The British Council took 16 school counsellors from India and 3 from Pakistan to UCAS conference held in Manchester in 16 and 17 June 2026. The 2 days conference was full of insights from experts talking about latest updates, admissions trends, policy developments, talks by subject experts, latest UCAS tools updates, tips on writing personal statements, impactful references and best practices. The conference also facilitated networking with 23 UK universities.
Speech by Professor Sir Steve Smith, UK Government International Education Champion, reassured that India along with other four countries (Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Vietnam) are focused countries for the new international education strategy of UK.
The conference followed by familiarisation visits to University of Manchester, University of Liverpool and Keele University on 18 June organised by the UCAS. The British Council arranged for an additional visit to University of Leeds and University of Leeds Beckett on 19 June.
The participating counsellors found the UCAS conference to be very insightful and said it enhanced their knowledge about studying in the UK. The session which included personal statement, UCAS guidance, AI in action practical case studies, Document upload, subject excellence on various subject were very in-depth and the counsellor found them to be very useful and practical.
The university visits equipped the counsellors with first-hand experience of a UK university campus life, accommodation facilities, UK’s teaching approaches, student support systems, campus culture and academic environment which they think will enable them to better prepare students and parents for a successful study abroad experience.