UK Undergraduates

Students at Russell Group universities have outstanding opportunities to learn, develop, and realise their full potential in their future careers

Teaching

Russell Group universities work hard to create the ideal learning environment for students to flourish. The combination of teaching and research excellence in our universities will offer you the chance to learn from some of the world’s most respected academics. You will be supported to make sure you get the most from the education our universities offer and you’ll have access to some of the best teaching facilities in the UK: from libraries and lecture halls, to labs and online learning tools. In combination, this gives Russell Group graduates a huge step up to achieving success in the wider world.  

At a Russell Group university, you will benefit from world-class teachers, first-rate facilities and a highly-motivated and talented peer group.

The value of studying at a Russell Group university is highlighted by the:

  • High levels of student satisfaction – the 2017 National Student Survey (NSS) showed 86% of students at Russell Group universities were satisfied with their course.
  • Low non-continuation rates – for young full-time first-degree entrants at Russell Group universities in 2016/17, just 3% did not progress to the second year of their course.

Entry requirements

Each Russell Group university sets its own entry requirements for each of its courses. This means that when you’re thinking about going to university, you’ll need to look on universities’ own websites or in their prospectuses to find the specific grades, qualifications and subjects that they require for the courses that you are interested in. Links to their websites are provided in the University website links section of this page.

We do provide some general guidance to students who are choosing their A-levels, Highers and other equivalent qualifications that you might study after the age of 16. This can be found on the Subject choices at school and college page.

Funding your studies

Money worries should not put you off from applying to a Russell Group university. If you live in and are a citizen of the UK and are planning to study full time for your first degree at a university in the UK there are some key facts you need to know about tuition fees:

  • Wherever you study you don’t have to pay for your course upfront - you can get a government loan that will cover the tuition fees for your chosen university.
  • You only pay back your university loan when you can afford to do so after graduating.
  • Whatever the fee, the size of your monthly repayments when you start repaying your loan will be the same. This is because your monthly repayments are based on how much you go on to earn rather than the size of the loan you took out.
  • After a set period of time the outstanding balance on your student loan is written off by the government.
  • Loans, grants and scholarships are available to help you with your living costs.

The process of applying for the government student finance package differs according to which part of the UK you are from – just follow the most appropriate link below for more information:

Financial support

Russell Group universities offer financial help to their students in addition to the maintenance loans and grants provided by the Government. The money that you receive will vary between universities and depend on your particular circumstances but last year a third of all undergraduate students at English Russell Group universities received a bursary or scholarship worth an average of £2,200.

More information about the money that universities offer through bursaries and scholarships to support you whilst you study can be found on their websites - see the University website links section of this page.