# Studying/living in Cyprus



## alexmason14 (Jul 26, 2009)

Hi,
I'm British and live in the UK, i'm 17, 18 in October and looking to study and complete three A-levels in Cyprus (Maths, Physics, Computing - May change to Chemistry).
I'm just posting to get any recommendations on what schools i should go for in Cyprus to do these A-levels, money isn't really an issue, although i'm not aiming for the most expensive in regards to school fees and acommadation. I will be coming over and living here on my own, getting away from the hastles of the UK. I have my parents support and being 18 soon i can do anything i want. 

Any people in the same boat as me/been in this boat\ anyone feel free to comment and give your opinions on the best places/ schools i can go to.

Thanks
Alex :clap2:


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## alexmason14 (Jul 26, 2009)

anyone?


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

alexmason14 said:


> anyone?


For an answer to your questions you need to wait for Kimonas to be online as he is the one who knows about the education system here.
Personally I think he will probably tell you to finish your education in the Uk.

Veronica


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

Hi Alex

Your choices would be severely limited and there are not many schools that would offer the suite of A levels that you're interested in - most would be suspicious of dealing with the student directly and would normally expect a parent or guardian to approach them. There are no boarding schools in Cyprus so accommodation would become an issue. The courses also start in September and you are not of age until a month later. 

Cyprus is fairly traditional and parents here treat their offspring like children for far longer than in the UK (often well into middle age!)and these traditions die hard (despite EU legislations) so being an independant 18 year old will be tough going.

You might like to explore escaping to Cyprus to do undergraduate study - there is a growing number of colleges in Cyprus that are now becoming collaborative partners with UK Universities - effectively franchising their courses out to cheaper foreign locations to capitalise on capturing students there. You effectively get a UK degree but study in Cyprus where accommodation and fees work out cheaper. I think it would be ironic if UK students abandoned the UK campuses and chose to study in the collaborative centres. There are courses in computing starting in Larnaca next year through the University of Greenwich for example - their new campus is the only European Higher Education Institute with its own beach and is just a bus ride to the hot spots of Agia Napa - there are many 18 year olds that would love to study in such a location.

My advice would be to finish your A levels in the UK and get away for undergraduate studies in the sun...


Good Luck


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## alexmason14 (Jul 26, 2009)

Cheers Kimonas and Veronica for your replies. I have decided to complete my A-levels in the UK and after that doing an undergraduate degree in Cyprus, after going there for many yearly holidays i feel Cyprus is the best place to be.

Thanks for your help.
Alex


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## lulu11 (Jul 28, 2009)

Hi, I'm new to the site and don't think I can start a new thread (or maybe I'm just a total technophobe!!) so am hoping Kimonas checks this thread and will be able to help me. I have wanted to move to Cyprus for some years however concern for my son's education has always held me back, as he was starting high school when I started thinking about the move and as many have said this is a bad time to chuck a kid in at the deep end in a new country. He is now doing A Levels and is very intelligent and wants to go to Uni. For this reason we have put Cyprus on the back burner but I now read in this thread about a collaboration between Cyprus/UK Uni's??

Please can you give me any info you have, or a link to a website so I can check this out?? I realise my son will still have to pay fees (or I will anyway) but that's not an issue, my concern was always the language issue but I assume the degrees will be taught in English? Also will entry requirements be the same, and will these degrees help with a future in Cyprus for him?

If anyone can help I would be really grateful I am very excited to read this, thank you very much.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

The University of Greenwich is offering degrees in Computing, Sports Science, Business and Graphic Design through a campus in Larnaca. It is in a pretty grotty location at the moment, but at least it has its own beach. If the development plan for Larnaca is to be believed (and they *have* started on the road works) the Campus will soon be slap bang in the middle of a luxury promenade adjacent to the new Cruise ship hub for the Mediterranean and surrounded by 5* accommodation. The campus itself is state-of-the art and very swanky inside judging from the promotional video. If I was a student again, I certainly wouldn't mind studying there!


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## lulu11 (Jul 28, 2009)

kimonas said:


> The University of Greenwich is offering degrees in Computing, Sports Science, Business and Graphic Design through a campus in Larnaca. It is in a pretty grotty location at the moment, but at least it has its own beach. If the development plan for Larnaca is to be believed (and they *have* started on the road works) the Campus will soon be slap bang in the middle of a luxury promenade adjacent to the new Cruise ship hub for the Mediterranean and surrounded by 5* accommodation. The campus itself is state-of-the art and very swanky inside judging from the promotional video. If I was a student again, I certainly wouldn't mind studying there!


Kimonas, thank you very much for that, I will look into it via Greenwich uni,thanks again x


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

I have investigated through Greenwich (as an educational advisor and consultant) and at the moment there is nothing advertised on their website - there is a Greenwich University sign up at the Intercollege campus on the Dekhalia Road which suggests the rumoured link is up and running. When I made enquiries at Greenwich they told me there is a collaborative provision in Cyprus, but at the moment it is subject to approval (hiring of new staff and completion of building works). The new courses will start recruiting immediately with the first Greenwich degrees awarded in Cyprus from 2010. They might advertise the link before 2010 to help recruitment (although it is their normal practice to wait until the final approval date has passed). There are several Bachelor courses in Computing, Business, Sports Science and Graphic design as well s an MBA through supported open learning - they are apparently planning more undergraduate and postgraduate provision as the collaboration expands. There is a new buzz word at the moment 'blended learning' which uses virtual learning environments, video conferencing and other forms of remote learning to supplement face to face contact with local tutors and visiting professors. I think this will be an increasingly successful model in Cyprus as struggling UK Higher education institutions look to expand access and at the same time save on local campus costs.

Let me know if you find out anything further...


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## theresoon (Apr 11, 2008)

How about the new universities in Nicosia? Private and public?


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

theresoon said:


> How about the new universities in Nicosia? Private and public?


These institutions have no need for collaborative provision with external bodies as they are empowered to offer their own awards. As the sector in Cyprus is relatively new, the quality and standards of the awards can always be questioned, but all HEIs have to start somewhere. 

The University of Cyprus is exclusive open only to Cypriot citizens that are Greek speakers (or Turkish-Cypriots - but in practice there are very few Turkish-Cypriots registered) which hardly engenders a multi-cultural and international research profile and indeed the University is rated poorly on the international stage (something like 1200 plus within Europe out of 1700 institutions).

Those colleges that missed out on the status of University have circumvented the government's resistance to supporting private HEIs by fostering collaborative provision whereby they effectively become sattelite campuses of UK and other partners. In the case of the Intercollege agreement, the QA and assessment regimes of the UK apply and they are subject to external audits and therefore potentially hold more kudos as the awards they offer are UK awards - the only difference being that students can study in Cyprus rather than have to travel abroad. Because of the EU harmonisation exercises and the Bologna process which set out to standardise awards cross Europe, the Cypriot government can not really complain about these developments since it is a signatory to the various HE protocols. 

This potentially is a great development for expats worrying about the education of children, since the University of Cyprus is a closed shop, and the collaborative provisions are tending to be in areas like Larnaca that are popular with expat communities.


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## Jane19125 (Jul 15, 2009)

*Correction*



kimonas said:


> Hi Alex
> . There are no boarding schools in Cyprus so accommodation would become an issue. <<<<<<<<<<<< Just wanted to point out that LOGOS PRIVATE SCHOOL OF ENGLISH EDUCATION has boarding facilities.


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