To enter just complete the hashtag “#IStudyOverseasBecause…“  in no more than 140 characters.

You can enter in one of two ways:

1. Visit i-studentlife and register your details. Then comment on the Win a Kindle 3G blog, completing the sentence above.
2. Via Twitter, by completing the hashtag and tweeting it.*

It’s really that easy!

The competition closes at 5PM GMT on Friday 17th February and for full Terms and Conditions please visit i-studentlife for more details.

i-studentlife is a global community for students so share their experiences, advice and insight into studying overseas. From international bloggers to careers advice, internship experiences to gap year adventures, adapting to new cultures or just getting to know new friends, i-studentlife explores the highs (and occasional lows) of being an international student, from people who know what they’re talking about – the students themselves.

* Please note, you can NOT enter the competition via i-studentadvisor.

i-SECT magazine is the definitive resource for all students considering international study in Science, Engineering, Computing or Technology. This is a great opportunity to be featured alongside experts in the field and will make an impressive addition to your portfolio! To get involved please email Vivienne Egan, i-studentadvisor Editor, at vivienne.e@i-studentgroup.com by Friday 20 January.

View the 2011 edition of i-SECT here.

We’re proud to announce the release of our latest issue of i-LASH, which explores courses in the Liberal Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities across the globe.

The LASH subject areas are vast and offer the opportunity to study a wide range of different subjects, whether this is within a liberal arts degree or in a more specialised programme. This issue has plenty of interesting articles about studying some of the popular subjects within these areas, and will give you an idea of what types of courses are available in different countries around the world. You can find articles about studying theology in New Zealand, politics in the UK or sociology in the USA, to name just a few!

We’d like to say thank you to all of our contributors for their time and effort, and their help in creating this guide. Their expertise and experience are invaluable, and here they share their knowledge with you.

We hope that you enjoy reading this guide. If you have any comments or suggestions for the next issue, or are interested in contributing to any of the i-studentadvisor resources, please contact us at editorial@i-studentgroup.com

And don’t forget, there are more articles, plus country-specific information about visas, fees and more, on the i-studentadvisor website.

In the light of heightened controversy surrounding the changes to the current visa policy, which include closing the current post-study work visa in April 2012 and cutting down on private colleges, Cable said: “It is vital – notwithstanding the need to prevent any abuse of our immigration system – to continue attracting overseas students to the UK.”

There is increasing concern within universities about what they say has been a significant reduction in applications as a result of the new student visa system. A recent report published by Universities UK has also warned that a clampdown on student visas could worsen British Universities’ declining share of the international market.

In the report, Professor Paul O’Prey, chair of the Universities UK Longer Term Strategy Network, said: “The UK’s share of the international student market has reduced over (the past decade), with other countries becoming more competitive in attracting these students.” He went on to add: “This trend does not include the impact of recent changes to non-European Union student visas, which may result in a greater loss of market share in the future.’

The number of non-EU students in the UK has doubled to 400,000 in the last decade, but some universities are reporting a troubling downturn in applications, particularly from countries which have traditionally provided high numbers of students, such as India.

However, in his speech to the British Council, Cable said that: “there is no visa limit on the number of overseas students who are eligible to study here”, also stating that: “The recent immigration reforms…are certainly not designed to undermine legitimate and quality colleges.”

This post is by guest contributor Nathaniel Forrester. Contact Nathaniel here.

Flinders University, established in 1966, enjoys a well-deserved reputation for excellence. The university welcomes international students, attracting students from over 100 countries.

Interested? Want to find out more? Download the Flinders app and get all of this:

• Learn more about Flinders University and South Australia
• Browse through course information – undergraduate and postgraduate
• Discover entertainment, sport and sightseeing in Adelaide
• Navigate through Adelaide with campus and city maps
• Complete the step by step international student application checklist
• Check out videos, photo galleries and student testimonials
• Stay up to date with the latest news and events

Other features include information about getting around Adelaide and where to eat, plus local weather forecasts. Users will also be able to use the app to join Flinders on Facebook and Twitter. All this for free.

Louise Singleton, head of design here at i-studentgroup, and part of the team who created the app says: “This app is great for international students who want to know more about Flinders University. There’s so much content and it’s easy to use, allowing users to have all the information they need to know about Flinders and Adelaide at their fingertips.”

Flinders University says: “Our app is unique in its structure and rich interactive content, and will be an instrumental tool in the promotion of our university to the international student market. It has the potential to enhance and revolutionise the Flinders experience for prospective and current students.”

To download the Android app, visit the Android Market here.

Have you downloaded the Flinders app? Tell us what you think in the comments below!

The system measures the scientific performance of 500 major universities across the globe and ranks them accordingly. Having been recognised for its objective methodology, it may prove to be a useful alternative to ranking systems such as The Times Higher Education.

Specifically, it ranks universities by their scientific impact and number of collaborations. For instance, it looks at the average number of citations of university publications and the proportion of publications that have been coauthored with other institutions. Leiden University claims these methods are more ‘transparent’ than those used in other, more popular ranking systems, that largely base their figures on opinion surveys.

The system this year has improved in a number of ways. For instance, it offers universities the possibility to exclude non-English speaking language publications from the research, as these publications will have a smaller readership and receive fewer citations. It’s hoped such changes will produce fairer, more objective results.

Interestingly, eighteen of the top twenty universities are American institutions, according to this system. The top university worldwide is Massachusetts Institute of Technology, followed by Princeton and Harvard. Switzerland’s École Polytecnique and ETH Zurich also feature in the top twenty. Cambridge was the top UK University at number 31.

Time will tell whether this updated system will prove more popular than the ever-growing list of competing rankings systems.

To earn the “golden ticket” to a life of free education, students will need to show their capability of thriving in various challenges that become increasingly difficult the more students’ progress through the competition. Students are expected to demonstrate qualities such as passion, commitment and intelligence.

The competition is open to all domestic and European undergraduates who have been accepted on a firm basis to study at Cardiff.

The first of the series of challenges will be online with the last stages bringing together a group of finalists to Cardiff University for a live challenge. Students who reach the finals will all win a scholarship to put towards their undergraduate tuition fees.

Director of strategic development, Louise Casella, said that the competition offers “fantastic opportunity to an exceptional student who can demonstrate the qualities which we seek in our applicants and which we nurture in our students”.

The scheme – which has been criticised by some academics branding it a “gimmick” – comes at a time when students are struggling to come to terms with the new tuition fee structure in the UK. Dr Philip Dixon, director of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers expressed his concerns for the state of the higher education system that see’s “gimmicks like this [having] to be offered by our universities”.

Students can now register to receive the first clue of the challenge.

Student unions have expressed concern, believing that the government’s decision to increase the 2012 fees to £9,000 has deterred potential applicants. It’s thought that the students who’ve missed out are those from less privileged backgrounds. Applications from mature students, for instance, are down by one-fifth.

More encouragingly, the number of applicants from outside the EU is up by 11.8%, making the overall fall in applications less dramatic and securing the UK’s cultural diversity for the near future.

UCAS remains optimistic, claiming that universities can expect a ‘possible late surge’ in applications when the January deadline approaches. They’ve also recognised that application rates in 2010 were unusually high in anticipation of the increased fees, and may not be valid for comparison. In fact, this year’s figures are similar to those for 2009, suggesting higher education is still as popular as ever.

David Willetts, the universities minister, hopes to reassure students worldwide, affirming that “going to university depends on ability, not the ability to pay… there will be more financial support for those from poorer families and everyone will make lower loan repayments than they do now once they are in well paid jobs.”

This issue is full of helpful articles about learning English overseas, along with hints and tips about finding a course that is right for you. English as a Second Language courses vary, and are offered at a wide range of overseas institutions. Hopefully after reading this guide you will have an idea of where might be the best place for you to study – be it in sunny Australia, the historical UK, or one of the other fantastic and exciting countries featured in this guide.

Once you have read through this guide and have an idea of where you would like to study, head over to our Country pages to find out all about fees, visas and more in your chosen country.

As always, we’d like to thank all of our contributors who have shared their experience and advice in this issue of i-ESL.

We always love to hear feedback from our readers, so please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any comments or suggestions – please email us at editorial@i-studentgroup.com

We hope you enjoy reading this issue of i-ESL. Remember, you can find all of our other 2011 subject guides through the Subjects page.

The guide contains a range of interesting and informative articles exploring the study of specific subjects overseas, written by experts and professionals from within the six main areas of higher education and industry. The guide also contains select articles from counsellors and students about their own experience and their advice about overseas education.

The guide is divided into sections according to subject, with correspond with our interactive online subject guides, where you can find even more useful articles and information.

We’d like to thank all of our contributors who have shared their knowledge and expertise to make this guide as extensive and informative as possible. We are confident that the articles and information within this guide will help students to embark upon the wonderful experience of international study.

If you would like to request a free copy of The Subject Guide 2012, please click here and provide us with your name, school name and address. You can also preview some of the pages from The Subject Guide 2012 in the gallery below.

Interested in contributing to the next issue of The Subject Guide? We are always looking for new associations, organisations and counsellors to contribute to our guides. Please contact us at editorial@i-studentgroup.com

If you are from an institution and are interested in featuring in any of the i-studentadvisor resources – online or in print – please contact us at editorial@i-studentgroup.com

View a gallery of sample pages from The Subject Guide 2012…