Free tools

Five things you can work out right now, before you speak to anyone

No sign-up, no email, and no counsellor call first. They use published university criteria and official government figures, and they give you the awkward answers as readily as the good ones. Nothing you type is stored.

Start here Funds planner Your course, your deposit, your city — and the exact figure you must hold in an account before you apply. Each of the five countries tests your money differently, so this uses that country’s own rule rather than one sum with the numbers swapped. £27,627for a 12-month MSc outside London, from 30 Nov 2026 Work out my figure Cost of living calculator What a month in your city actually costs, in local currency and in your own, set against what the visa authorities require you to show. Rent, food, transport and everything else, broken down line by line. £1,089a month in Manchester, sharing Work out my costs Eligibility checker Six questions on your grades, your English and your budget, then an honest reading of where your profile sits against what universities actually publish — and an ordered list of what to fix first. 2 minutesand no sign-up at the end of it Check my profile Scholarship finder Named government and national schemes with live deadline status, filtered by destination and level. Every entry links to the official source, so you can verify each one yourself rather than take our word for it. 12 schemestracked, with real closing dates Find funding Course finder Search courses across all five destinations by subject, level, country and tuition fee — for example, everything under £15,000 a year. Every fee is the university’s own published international rate. 1060 coursesat 145 universities in five countries Search courses

Nothing you type into any of them is stored, and none of them ask for your email. If a result surprises you, that is worth a conversation — but the tool will never tell you to book one.

Language preparation

The tests, and which one you actually need

Choosing the wrong English test costs a month and a fee. Start from who you are, not from the test name.

Most people

Applying for a taught degree

IELTS Academic or PTE Academic. Whichever you can sit soonest — universities weight them the same.

Nurses

Registering with the NMC or NMBI

OET is usually the easier route and is accepted by both regulators. The reading and writing are clinical, which suits you.

Quickest to sit

Needing a result in days, not weeks

The Duolingo English Test is taken at home and usually returns a result within two days. Widely accepted in Canada, Ireland and the USA, and by a growing number of UK universities — but not accepted for a UK visa, so check the specific university first.

Visa only

Needing a SELT for the visa

IELTS for UKVI, taken at an approved centre. An ordinary IELTS booking will not be accepted, and this is the mistake we see most.

We teach IELTS, PTE, OET and the Duolingo English Test

Small groups or one to one, online or at the Pala office. Four tests, one teaching team, and honest advice about which of them you actually need. Test preparation is the one thing we charge for, it is priced separately, and it is never a condition of applying through us. If your English is already where it needs to be, we will say so and save you the money.

Ask about course dates Take a free level check