Visa and school advice

[digitalfever]

I'm a Canadian currently living in the UK on a teir 5 working holiday visa. Basically, I love it here and would love to start a life here.

I have two more years to work an currently live in a home as an au pair. Love the family, love the area and the kids are difficult sometimes but I love them like little brothers!

However, next year I probably won't be an au pair and will have my university degree. I'm at a loss at what I should do: I'd like to either start my masters here for next year and work part time or take a year to work full time and THEN do my masters. However, graduates schemes here are fierce and I don't know if I could get into one!

Basically I'd like your opinions on what seems like the most practical and cost efficient?

[kteire]

I don't really know much about graduate schemes (as my SO and I will be applying for a common law visa after I'm done school) but I do know a good bit about applying for schools and the restrictions on visas here. I'm planning to go back to school in London to do an undergrad, and have been spending an embarrassing amount of time researching it!!

Long term, visa-wise, it would make the most sense not to study in the UK under a Tier 5 YMS visa. The time you spend in the UK on that visa does not count as time you've lived in the UK (because since it has a firm date restriction on it, it's not considered being 'settled') and you will not be able to apply for a Tier 1 graduate scheme visa since you wouldn't be on a student visa here. They're very frustrating in that way, haha.

If you were to study under the normal Tier 4 visa, it's expensive but might be more worth it long term. It's a more complicated visa to get, but then you would at least have a shot at being considered for a Tier 1 visa. If I weren't with my SO, that would be the route I would take, even though it's more expensive initially. That's what I would recommend doing!