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.

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…

The new website offers all the country-specific information a student will need to start researching their options for studying overseas. On our country pages you can find information about visas, the application process, entry requirements, travel and much more in six of the most popular English-speaking countries – Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK and the USA.

Plus, you can still read all of our extensive interactive subject guides on the Subjects page, which are great for students who know which subject they want to study but are not sure on the country, or for those who want to find out more about a certain subject area. You can also read more subject- and country-specific articles by professional and educational organisations, plus blogs by our i-studentlife bloggers that show what it’s like studying overseas from a student perspective.

For counsellors and advisors, we also have our Counsellor Chronicles page, which contains articles written by education experts and counsellors from around the world about their work. Also, have a look at our News page for all the latest international news stories affecting education around the world.

We will be continuing to update and add content and features to the website in the coming months, as we strive to make the website as useful and enjoyable as possible. If you want to keep updated with all the latest news and articles, you can Subscribe or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

We always love to hear what our readers and visitors think, so if you have any comments or suggestions about the new website – or any of our resources – please get in touch at editorial@i-studentgroup.com

We hope you enjoy our new website!

Best wishes

The i-studentadvisor team

Professor AC Grayling, former Professor of Philosophy at Birbeck College, University of London is leading the launch of the College, along with other world class academics Richard Dawkins, Sir David Cannadine and Niall Ferguson.

Speaking of the college, which will offer eight undergraduate degrees in five areas of the humanities, Grayling says, “Our students will be challenged to develop as skilled, informed and reflective thinkers, and will receive an education to match that aspiration.”

The London-based College, which is due to open next September, has sparked much debate among educational professionals and professors across the UK in regards to equality and financial fairness.

Commenting on the institution, Baroness Blackstone, Vice Chancellor of the University of Greenwich said that The New College of Humanities would be “an institution for the very rich”.

Whilst General Secretary of the University and College Union (UCU) Sally Hunt said, “While many would love the opportunity to be taught by the likes of AC Grayling and Richard Dawkins, at £18,000 a go it seems it won’t be the very brightest but those with the deepest pockets who are afforded the chance.”

Speaking at an event in London on Tuesday, Grayling found himself facing stern criticism and angry chants about budget cuts and his responsibility to the education sector from audience members. Defending his position Grayling stated: “We’ve set up a charitable trust as well that is already taking endowments. We want to be able to educate gifted people from the state sector for free – we might be the only institution doing this.” He continued “We are not in it to get rich, God knows that is not going to happen.”

What do you think? Is The New College of Humanities a good idea? Do you think it discriminates against poorer students?

Vita-Salute San Raffaele University is part of the San Raffaele Foundation which includes hospitals, research centers and the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University.

San Raffaele is well known worldwide for its excellence: it is a highly specialised center for molecular medicine, diabetes and metabolic diseases, as well as biotechnology and bio-imaging. The hospital channels many of its resources into cancer treatment, cardiovascular diseases and numerous acute and chronic-degenerative diseases and a very efficient Emergency Department that serves a vast area.

The International MD Program builds on the institution’s solid presence on the international scene: San Raffaele healthcare centers can be found in many countries of the world, including Brazil, India, Uganda, Poland, Chile, Israel, Mozambique and Algeria. This degree course provides medical-scientific education at the highest level, allowing students to improve their skills and to upgrade their knowledge. It also provides clinical and laboratory research opportunities and additional education in humanities and cultural sciences: philosophy, communication skills, cognitive neurosciences and psychology, which are the building blocks of human society, regardless of social status, race, or creed.

The International MD Program is designed to train a new kind of doctor: someone who possesses the necessary human, cultural and professional abilities to actively participate in healthcare and share ideas in today’s globalised world. Unlike other Medical Programs in Italy where clinical courses are held in Italian, the International MD Program is fully in English, including classes, lectures, practicals and all clinical activities.

Students enrolled in the San Raffaele International MD Program have access to all the facilities of the Vita-Salute San Raffaele Institute and the San Raffaele Scientific Institute, including skills labs for practical training, a library with more than 20,000 books and several thousand scientific e-publications and resources, as well as to the clinical and research laboratories of the San Raffaele Scientific Institute, the largest private research institute in Italy, that further expanded with the inauguration of DIBIT, a scientific facility for basic, translational and clinical research. DIBIT is part of the largest biomedical science park in Italy, which includes the San Raffaele Hospital, Science Park Raf, created to support the foundation’s development, and the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University.

Applicants who wish to enroll in the International MD Program are required to take an Admission Test. 64 places are available for Academic Year 2011-2012:

• 32 for EU citizens
• 32 for Non-EU Citizens

The Admission Test will take place on April 28th 2011 in the following locations:

• Milan, (Italy)
• New York, (USA)
• Kuala Lumpur, (Malaysia)

Candidates who wish to take the Admission Test can visit the following website for detailed information: http://bit.ly/mdadmissions

The deadline is April 20th, 2011.

Here are the guidelines on the admission process for A.Y. 2011-2012: (click to view or download PDF)

For more information on the International MD Program please visit the following website: http://bit.ly/mdprogram

i-studentenquiry.com, the free service matching students with universities, colleges and English language schools around the world, has relaunched and now offers faster, clearer results for both students and institutions.

First launched in 2010, i-studentenquiry allows prospective students to fill out one simple form for either undergraduate, postgraduate or English language study. Students enter their requirements, such as the courses they would like to study and in which countries, along with their qualifications and personal details on a secure form. The form is then processed by the intelligent algorithm powering i-studentenquiry.com to find which universities and colleges around the world could provide the education the student is seeking.

The latest version of i-studentenquiry includes a range of new features to make the system more accessible and easier to use, such as:

• The “My Account” page, allowing students to log in and view their enquiry history and matches
• Easier to fill out forms, allowing students to complete their enquiry quickly and simply
• Improved control for institutions, ensuring faster responses to student enquiries

i-studentgroup would like to thank all of the students, counsellors and university admissions professionals who provided valuable feedback during the development of the new and improved i-studentenquiry service. To fill out your form, visit http://www.i-studentenquiry.com

You can also join the i-studentenquiry Facebook page here – http://www.facebook.com/istudentenquiry

The Russell Group, which represents 20 of the UK’s top universities including Oxford and Cambridge, recently sparked controversy with it’s new guide, Informed Choices, to help students choose A levels in preparation for university. Some, including the British Journal of Photography (BJP), felt that the guide has attacked so-called ‘soft subjects’ and accused the Russell Group of short-sightedness.

The guide warns students considering taking more than one ‘soft’ subject – usually courses that are vocational or practical based such as art, music or business studies- that “some caution may be needed” and encourages students to take two or more A level qualifications in ‘hard’ or ‘facilitating’ subjects such as English, maths and the sciences in order to have “a much wider range of options open to you at university”. They also state that general or critical studies should only be taken as an additional subject and not be one that students rely on for entry requirements.

But in an article the BJP editors, and the photography lecturers they spoke to, argued that it was absurd to consider some subjects as ‘soft’ and that these subjects could teach students independent thinking and creativity. However, although it may be aggravating to those involved in the ‘soft’ subjects it should be considered that this is not a new categorisation created by the Russell Group; the grouping of subjects as ‘soft’ and ‘hard’, whether correct or not, has been a persistent problem.

The BJP also pointed out the need for encouraging students to take up arts and humanities subjects, especially after government cuts meant a withdrawal of funding for these courses in the university sector. At a time when unemployment is high and university fees are set to increase, there are already fears that students will not take creative/humanities subjects, instead opting for subjects they think can lead to a specific job. There may be a worry that the Russell Group’s guide may discourage students further from taking a broad range of subjects, instead promoting the traditional ‘hard’ ones.

The guide could be of great use to students considering their post-16 study choices, though some of it’s recommendations may not sit comfortably with some. For example, the guide states: “By choosing facilitating subjects at advanced level, you will have a much wider range of options open to you at university. An advanced level qualification in any facilitating subject will keep open to you a number of degree courses” and also states that choosing non-facilitating subjects doesn’t increase your options at university.

Whilst this may be true in some circumstance, evidence shows that a majority of courses do not require specific subjects and will consider most subjects, whether ’soft’ or ‘hard’. Recent research titled ‘A level subjects: What universities want’ by The Guardian showed that many universities do not require or discount specific subjects, with the exception of general studies which some of the universities involved said could not be part of the entry requirements. Most outlined that for some courses specific A levels may be needed but this is not ‘hard’ or ‘soft’ based; i.e. whilst engineering may require a ‘hard’ subject such as maths, other subjects such as art will require a ‘soft’ qualification such as A level art.

For example, in the research Canterbury Christ Church University said: “We do not differentiate between A-level subjects and accept general studies. However, for some programmes a specific A-level or equivalent is required, eg a music A-level for the music degree, art for our fine art degree programme and most of our science programmes require at least one science A-level.”

City University London also said: “General studies is the only A-level generally excluded. Having it would not damage their chances of winning a place, as long as there was sufficient preparation elsewhere on the form.”

In any case, students should make sure they are aware of the requirements for the courses and universities they are interested in. If you are unsure of what you would like to study at university, you should try to keep your options as wide as possible and study subjects that may be required for subjects you think you might want to study.

To see the Russell Group Informed Choices guide, click here. To see the The Guardian’s ‘A levels: What universities want’ click here.

What do you think about the categorising of subjects as ‘soft’ and ‘hard’? Have you taken an A level subject that you don’t enjoy in order to have better qualifications? Let us know your thoughts.

The figures, which have been considered shockingly low, were obtained by Times Higher Education under the Freedom of Information Act and reported yesterday. The review was largely based on an opinion survey carried out by Opinion Leader, in which parents and students were questioned about various aspects of education, including fees and grants. This opinion survey cannot currently be viewed by the public. There was also some basic data taken from UCAS.

The low research budget of the Independent Review of Higher Education Funding and Student Finance, which was led by former BP Chief Executive Lord Browne and published in October last year, will come as a shock to many considering the huge impact the changes will have on future students.

The review proposed higher fees, which will be implemented for the academic year 2011/2012, stating that HEIs (higher education institutions) “must persuade students that they should ‘pay more’ in order to ‘get more’” (pg. 4) and that competition between institutions will increase quality. Whether those new university students will ‘get more’ is debatable, considering that spending cuts have seen universities’ teaching budgets cut by 40% and arts and humanities courses will have most of their state funding for teaching withdrawn.

Many, especially those who will be most affected by the education reforms, may be angered about such low spending on research that has seen such a huge change in higher education.

Are you going to be affected by the new reforms? How do you feel about this news? Do you think the government should have spent more on research? Let us know your thoughts.

Planning for the March 16-17, 2011 Summit is being overseen by the Summit’s US partners, including WNET (Channels THIRTEEN & WLIW21), the Asia Society, the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The Summit will serve as a prelude to WNET’s sixth annual Celebration of Teaching & Learning, a K-12 professional development conference.

“We have a great deal to learn from other nations that are out-educating us today.  To continue and deepen the conversation, we – together with OECD and other partners – will convene an International Summit on the Teaching Profession in New York in March to bring together Ministers of Education and national teachers unions from the highest-performing and most rapidly-improving countries,” said Secretary Duncan.

Attendees will include Ministers of Education from the leading countries in education as measured by the 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results. Leaders from US education associations, top teachers and international union leaders will also be invited to attend.  The Summit will foster the exchange of ideas between nations to better serve youth across the world – much as WNET’s Celebration has become known for creating an atmosphere of candid conversation among educators from all disciplines.

“This Summit represents the first time the international education community has been invited to the US,” said Neal Shapiro, President and Chief Executive Officer of WNET, New York’s flagship public television station. “We are honored that Secretary Duncan and the many partners convening the Summit chose the Celebration as the stage to host this truly historic event.”

The Celebration brings together the world’s best experts and more than 10,000 educators from all 50 states and beyond at the Hilton New York on March 18-19, 2011. Educators experience four distinct learning environments through plenary sessions, featured speaker sessions, hands-on “In the Classroom” workshops and interactive exhibitor halls.

“The Celebration is where knowledge meets inspiration,” noted Ron Thorpe, Vice President and Director of Education, WNET. “Over the past five years we have been privileged to host educators from across the US to deliver exceptional professional development and this year, we’re proud that the Summit is elevating the Celebration to an international event, providing educators everywhere a forum unique to the education community and world.”

The 2011 Celebration will feature nationally acclaimed speakers including Oliver Sacks, best-selling author and professor of neurology and psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center; Leymah Gbowee, documentarian and executive director of Women Peace and Security Network Africa; Diane Ravitch, education historian and author; Patricia Agatston and Ron Slaby on cyberbullying and others. Attendees will also learn from sessions on Common Core State Standards for Math and ELA. Experts and content will cover The Arts, English Language Arts, Global Awareness, Health & Wellness, Instructional Technology, Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM), Social Studies, Special Education and Whole School Issues.

To learn more, visit thirteencelebration.org and connect online on Facebook (http://facebook.com/thirteencelebration) and Twitter @The_Celebration.

We’re proud to present our latest subject-specific magazine, i-LASH, for courses in the liberal arts, social sciences and humanities.

These subjects are consistently popular with international students, providing an insight into the way we live, think and experience the world around us. This issue explores a range of subjects such as history, philosophy, psychology, geography, international studies and more, with discussions on how studying such subjects can provide a fantastic education as well as open up a wealth of rewarding and inspiring career opportunities.

As always we love to hear feedback from our readers so if you want to share your thoughts on i-LASH or any of the i-studentadvisor publications you can contact us through editorial@i-studentadvisor.com

We hope you enjoy this issue and will join us again for our next subject-specific magazine, i-MHS, for courses in medicine and health science.