UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

After acceptance to study abroad as an exchange student to the University of Birmingham through Illinois, you will need to submit a University of Birmingham (host university) application as well. The University of Illinois (home university) will nominate you for the University of Birmingham. Once you’ve been nominated, you may receive an e-mail with a link to your application form. Instructions on what you will need to include in the application can be found here. For students intending to attend University of Birmingham during the summer, fill out an online application under "apply now" on this webpage.

UK - Butex Scholarships Programme for Study Abroad Students

• • The value of each scholarship is £500

  • Students must study in the UK for one fall/spring semester or the full academic year

  • Deadline to apply for 2021-2022 academic year is to be announced.

Program Dates

• • Spring Semester 2021: Jan. 25-June 5, 2021

  • Academic Year 2021-22: Sept. 21, 2021 - June 25, 2022

See Official Term Dates

Orientation and Welcome

Visit the Online Induction Module (UG), a dedicated resource to welcome new students at the University of Birmingham. You may also visit the Introduction to Canvas for Students module. After you've completed your online registration and arrived on campus, you must complete your Right to Study Check and collect your ID Card during our Arrivals Weekend and Welcome Week.

Attendance at the orientation briefing for Incoming International Exchange, and Study Abroad students is mandatory. It is usually held the week before classes begin. You should receive an email with the date and location. Another part of the University welcome festivities is the University Welcome Address. The University Welcome Address is the official welcome for all students starting at the University of Birmingham. You’ll have the chance to meet staff and meet other new students from across the University. Please sign up to attend.

Arrival and Airport Pickup

Airport Pickup is usually available for Fall/Spring semester students, for more information visit here. For Summer semester students, an airport pickup may be available to students travelling to Birmingham International Airport during an allocated time on the arrival day in July. An email will be sent out to students with further details prior to BISS 2021.

All visiting students from outside of Europe will be guaranteed housing by the University of Birmingham in one of the many "villages" across campus. As part of the formal offer letter from Birmingham, you will receive your student ID number. Once you have that, you can visit this website and follow instructions to "apply online" for housing. The University of Birmingham will provide more detailed expectations for your particular housing assignment once you are assigned, prior to your arrival via email.

University Housing Options:

• • A single study bedroom in a flat (apartment style housing) with shared kitchen and bathroom facilities

  • En-suite accommodation with shared kitchen facilities

  • Studios and apartments where you have exclusive use of a kitchen and bathroom

Benefits of University housing:

• • Self-catered accommodation where you can cook your own meals

  • Select the flexible Meal Plan option where you can eat at any of 22 locations across the campus

  • Access to Wi-Fi is available throughout all housing

  • Utility bills, 24 hour customer service as well as access to Student Mentors and the Residents' Association is all included

Further information about the different types of University housing can be found on the accommodation pages.

Private Housing

Some study abroad students prefer to live in private housing while in Birmingham. The Guild of Students provides a service that can help you find quality housing. This service is called Guild Lettings and is free of charge to students. They only work with accredited landlords. For more information, visit this webpage.

Student Voices on Housing

• "I really enjoyed my accommodation because I had my own room and my flatmates were amazing. I got to cook my own food and my accommodation was surrounded by other student housing."

• "Live in Tennis Courts because the community is great, it is the closest Vale housing to the quad, and it is one of the cheaper options. Keep in mind most of the student housing is a 15 min walk from Selley where shops and food is located. "

• "I was put in Pritchatt's Park ‐ it's a 10‐15 minutes walk from campus & also the vale (the biggest student accommodation village). I have a total of 9 roommates in a mixed sex dorm. Most of the student accommodations are flat/apartment style and everyone gets their own room. I didn't opt in for a meal plan so I did self‐catering for the semester. The area is fairly safe, I've walk home from the Vale quite a few times at night (tho not recommended)"

• "I would suggest to choose the Vale as your first option because all of the exchange/international friends that I've met stayed there. It makes it easier to be more social when you're closer to everyone else."

• "I was housed in student accommodation. It was called Maple Bank located in the Vale Village. The journey from my flat to the campus was about 20‐25 min of walking, which I quickly got used to. I felt safe for the most part. The walk to the flat was lit (with lights) and there are other accommodations you pass on the way. There are also CCTV cameras in some locations. I did not have a meal plan, but there was a store in one of the nearby accommodations that I could get many things from. Otherwise it was a 40 min walk to the nearest Aldi (closer if you leave from campus). My flatmates were nice, we all cooked for ourselves and respected each other's privacy. My accommodation was one of the cheaper options, which i was fine with, so it didn't look as nice as other accommodations. "

Academic Culture

In the United Kingdom, courses are called modules. Schedules are called timetables. Majors and minors are called courses. Students should expect to engage in more independent study while in the United Kingdom, than they do in the United States. Courses tend to include less homework and weekly assignments so the majority of grading is based on end of semester work.

Fall and Spring semester applicants do not need to choose modules during the application stage. After you have applied, Birmingham will send you a separate link to the module selection form which will allow you to indicate your choice of modules from each college. The college will contact you directly regarding your module selection. Most students take 3-4 modules per semester. Summer applicants will choose one class from a range of options for the duration of the program. The summer school has been designed to offer an opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture of Birmingham. Classes consist of summer school participants only; local students do not usually participate in the summer school.

Review this resource for more information about the modules/courses and review Credit and Grade equivalency.

Registration

To become an official student of the University of Birmingham you must first register online. Before you arrive in Birmingham you will receive an email containing your username and password which you will need to complete Online Registration. It comes from the central system, not from the Study Abroad team. When you receive your registration email, please read the email thoroughly and follow the instructions carefully. For detailed information on Registration, please visit Online Registration. For general additional information, please visit the Welcome pages.

Once you have registered, you will have access to your "my.bham" portal where you can check your module registration status and access the University of Birmingham online learning platform called "Canvas Learning Environment". On Canvas, ensure you visit the Online Induction Module (UG), a dedicated resource to welcome new students at the University of Birmingham. You may also visit the Introduction to Canvas for Students module.

After you've completed your online registration and arrived on campus, you must complete your Right to Study Check and collect your ID Card during Arrivals Weekend and Welcome Week.

Transcripts

You will need to access your final transcript on the Birmingham student portal. To send your transcript to Illinois, you will add the email address of your IAGE Education Abroad Coordinator as a recipient. The coordinator will be emailed an access code and proceed from there. The time for receipt and processing can take a few months. Be patient. You can track when your transcript is received by the Office of the Registrar by when the digital copy is uploaded into your My Study Abroad documents.

During Fall and Spring semesters, the Liberal Arts & Sciences program at the University of Birmingham offers a number of excursions, which exchange students are encouraged to participate in throughout the semester. The summer school offers a welcome event, social events, and an end of summer graduation ceremony for all students. Additionally, students can join the campus sports center and utilize the state-of-the-art library. Study abroad students can join the UoB student exchange society (UOBEX), or enjoy UoB Sport and Fitness in addition to exploring the United Kingdom on weekends. For a clearer view of excursions and cultural engagement opportunities at the University of Birmingham, visit the UoB Youtube Channel.

• "The library service was amazing and the greenheart was a good place to chill between classes. The courses were rigorous and informative but surprisingly pretty different from the US."

• "The school is similar to UIUC. If you're looking for a major change from the big campus life, don't go here. But if you are open to meeting more diverse people and get a sense of community and opportunities I think this campus can do that for you. The location is great because you're centrally located in England, so a day trip anywhere is so easy to plan and do. You're near an international airport and so the longer trips and destinations are available as well. The campus is beautiful in my opinion.

• "The British people always made the most of any situation they were in. Their resilience and their humor despite any situation was admirable and something I learned from. The "pub culture" of getting a group of friends or colleagues to have 1‐2 drinks out in a social setting while sharing experiences, laughs, or just watching football matches was great."

• "Do not go to this program if you want everything to be spelled out for you and to be "hand held" by program advisers and assistants. However, if you're responsible and courageous enough to study abroad, and want an authentic experience where you can truly get to know the local students because of the common language while still getting to experience a totally different culture, take on the challenge and go to Birmingham! You won't regret it."