GLICCのオンラインコースで日本語小論文を受講していた生徒から、無事にLSE (The London School of Economics and Political Science) に合格したという知らせがありました。早速体験談を書いてもらいましたので、イギリス留学に興味のある方は参考にしてください。

My experience applying to UK universities as an international student from Japan

By H. I.

With the new academic school year fast approaching, so is another cycle of UK university applications, specifically for students aiming a September 2026 entry.

This September, I will be starting my bachelor's degree at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in International Social and Public Policy with Economics. Additionally, I have also applied to and gotten offers from the University College London (UCL), King's College London (KCL) and the University of Edinburgh. Whilst I can announce such great achievements with much confidence and excitement today, I wished to have had more guidance throughout the entire process – from finding a suitable course and university to writing my personal statement. Hence, here's a breakdown of my UK university application process as an international student from Japan, who spent her final high school years at an international school in France doing the IB Diploma Programme.

Research

The entire application process for UK universities utilises an online portal called UCAS. All possible courses offered by UK universities are displayed on here with respective course descriptions, entry requirements, and application deadlines.

However, to access more insights for the university courses, I recommend visiting the respective universities' websites. This can give you more information on things such as employment opportunities post-graduation, tuition fees or module details, which are not given on UCAS. After doing my research, I had finalised my decision to apply to LSE, KCL, UCL and the University of Edinburgh by the end of October.

Personal Statement

Once I had decided on where I was going to apply, I wrote my personal statement. Starting this year, the personal statement on UCAS consists of three long-answer questions, with the purpose being to communicate the reason why you want to study a course at a university. You get to write one personal statement and can apply to up to 5 universities.

Application Results

After sending off my application in December, I heard back from the University of Edinburgh in February and from the other universities in March, each with respective offers binding to certain grade requirements that I would have to achieve in my final IB examinations.

Alternative Qualifications

Although the grade requirements given on UCAS are generally given in terms of A-Level grades or IB scores, it is not impossible to apply to UK universities without these qualifications, which may be especially worth a consideration if you are an aspiring student in the UK currently attending a Japanese high school. Firstly, you have the option to undertake a foundation year, through which you can gain the qualification you need to undertake your studies. However, this comes with an extra year worth of tuition. Hence, many universities, including the LSE, accept AP-scores as a form of qualification for university entry. It is worth noting that they have certain requirements you must have met in order to apply with AP-scores, so it is best to research them beforehand.

I hope this short summary of my experience applying to UK universities as an international student was helpful, and I wish all upcoming applicants the best of luck!