and if you take a gap year/do military service you start at 20 (my case). How can 22 be average?

Reply 43

Moiraclaire

9

You could be any age! However most people would be 18 on the day they start uni (I'm guessing 80-90%) then the rest will be 19,20, 21

Reply 44

DarkWhite

17

I'd say the median and mode are 18.
The mean, typical average, I'd say is a few years older; let's say 21.

A lot of students take gap years, there are resit years, so 19 or 20 is very common too. Mature students, those 21 or over when starting their course, can bring up the average quite easily; there are mature students on my course in their 40s :smile:

Reply 45

ScottishShortiex

18

Original post by supraking164

Here in spain if you don't repeat any years you will start university with 17 or 18 years old. If you're born after september you will star with 17 years old, like me.
But it seems like in the UK people start university much later. Is that true?? Or do most people start with 18-19??? I know people take gap years in Uk, so the maximum should be 19, but i've been told that there's people with 21-22 in their first year.

Well here in Scotland it is generally the same as you in Spain...most people finish their final year in school in May/June and start uni in September (so will be 17 or 18 depending on their birthday being before or after september. However over here, if we fail exams and need to resit them to get the grades for uni, we don't resit the year at school, you'd go to college for a year.

I'm on a gap year so if i get in, I won't be 19 until I start.

Reply 46

seventwoseven

I will be 20 if I get my grades! But 2 of my friends were 18, 2 were 19, and me and my boyfriend will both be 20 although he'll turn 21 really soon after starting.

Reply 47

PaperBoy

11

Change in applications by age.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2012/jan/30/university-applications-subjects-age-poverty#age

Reply 48

*pitseleh*

20

Original post by Moiraclaire

You could be any age! However most people would be 18 on the day they start uni (I'm guessing 80-90%) then the rest will be 19,20, 21

'The rest' might be mostly <21, but that doesn't account for them all by a long shot, which your post seems to imply. :wink:

Depends on the course a little bit too. Some subjects will see mostly 18-year-olds making up the course numbers, but out of the 240 people on my course, about 30 of us are over 21, and I'd say probably only about 50% of the remainder are actually straight out of school - lots of 19-year-olds with gap years under their belts. :smile:

Reply 49

WokSz

17

Original post by Annipie

Well. I'm also Swiss but as it is we all finish our Matura at 19 unless you've repeated a year, and if you take a gap year/do military service you start at 20 (my case). How can 22 be average?

19-20 is when you finish. Men usually do 1 year military service + work a year.

Reply 50

Ocarinaoftime

2

I'm guessing in Scotland it'll be 17/18 because we do 6 years of school and it'll be 18/19 in England/wales. I was gonna be 17 when I started uni had I went straight from school, I didn't feel ready to move out at that age. I ended up taking a gap year so when I start this September I'll be 18. :biggrin:

There are people of all ages at university though, so it doesn't really matter.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 51

saraa95

Well, here in the UK, it's 18 or 19 if you've taken a gap year. I started at 18 and I'm doing 3 years. I'm 20 now and on my last year so I'll be finishing at 21.

Reply 52

username1148663

21

As about 20% of students are over 21 when they start all say the average is 20

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Reply 53

GetBullied

1

Original post by chernij

I'm entering University at 17, because I'm a year ahead of myself at school.
Average age in the UK is 18, 19 if they took a gap year.

I think you mean ahead of your peers. Also read your first sentence out loud, the grammar is bad.
Despite this evidence to the contrary, if you really are that far ahead of your peers I would prefer you use your intellect to work toward furthering mankind instead of jacking yourself off on the student room.