Events - For Universities
Our Mission and Our Work
The University Guys’ mission is to raise students’ awareness of international university options worldwide and support students and families on their journey to find their perfect university.
Our team is made up of professionals who have experience working as school counsellors or international university representatives, bringing expertise from both sides of the desk to all we do.
We visit schools across the British Isles to deliver presentations and train school staff on international university options available to their students, which might be a better fit than those they find here in the UK.
We give unbiased advice. We are not agents but rather Independent Educational Consultants who put student and family needs at the centre of all we do.
International universities can recruit students from all over the world from within the British Isles.
As well as continued growth in the number of home students applying and ultimately going to study abroad, the UK is also a very attractive destination for international students. Thousands of students are completing their high school education in boarding and international schools across the British Isles, many of whom look to continue their international journey and go abroad for university.
Upcoming Events for Universities
Roadshow FAQs
What is a roadshow?
A roadshow is a pre-planned itinerary of carefully selected UK high school visit, usually over a week visiting three schools a day. University representatives can meet with school counsellors, parents, and hundreds of students over a wide geographical area to discuss their university offering and significantly increase their visibility.
What type of schools will I visit?
Our roadshow host schools are usually private day or boarding and/or international schools.
How do you select which schools to visit?
The University Guys interact with hundreds of schools each academic year during which we build relationships with school counsellor(s) and often senior leadership too. Our role is to inspire students to think about their own personalities to go on to find their ‘best fit’ university, wherever it might be in the world. We deliver presentations, lead workshops, run staff training events and have a presence at many HE Fairs across the country to discuss international university options. We select schools for our roadshows based on schools that either have a history, or growing interest of students matriculating to university outside of the UK and those who are building their careers program where there is potential for us to support them to do so. Our roadshows cover different geographic locations which also informs how our routes take shape. The schools we visit will vary from tour to tour.
Will I only meet British students?
The great thing about British private day, boarding, and international schools is that they welcome students from all over the world. Not only can you meet British students but expect to engage with students from all over the world.
How many schools can I expect to visit?
Our tours visit an average of three schools a day, with the exception of cities where we host a ‘mega event’, where one school hosts a longer event and invites multiple schools from the neighbouring area to attend. This helps universities reach an even greater number of students, without spending more time travelling. We don’t tend to host one ‘mega event’ on any given roadshow.
What year groups will I see on a roadshow?
It can vary for each school, but you can expect to see students as young as Year 10/Grade 9 upwards, with a focus for Year 11/Grade 10 and Year 12/Grade 11 students. Data shows that the earlier students are exposed to event like this, the better prepared they are and more likely they are to go abroad for university.
What regions do you visit in the UK?
Our roadshows cover a large geographic area each year, with each roadshow individually covering a region. We have gone as far north to Scotland and as south as Eastbourne and covered much of what comes between them! You can view the counties we will visit on each of our upcoming roadshow pages. We place emphasis on visiting schools outside of London on each roadshow in order to ensure many areas across the UK are served and find that many international universities do not travel as frequently to visit many of the top schools in the country outside of our capital. Our intention is to go you to school that you may not visit as easily on your own and encourage you to visit schools in London that welcome individual visits either prior to or after a roadshow, to cover as much ground as you can.
How many students can I expect to see?
Each school we visit ranges in student population size, and whether they welcome neighbouring schools to the event. Highly qualified, prepared, ambitious and well-rounded students can be found across schools in the UK. Universities can expect to see anything from 30 – 200+ students per school.
What is included in the registration cost of a roadshow?
Our tours take care of all logistics, including accommodation, internal travel, and all meals, so that university representatives can focus on giving their best to students and their families. You likely won’t have an expense report to fill out after one of our tours!
Will TUG update me on education in the UK?
Yes. We provide a full UK Briefing for all roadshow participants, ensuring you understand the current trends affecting UK students and higher education and so that you can find your unique selling point and highlight how you can offer something different to what they have on offer from a UK option.
What is the typical format of a roadshow school visit?
The University Guys plan our roadshows many months in advance and discuss in detail with each school what format will best suit their school at the time we are visiting. Nearly every school will ask for a HE fair format, and an increasing number of schools ask for short presentations on a variety of international education topics. Whilst they are often delivered without presentations slides for universities representatives to prepare, we do ask that you are familiar enough with your institution to briefly speak about your university and typical student experience in your country.
Will I see school counsellors?
Yes, we aim to ensure that at each school, representatives are able to spend time with the school counselling team in order to build their own relationship. Where possible, we aim to have lunch at schools, not only to save us time on our window to visit school but to invite staff and leadership to connect and network with us all beyond the event with students.
Are parents invited?
This is a decision that each host school has the prerogative to make but schools are more than aware that university can often be a family decision and where possible, parents are invited.
What qualifications will the students be studying?
Whilst most students will likely be studying for A Levels, you will also typically meet students studying the IBDP, BTEC or American system too. We encourage university representatives to familiarise themselves with the most common curricula in the UK, and you will have a The University Guys team member with the group for the whole tour to answer any additional questions.
What information is provided to university representatives in advance of the roadshows?
In advance of each roadshow we will provide you with the full itinerary, including accommodation, and an overview of each host school so you can be familiar with the school setting, curriculum, and counsellor details before arrival. The schools are send a brochure with your university profile as an introduction so that students and parents can carry out their research and prepare their questions ahead of the tour groups arrival.
What type of accommodation do we stay in?
In some cases, we stay in a hotel all week, in other cases we are on the move to serve as many schools as we can and are in different hotels throughout the week. We aim to stay close to where we need to be the following morning taking into account of the accommodation options available in the local area whilst ensuring a comfortable stay. We ensure that breakfast is included at each stay.
How do we travel on roadshows?
Starting from our hotel on the morning of the first school visit, we travel together by private minibus (usually a 16, 21, or 32 seater) with a driver. Our whole group stays together for the duration of each tour. For this reason, our roadshows are only offered as a complete tour package as opposed to a “hop on, hop off” model.
What work equipment should I bring?
Our roadshow participants usually bring a tablecloth, banner (either tabletop or free standing), business cards, data capture device, and you may either bring brochures/flyers with you, or we suggest posting them in advance to our starting hotel to collect the night before the tour starts.
