The Student Room Group

What to do?

I’m currently in the last year of my Gcses. In my Country I’ve seen a lot of people fall off in their A levels. Also, I want to save a year. Should I do a foundation year at University of Edinburgh? I fear that I’ll fall off in my A levels. I want to attend the Business management and economics module at uni of Edinburgh. After doing the foundation year and not having done even 1 year of A levels will I be eligible to apply and get into Kcl,Ucl, Queen Mary or Lse?

Reply 1

There are always distractions, you need to stay focussed on your goal in life.
Original post
by Hamza_chawla234
I’m currently in the last year of my Gcses. In my Country I’ve seen a lot of people fall off in their A levels. Also, I want to save a year. Should I do a foundation year at University of Edinburgh? I fear that I’ll fall off in my A levels. I want to attend the Business management and economics module at uni of Edinburgh. After doing the foundation year and not having done even 1 year of A levels will I be eligible to apply and get into Kcl,Ucl, Queen Mary or Lse?

When you refer to "a foundation year at University of Edinburgh", are you referring to Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme? Note the Eligibility and Entry Requirements, and the specific Academic Entry Requirements for IFP (PDF), which lists academic requirements by country.

Also, you say you "want to attend the Business management and economics module". You can see the list of undergraduate degree courses offered by Edinburgh's Business School here. There is no course called "Business Management and Economics". Perhaps you mean "Business Management " or "Business and Economics"?

Reply 3

Original post
by DataVenia
When you refer to "a foundation year at University of Edinburgh", are you referring to Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme? Note the Eligibility and Entry Requirements, and the specific Academic Entry Requirements for IFP (PDF), which lists academic requirements by country.
Also, you say you "want to attend the Business management and economics module". You can see the list of undergraduate degree courses offered by Edinburgh's Business School here. There is no course called "Business Management and Economics". Perhaps you mean "Business Management " or "Business and Economics"?


I’ve emailed them and they said that I need AABBB to be considered for admission there. And, yes I do mean the Business and Economics module that they offer. Could you please lmk about the other part of my question, it would mean a lot.

Reply 4

Original post
by ash210
There are always distractions, you need to stay focussed on your goal in life.


Yes you’re right there are always distractions but I’ve seen that in A levels particularly students fall off a lot.

Reply 5

Original post
by DataVenia
When you refer to "a foundation year at University of Edinburgh", are you referring to Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme? Note the Eligibility and Entry Requirements, and the specific Academic Entry Requirements for IFP (PDF), which lists academic requirements by country.
Also, you say you "want to attend the Business management and economics module". You can see the list of undergraduate degree courses offered by Edinburgh's Business School here. There is no course called "Business Management and Economics". Perhaps you mean "Business Management " or "Business and Economics"?


Yes, I meant business and economics. Could please answer the rest of my question, it would mean a lot.
Original post
by Hamza_chawla234
Yes, I meant business and economics. Could please answer the rest of my question, it would mean a lot.

Unfortunately, I can't answer the remainder of your question unless you're able to answer the first question I asked, which was:

When you refer to "a foundation year at University of Edinburgh", are you referring to Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme?

Reply 7

Original post
by DataVenia
Unfortunately, I can't answer the remainder of your question unless you're able to answer the first question I asked, which was:
When you refer to "a foundation year at University of Edinburgh", are you referring to Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme?


I mean the International foundation year. I’m sorry but I don’t know the difference between the 2 things you’ve stated but from what I’ve researched, I mean the International Foundation year. Thank you very much for your replies.
Original post
by Hamza_chawla234
I mean the International foundation year. I’m sorry but I don’t know the difference between the 2 things you’ve stated but from what I’ve researched, I mean the International Foundation year. Thank you very much for your replies.

Thanks for confirming that we're talking about Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme. Many universities in the UK offer degree courses for which there is a "with foundation year" variant with lower entry requirements. For example, Queen Mary - one of the universities you mention above - offers a three-year "Business Management" course and a four-year "Business Management with Integrated Foundation Year" course. I was trying to ensure we weren't talking about one of those as it impacts the answer to your second question.

So, your question is whether KCL, UCL, Queen Mary or LSE will accept students based upon them having completed Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme.

KCL might, but they might not. What they say here (under the Foundation Year Programmes heading) is, "Foundation programmes from other universities and further education providers in the UK are considered on a case-by-case basis. Whether or not we can consider a particular foundation year as suitable for study at King's depends on the content of the syllabus and modules studied. In the past we have accepted foundation courses from a number of other institutions." (Note that they also say, "We are unable to accept Foundation programmes that are integrated as part of a main degree at another institution. These may be called Year 0 or Integrated Foundations." - which is why I was trying to understand what your "a foundation year" phrase actually referred to.)

UCL don't say anything specifically about accepting students who have completed an international foundation programme elsewhere, as far as I can tell.

Queen Mary say at the foot of this page that, "we are able to consider a wide range of external international foundation programmes for undergraduate entry" and on this page they provide some example of such programmes. They don't list the one offered by Edinburgh, but suggest that you contact [email protected] for further information.

LSE say here (in the Foundation Courses and Access to Higher Education Diploma section) that, "We consider applications from students who are able to complete a foundation course, however not all foundation courses are acceptable for all degree programmes. In previous years we have received applications from students studying the foundation courses at institutions such as the University of London International programme, University College London, Kings College London and the University of Warwick. LSE will only consider International Foundation Programmes delivered by UK institutions."

What I would point out is that most of the above universities have international foundation programmes of their own, and that if your ultimate objective is to attend one of these universities (rather than staying at Edinburgh) then it would make more sense to apply to their international foundation programmes, rather than Edinburgh's. See:

KCL: King's International Foundation Programme
UCL: Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates UCL's International Foundation Year
Queen Mary: International Foundation Year
You would be a lot better off not to rush to start university.
If you take an IFY at 16 and start university at 17 then you will not be able to benefit from all the opportunities available to students who are legally adults. Even getting part time work while studying will be limited if you’re under 18 in the UK.
Some universities won’t consider applications from applicants who will be 17 on entry (and those that do may only consider you if you turn 18 in your first term). Being under 18 in the UK places additional responsibilities and safeguarding on university staff and the costs of that aren’t worthwhile for many universities. Similarly you may not be permitted to stay in some university halls if you’re under 18.

Your life isn’t a race to the finish. You’re supposed to enjoy the journey. Take A levels, enjoy yourself, have hobbies and get a part time job and apply to a UK university in yr 13 to start when you’re 18. You’ll have many more choices, be better placed to take advantage of the opportunities at university and more employable when you graduate.
Original post
by DataVenia
Thanks for confirming that we're talking about Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme. Many universities in the UK offer degree courses for which there is a "with foundation year" variant with lower entry requirements. For example, Queen Mary - one of the universities you mention above - offers a three-year "Business Management" course and a four-year "Business Management with Integrated Foundation Year" course. I was trying to ensure we weren't talking about one of those as it impacts the answer to your second question.

So, your question is whether KCL, UCL, Queen Mary or LSE will accept students based upon them having completed Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme.

KCL might, but they might not. What they say here (under the Foundation Year Programmes heading) is, "Foundation programmes from other universities and further education providers in the UK are considered on a case-by-case basis. Whether or not we can consider a particular foundation year as suitable for study at King's depends on the content of the syllabus and modules studied. In the past we have accepted foundation courses from a number of other institutions." (Note that they also say, "We are unable to accept Foundation programmes that are integrated as part of a main degree at another institution. These may be called Year 0 or Integrated Foundations." - which is why I was trying to understand what your "a foundation year" phrase actually referred to.)

UCL don't say anything specifically about accepting students who have completed an international foundation programme elsewhere, as far as I can tell.

Queen Mary say at the foot of this page that, "we are able to consider a wide range of external international foundation programmes for undergraduate entry" and on this page they provide some example of such programmes. They don't list the one offered by Edinburgh, but suggest that you contact [email protected] for further information.

LSE say here (in the Foundation Courses and Access to Higher Education Diploma section) that, "We consider applications from students who are able to complete a foundation course, however not all foundation courses are acceptable for all degree programmes. In previous years we have received applications from students studying the foundation courses at institutions such as the University of London International programme, University College London, Kings College London and the University of Warwick. LSE will only consider International Foundation Programmes delivered by UK institutions."

What I would point out is that most of the above universities have international foundation programmes of their own, and that if your ultimate objective is to attend one of these universities (rather than staying at Edinburgh) then it would make more sense to apply to their international foundation programmes, rather than Edinburgh's. See:

KCL: King's International Foundation Programme
UCL: Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates UCL's International Foundation Year
Queen Mary: International Foundation Year

Most IFYs for English universities require AS level or higher. I assume that Edinburgh is more flexible because their extra year on their degree means they can already consider applicants with just AS equivalent for year 1 entry.

OP seems to be trying to skip a year without realising that the reason for Edinburgh’s lower IFY requirements is because the IFY is only equivalent to AS not A level and the extra year is added to the degree instead.
Original post
by PQ
Most IFYs for English universities require AS level or higher. I assume that Edinburgh is more flexible because their extra year on their degree means they can already consider applicants with just AS equivalent for year 1 entry.

OP seems to be trying to skip a year without realising that the reason for Edinburgh’s lower IFY requirements is because the IFY is only equivalent to AS not A level and the extra year is added to the degree instead.

Thanks @PQ.

I must admit I was surprised when I realised that Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme specified its entry requirements in terms of what appear to be Level 2 qualifications (e.g. the "General Secondary Education Certificate with an overall grade of 85%" for Saudi Arabia and "Intermediate / Higher Secondary Certificate with an overall grade of 80%" for Pakistan) - source.

But when I checked KCL's, they seemed to be very similar (e.g. "Saudi Tawjihiyah (General Secondary Education Certificate) an overall average of 80% in your final year" for Saudi Arabia and "High School Certificate - HSC (SSC not accepted) an overall average of 65% in your final year" for Pakistan) - source.

This led me to believe that this is just the way International Foundation Programme's worked. Thank you for the correction.
To be honest if the OP wants a range of options then any FY is likely to close more doors than open them. They’d be better off focussing on AL’s.
Original post
by Admit-One
To be honest if the OP wants a range of options then any FY is likely to close more doors than open them. They’d be better off focussing on AL’s.

Agreed. Their motivation seems to be based around the observation that "I’ve seen a lot of people fall off in their A levels". If you don't do A levels, you can't struggle with them. In that sense, it's a genius plan. :biggrin: Also, they "want to save a year."
Original post
by DataVenia
Thanks @PQ.

I must admit I was surprised when I realised that Edinburgh's International Foundation Programme specified its entry requirements in terms of what appear to be Level 2 qualifications (e.g. the "General Secondary Education Certificate with an overall grade of 85%" for Saudi Arabia and "Intermediate / Higher Secondary Certificate with an overall grade of 80%" for Pakistan) - source.

But when I checked KCL's, they seemed to be very similar (e.g. "Saudi Tawjihiyah (General Secondary Education Certificate) an overall average of 80% in your final year" for Saudi Arabia and "High School Certificate - HSC (SSC not accepted) an overall average of 65% in your final year" for Pakistan) - source.

This led me to believe that this is just the way International Foundation Programme's worked. Thank you for the correction.

Lots of universities have some flexibility for IFDs for students from educational systems where their HSD/HSC is GCSE equivalent. Those qualifications normally still involve leaving after 12 or 13 years of schooling rather than after 11. That leniency wouldn't apply to someone who has taken GCSEs like the OP.
Original post
by PQ
Lots of universities have some flexibility for IFDs for students from educational systems where their HSD/HSC is GCSE equivalent. Those qualifications normally still involve leaving after 12 or 13 years of schooling rather than after 11. That leniency wouldn't apply to someone who has taken GCSEs like the OP.

Understood. Thanks again.

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