There’s a meme bouncing around the internet claiming that Bill Gates only flies economy class. Much as the story reeks of the apocryphal, it turns out to be at least partially true. As Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph wrote on LinkedIn, Gates did indeed travel economy during the lower-visibility early days of billionairehood (even though ostensibly he now owns not one—but four—private jets). According to Randolph, Gates’s insistence on flying coach was “not because he couldn’t afford First Class, but because he didn’t consider it good value.” He goes on to write, “It’s five or six times more expensive, but only marginally better (and you all get to your destination at the same time).” You may agree or disagree with Gates’ or Randolph’s premise on this point (First Class sure is nice), but the truth is no one likes to feel like they’ve gotten a poor deal. Value for HNW families matters too.

Flights—whether of airlines or of literary fancy—aside, HNW families in the US face a similar question of value when choosing universities for their children. At nearly all of the nation’s most prestigious institutions of higher learning (and all of the Ivy leagues), scholarships are awarded exclusively on the basis of financial need—meaning families of substantial economic means are not eligible (and let’s not forget that in order to receive these offers, students must first be accepted—more on this shortly). Now, while it’s true that such a high price tag won’t deter some fortunate families, others may feel—like Gates and Randolph when it comes to flights or expensive wines—that $400k+ for a bachelor’s degree isn’t a good value.

If this describes you, the good news is that there are outstanding options available that can save substantial money over the course of the degree without sacrificing on status. In this post, we will focus on those in the UK.

Let’s begin with the startlingly obvious: while far fewer in total number than US universities, British universities enjoy substantial prestige. In both the Times Higher Education and the QS World Rankings top 25, four spots are occupied by universities in the UK (Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, and UCL)—more than any other country after the US.

Now let’s compare one of these two a US peer institution in terms of per-year cost in 2025: Cornell University, ranked #20 in the world by THE, and University College London, ranked #22 (a reminder, as well, that student-institution fit is far more important than rankings). Here are the annual costs* (estimated, in the case of variable costs) of each:

Already we can see there is a more than $10,000 difference in the yearly cost of attendance (taking into account the dollar’s slump in value as of the date of writing in June 2025). What many families may not realize, however, is that in the vast majority of UK universities (Scotland being the biggest exception), a bachelor’s degree is completed in three years, rather than four.

That’s a savings of $127,000 over four years. As Hogwarts alum Ron Weasley might say, that’s completely mental.

Of course, families should understand that what you save in time and money, you lose in breadth—but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It depends on each student’s needs. British universities (and high schools, for that matter) are more depth-focused than their US counterparts. Rather than applying to a university per se, you apply to the specific academic program that interests you. You start studying your program of choice on day one. That means that while it isn’t an ideal option for students who need time and exploration before choosing an academic or professional field, it’s an outstanding option for students who are clear about what they want to study going into the application process. (One of our goals, in fact, as mentors, is to help students clarify these choices as early as possible.)

Moreover, families wanting to take full advantage of the extra year this provides can add what is known as a “sandwich year”—an industry work placement that allows them to gain practical experience in their field and substantially increase their odds of employment. The cost of this year is negligible, usually 10-25% of tuition. Alternatively, students can complete a one-year Master in the UK, the US, or anywhere else for that matter—allowing them to network internationally in multiple universities, countries, and settings—as well as to have both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s by the time their US-based peers have only the former.

As for gaining admission to these universities, I have good news and bad news.

The bad news: getting into Cornell (or any Ivy, or any similarly-ranked university) requires unparalleled qualifications, luck, and substantial preparation, ideally with a qualified mentor with plenty of expertise (ahem). Those of our students who have managed it over the years have boasted straight As for four years in the most challenging curriculum their school offers, a near-perfect score on the SAT or ACT, and multiple accomplishments at the national or international level. Yup, you heard me right.

The good news: getting into UCL and most British universities (with the notable exceptions of Oxford and Cambridge—a topic for another post), while certainly difficult, is far more straightforward, and as Americans, we have a unique advantage.

In order to better unpack that, a bit of background. During the final two years of high school, British students take three (or in some cases four) courses that prepare them for standardized exams in their fields of choice, known as A-levels. These exam scores become the most heavily weighted criterion evaluated by universities for admission. But there’s a catch: students don’t receive their scores until mid-August, seven months after they have to submit their applications. To solve this problem, the British have a workaround: as part of their application, students in the British system must submit predicted scores provided by their high schools. Thus, when making admissions offers, British universities nearly always make conditional offers based on these predictions. The condition? Students must receive scores acceptable to the university (often equivalent or close to the predictions). Students thus live with tremendous uncertainty until scores are released.

And here comes the good news for US candidates. The British believe in admissions evaluation based on a standardized system. For US candidates, they’ve identified an equivalent to their system: AP exams. Most British universities require three or four (or in some cases, three plus the SAT). The difference, of course, is that American students can take AP exams after only one year of study (not two, as with A-levels) and as early as the Spring of freshman year. That means that by the time they submit applications, they can have as many as 8-10 exam scores. If they play their cards well, they can thus apply with actual scores, rather than predicted ones, and in many cases as a result, receive unconditional offers of admission based on them. US students also have the advantage of being able to take many more AP courses, so if their score for one is insufficient, they need not rely on it.

To make this concrete, here is what UCL asks for from students applying to the Bachelor’s degree in Economics:

• 5,5,5,5,4 in five distinctive AP subjects, taken in the final three years of high school.
• 5,5,5,5 in four distinctive AP subjects, plus a combined score of 1280 in SAT OR a composite score of 27 in ACT taken in the final three years of high school.
• 5,5,5 from three distinctive AP subjects including 5 in Calculus BC, plus 1280 from SAT OR a composite score of 29 in ACT plus the High School Graduation Diploma with a cumulative GPA of 3.8.

Students meeting any of these criteria—and as you can see, there is substantial latitude—enjoy a high probability of an unconditional offer. Of course, exam grades will be evaluated alongside interest in and preparation for the program as expressed in the personal statement and other facets of the application. And we advise all our students to work hard to demonstrate that their passion for the field is legitimate and backed by evidence from their personal experience.

In short, the UK offers a highly appealing opportunity to combine prestige with value. After all, while I may feel that coach is the best value for the service I’m receiving, why not fly First Class if I can get it for the same price?

Got questions on how to do so? We can help! Contact us for a free consultation and we’ll walk you through it!

* The cost of a degree in the UK depends on the course/program, with many professional programs (law, engineering, medicine) typically costing more. By contrast, the costs are similar—and as cited above—for nearly all of UCL’s academic disciplines.