The most expensive places to study in the UK - a visual and interactive look
Image via Shutterstock.

University represents the next big chapter in any graduating high school student’s mind. And one of the primary, if not foremost, concerns of parents and students in finding the right school is how much it would weigh on their finances.

It can be hard to trawl the massive load of information on the Internet or through old-school brochures to have a clear idea how much money should be set aside, the amount of which will also vary from school to school. As an aspiring international student looking to study in the U.S. or U.K., the problem is made more difficult from the lack of first-hand knowledge about a country.

And while the U.K. is widely known as one of the costliest study destinations globally, further details on it such as the breakdown of costs and how it compares from one city, or one university, to another can be difficult to ascertain.

Apart from tuition fees and estimated living costs provided by university websites, more refined details such as clothes, books and gym memberships can be difficult to find online. Even if certain information is available, compiling them for a comparison among all the universities a student is considering (which can go up to ten or 20) is a monumental task, on top of other factors to be assessed such as the university’s reputation and the city it is located in.

With these in mind, Market Inspector, a B2B digital marketplace for businesses and institutions in Europehas fused both data and visuals into one interactive map to help students and parents analyse and arrange their finances for university.

‘’I know from personal experience how hard it is to figure out how much it costs to study somewhere. The idea behind the map is to get some idea of study costs with just one quick look,’’ Eva Keller, Communication Assistant for Market Inspector, said to Study International.


Map by Market Inspector

Taking into account factors such as tuition, housing, transport, etc, the map plots the universities on a map and upon clicking on a specific pointer, the university’s name, tuition costs and total costs are shown. Using information from GoCompare’s “degree of value” table, both costs shown were calculated based on the following factors: tuition, housing, travel expenses, books, food, clothes, gym membership, laundry and other social expenses.

On the map, the universities are also coordinated according to their pointer’s colour, to show how costs are spread out throughout the U.K.

In one example, Regent’s University London is noted with a red pointer as well as the pound (£) sign to show that it is the most expensive. Upon clicking its pointer, the tuition costs and total costs are shown to be £16,400 and £38,854 respectively.

London is the most expensive

While London recently topped QS Best Student Cities 2017 list at 3rd place, Market Inspector’s map also showed, unsurprisingly, that the English capital is the most expensive city to study and live in.

Tuition fees there are among the highest globally, the impact of which is taking its toll on local and EU undergraduate students since the 2012 fee increases. In addition, housing and living costs are notoriously higher in London compared to the rest of the city.

A snapshot of the interactive map shows Arts University of Bournemouth’s tuition and total costs are significantly lower than those in London. Image via Market Inspector/Eva Keller.

But how do London and the rest of the U.K. compare to their neighbours?

While there are more regulations controlling the costs of higher education in Europe, there are still private institutions that charge “insane amounts of money” for their degrees that are demanded widely, according to the Market Inspector.

Their infographic below shows the top seven most expensive universities in Europe:

Most Expensive Universities in Europe
Yet, despite some of their European counterparts charging up to €22,000 per year, Market Inspector found that some U.K. universities remain among those with the dearest costs a student has to fork out to get a university degree.

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