The whole road, for September 2027 entry
Your journey to a UK university, step by step
Ten stops, from the English test to the first lecture. Every figure here is official, from the body's own page, with the link.
Start the journeyWe opened every page on 25/10/2026. Prices change, so check the link before you pay. This is general information, not a promise of a place or a visa.
1Step 1
The English test: IELTS
The first step, and the one that takes longest to prepare. Universities ask for a set score out of 9.
Test fee
₪1,760
IELTS Academic on computer, at the British Council centre in Ramat Gan. There is a second centre in Haifa.
Length
2 hours 45 minutes
Listening 30 minutes, reading 60, writing 60, and 11 to 14 minutes of speaking with an examiner.
When results come
1 to 5 days
For the computer test. The result is valid for two years.
For a bachelor's degree, IELTS Academic is usually enough, and the university decides. IELTS for UKVI is only needed if the university asks for it, so read each university's English page.
Your score, and which doors it opens
Move the slider. Scores move in halves, and the overall is the average of the four parts.
- University of the Arts London6.0
- Cardiff University6.5
- Durham University6.5
- Imperial College London6.5
- King's College London6.5
- Lancaster University6.5
- Loughborough University6.5
- Newcastle University6.5
- Queen Mary University of London6.5
- Queen's University Belfast6.5
- University College London6.5
- University of Aberdeen6.5
- University of Bath6.5
- University of Birmingham6.5
- University of Bristol6.5
- University of Edinburgh6.5
- University of Exeter6.5
- University of Glasgow6.5
- University of Leeds6.5
- University of Liverpool6.5
- University of Manchester6.5
- University of Nottingham6.5
- University of Sheffield6.5
- University of Southampton6.5
- University of St Andrews6.5
- University of Strathclyde6.5
- University of Surrey6.5
- University of Warwick6.5
- University of York6.5
- London School of Economics and Political Science7.0
- University of Oxford7.0
- University of Cambridge7.5
This is the general minimum. Some subjects ask for more, and many universities also set a score for each part. The visa itself needs at least 5.5 in each part.
2Step 2
One application for five universities: UCAS
Every UK university takes applications through one website, UCAS.
Application fee
£34.50
Once, for up to five choices, for 2027 entry.
Main deadline
13 January 2027, 18:00 UK time
For most courses. Many universities take international students later too, but earlier is better.
Oxford, Cambridge and medicine
15 October 2026, now passed
Medicine, dentistry and veterinary science: four choices at most, the fifth in another subject.
0 of 7 done
Your ticks stay on this phone only, and are never sent anywhere.
The personal statement: three questions
4,000 characters at most including spaces, and at least 350 for each question. All five universities read the same statement.
What drew you to it? A book, a project, a question that stayed with you. Be specific, not general.
The student writes the statement, in their own words and from their own experience. UCAS checks every statement for copied text.
0 of 4,000 characters
3Step 3
What does a university's answer mean?
Answers arrive in UCAS one by one. Each has a meaning, and each has a next step.
The place is yours if you meet the conditions written in the offer, such as a Bagrut average or an IELTS score.
What next
This is the most common answer. Choose a Firm university and an Insurance university with easier conditions, then meet the conditions and send your results.
Firm choice
The university you want most. If you meet its conditions, you go there.
Insurance choice
A university with easier conditions, in case you miss the first one's.
4Step 4
The Student visa
Once the university confirms your place, you apply for the visa yourself on the UK government website.
Visa application fee
£558
Health surcharge (IHS)
£776 for each year
Paid once for every year of the visa, and it gives you care in the UK health service (NHS).
Living money you must show
£1,570 a month in London, or £1,203 elsewhere, for nine months
These are the figures from 30 November 2026, so for September 2027 students. The money stays in the account for 28 days in a row, and a parent's account is allowed.
When to apply, and when the answer comes
Up to 6 months before the course starts, and the answer usually within 3 weeks
- 1
The confirmation number from the university (CAS)
Once your offer is final, the university sends you a number called a CAS. You cannot apply without it.
- 2
The money in the account for 28 days
Any first-year tuition you have not paid yet, plus the living money, stays in the account for 28 days in a row. Israeli passport holders attach the bank statement to the application.
- 3
The application on GOV.UK
You fill in the form in English and pay the visa fee and the health surcharge.
- 4
Fingerprints and photo
The phone app does not accept Israeli passports, so you go to a VFS Global centre for fingerprints and a photo.
- 5
An electronic visa (eVisa)
There is no sticker in the passport. The visa lives in an online account, and you prove it with a share code.
- No TB test is needed when applying from Israel.
- You can work up to 20 hours a week during term.
- Some science and engineering subjects need a security clearance (ATAS) that takes 6 weeks or more.
- Anyone under 18 needs both parents' written consent and a birth certificate.
Work out the visa cost and the money to show
Years of study
City
You pay the government
£2,886The visa fee, plus the health surcharge for every year of the visa.
You show in the account for 28 days
£57,037You do not pay it to anyone; it stays your money. The first-year tuition still owed, plus nine months of living money.
The health surcharge here covers the years of study. The visa runs a few months past the last year, so half a year may be added.
5Step 5
Where will you live?
Two options: university halls, or a private flat near campus or further out. Most first-year students choose halls.
- 1
University halls
Your own room, often with a bathroom, in a student building on or near campus. Bills and internet are included.
The easiest start, with friends from week one. Many universities promise a room to first-year students who apply on time.
The contract is usually about 40 to 51 weeks, not the whole year. Applications open in spring.
- 2
Private flat near campus
A room in a house shared with other students, within walking distance.
More freedom, and close to lectures.
Bills are often extra. The contract is often a full year. Read it before you pay.
- 3
Private flat further out
Cheaper rent, but you need a bus or train every day.
The lowest rent.
Add the cost of travel, and the time. Usually not the best choice for the first year.
6Step 6
What does the whole degree cost?
Pick the university, the subject and the housing, and the estimate appears, from the universities' own pages.
University of Oxford · Economics
A year
£60,808- TuitionLatest published fee: 2027/28
- £46,210
- Housing£237 a week × 39 weeks
- £9,243
- Food, travel, phone and books£595 a month × 9 months
- £5,355
The whole degree, 3 years
£182,424- The fee includes the college fee. Some subjects still show 2026 prices. Clinical years of medicine cost more (£69,160).
- At today's prices. Fees and rent may rise every year. The estimate leaves out the visa and flights.
7Step 7
Travelling to Britain
A direct flight from Ben Gurion to London takes about 5 hours.
- 1
The flight
Direct flights from Ben Gurion to London (Heathrow, Luton and Stansted), about 5 hours. Airlines and days change, so check before booking.
- 2
When to arrive
The visa lets you arrive up to a month before the course starts. Most students arrive before Welcome Week.
Source - 3
Airport welcome
Some universities meet their students at the airport on set days, free or for a small fee. Search the university's site for meet and greet.
Source - 4
In your bag
Your passport, CAS letter, offer letter and bank statement, with digital copies of all of them. And an unlocked phone for a UK SIM.
8Step 8
Your first two weeks there
A short list of what to do after you land. Tick each step when it is done.
0 of 8 done
Your ticks stay on this phone only, and are never sent anywhere.
9Step 9
The universities on the map
Tap any university to see its city and its cost in the calculator.
10Step 10
The timeline, month by month
For September 2027 entry. The current month is marked in gold.
October 2026
Start on English and choose the subject
Book an IELTS date and pick five universities. The Oxford, Cambridge and medicine deadline was 15 October 2026.
December 2026
Personal statement and reference
Write your personal statement yourself, and ask the school for the reference early.
January 2027
UCAS deadline: 13 January 2027
18:00 UK time, which is 20:00 Israel time.
March 2027
Answers arrive, and housing opens
University answers arrive from winter until May. Apply for halls as soon as they open.
June 2027
Choose Firm and Insurance, and the Bagrut exams
Reply to your offers in UCAS before the date shown in your account.
July 2027
Bagrut results and confirming the place
You send the results to the university. When the conditions are met the offer becomes final and the university sends your CAS.
August 2027
The visa
The money sits in the account for 28 days, then the application and fingerprints. The answer usually comes within 3 weeks.
September 2027
Travel and Welcome Week
You arrive, enrol, and lectures start at the end of September or early October.
A week in first year
IllustrationMonday
- 10:00Lecture: Microeconomics
- 14:00Lecture: Maths for Economists
Tuesday
- 11:00Lecture: Macroeconomics
- 15:00Small-group seminar
Wednesday
- 09:00Lecture: Statistics
- 13:00Afternoon free: sport and societies
Thursday
- 10:00Lecture: Microeconomics
- 13:00Small-group seminar
Friday
- 11:00Lecture: Macroeconomics
- 14:00Computer lab: Statistics
An example for an economics student, not a real university's timetable. About 12 hours of classes a week, and as much again or more of self-study. Medicine and engineering have more hours.
Source: economics.ed.ac.ukWant to walk this road with us?
Send us your Bagrut grades as they are, and we will tell you honestly where they can take you.