Refugees and asylum seekers can apply for university and higher education courses in the UK. However, there are various rules and regulations and it is far from easy.
 
There are four main areas to consider:
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  1. Your level of English language competence 
  2. The equivalence of your academic qualifications to those of the UK 
  3. How you can finance your course 
  4. Choosing a course and applying for a place at a university, using the UCAS site
 
1.Your level of English language competence 
An organisation which can help with advice, preparation courses and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) is:


http://refugeap-network.net This is a new site with advice on developing English language provision, examples of what others in the sector are already doing, and a bank of practitioner resources (including links to relevant CPD and trauma training opportunities). They have also set up a RefugEAP Network JISCmail discussion list to connect with others interested/working in this field.

  • If you are not a native English speaker, you will probably need to take the IELTS Academic test (fee £195). The minimum score required varies between 6 and 7.5, depending on the course and university. See this website for more information.
  • Alternatively, the Duolingo exam is accepted by a few UK universities. It is computer-based, online and tests listening, speaking, reading and writing. It gives you a score, takes 60 mins and costs about $59. Cost of on-line tuition varies, some of it free.
  • GCSE English which is the exam taken by British students at the age of 16.
 

IELTS preparation
2. The equivalence of your academic qualifications to those of the UK (ENIC)
 
Universities generally have a licence to check your qualifications if you apply to them, and Further Education (FE) colleges may also check the standard of your existing qualifications. In that case you do not need to use the ENIC service.
ENIC is a government service to provide a statement of comparability for your qualifications and how they match with those in the UK. For details, see Statement of Comparability (enic.org.uk) The service costs £49.50 + VAT.
If you need to use their service, they will need clear colour photographs or scans of your final certificate(s) and transcript(s), plus:
  • certified translations of your documents if your documents are not in English and you are not going to use their Translation Waiver Service.
  • proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.
  • If you choose to use their Translation Waiver service, they work with your qualification in their original language. This means that you do not need to upload certified translations.
  • They do not provide you with translations of your documents as part of this service.
  • At the moment, the Translation Waiver service is available for these languages:
  • Arabic , Bulgarian , Catalan , Chinese , French , German , Italian , Japanese , Polish , Portuguese , Romanian , Russian , Spanish , Ukrainian
  • The Translation Waiver service is only available for the Statement of Comparability service.
  • The Translation Waiver service costs £40.00 + VAT* in addition to the standard price of the service and postage.
 
3. How you can finance your course 

Everyone going to university has to pay fees and maintenance costs.
Asylum seekers are considered International Students who pay much higher fees than home students. As an asylum seeker, you will need to access Sanctuary Scholarships through the STAR universities. https://star-network.org.uk/access-to-university/scholarships/list/
As a refugee, you are considered as a Home Student and there are fewer scholarships available to you, but you are eligible to take out a Student Loan. https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-student-finance


Over 80 universities offer scholarships, bursaries and fee waivers for people who have claimed asylum in the UK. Each scholarship has different eligibility criteria, application deadlines, and levels of financial support. The amount allowed for maintenance varies Competition also varies. Unfortunately, you have to be holding an offer for a place at the university before you can apply for a scholarship there. You can hold offers at up to five universities, but only one for the scholarship.
To check out which universities offer scholarships and for courses suitable for you, check in Displaced Student Opportunities which lists study opportunities and exists to support refugees and people seeking asylum in the UK to access university.

For a list of other organisations who offer scholarships or small bursaries and grants go to Sources of finance for HE and FE education
 
4.Choosing a course and applying for a place at a university, using the UCAS (The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) site

First, find out your options for higher education as an Asylum Seeker or Refugee.

UCAS is the organisation that handles everything to do with applying for university.

Choosing a university https://www.ucas.com/undergraduate/what-where-study https://www.ucas.com/undergraduate/what-and-where-study/choosing-course/how-choose-between-undergraduate-courses-and-unis

Also go to this website mentioned above https://www.displacedstudent.org.uk/ where you can search for what you want as an asylum seeker or refugee. Check individual course requirements and available scholarship opportunities carefully and apply as early as possible.


Once you are ready, you will need a ULN (Unique Learner Number) for UCAS, and when it comes to making an application, you will need to pay a fee of £28.50 for up to five choices for 2025 entry.


Applications for up to five universities go through UCAS and the form that you will have to complete covers personal details, existing qualifications, a reference and a personal statement, now based on a number of questions.

On the UCAS website, there is special guidance on writing the personal statement for asylum seekers and refugees

5.More useful websites
Refugee Education UK │Higher Education │University for refugees and asylum seekers (reuk.org)  REUK has a team of people who can provide advice to young asylum seekers and refugees. The website has advice, information and a good FAQ section.​

Unifrog

Russell group These are generally regarded as the most prestigious universities
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Page last updated May 2025