How It Works
From your first conversation to arrival and beyond
Every student’s journey is different. Some students and families work with Study With FM from their earliest plans through applications, pre-departure preparation and arrival. Others need help with just one stage.
The six stages below show how we can support you. They are not a compulsory package. The process depends on your circumstances, destination and the services you choose.
What happens at each stage
1. Initial Consultation
We start by understanding you.
Your first introductory consultation is free. Before suggesting courses, institutions or destinations, we take time to understand your goals and circumstances.
We may discuss:
- Your education, qualifications and current stage of study
- Your interests, academic ambitions and longer-term goals
- Preferred subjects, courses and destinations
- Language ability and any relevant tests
- Intended start date and available preparation time
- Budget, funding and family considerations
- Previous applications, visa history or additional support needs, where relevant
This first conversation helps us identify possible next steps. If you choose further paid support, we explain the proposed service and any applicable fees before you proceed.
2. Personalised Plan
We explore options that fit your circumstances.
Where education planning is part of your service, we research possible routes using the information you provide. Depending on your goals, we may consider:
- Countries, universities, colleges or schools
- Courses, programmes and relevant foundation or pathway options
- Published entry and language requirements
- Intakes, application deadlines and academic progression
- Tuition fees, estimated living costs and your budget
- Scholarships or funding opportunities, where available
- Relevant practical and visa-related considerations
Your interests come first. Our recommendations reflect your academic background, goals, budget and individual needs—not which option might be most commercially beneficial to Study With FM. Where a relevant recommendation involves a commercial relationship with an institution or provider, we explain that relationship transparently.
3. Application Preparation
We help you prepare a clear, accurate and organised application.
Once you have identified suitable options, we help you understand the requirements for the applications covered by your service. Documents may include:
- Academic transcripts, certificates and language-test results
- A CV or résumé
- Personal statements, statements of purpose or motivation letters
- References and supporting evidence
- Portfolios or research proposals, where required
- Application forms and institution-specific documents
We can provide structure, guidance, review and feedback on documents written by the applicant. Your application must truthfully reflect your own qualifications, experience, achievements and work. We do not fabricate information or produce dishonest material for submission as your own.
4. Applications and Communication
We support applications, offers and the next steps.
Where application management is included in your service, we may help with:
- Checking requirements and tracking deadlines
- Organising supporting documents
- Preparing applications for submission through the appropriate route
- Supporting or managing submission where authorised
- Tracking available acknowledgements and application updates
- Responding to requests for additional information
- Communicating with institutions, where appropriate
- Understanding conditional or unconditional offers and comparing options
We work to meet applicable deadlines, provided you supply the necessary information, documents, approvals and decisions within the agreed timeframe. We can track acknowledgements and status updates where institutions or application systems make them available.
Admission decisions are made by the relevant institution, not Study With FM.
5. Visa and Pre-Departure Preparation
We help you prepare for the practical steps ahead.
Where selected, support may include:
- General visa information and signposting to official requirements
- Document checklists and permitted administrative preparation
- Organising supporting and financial evidence
- Checking practical document consistency and completeness, where permitted
- Preparation for appointments or interviews, where appropriate
- Travel and pre-departure planning
- Exploring accommodation options and coordinating guardianship arrangements where relevant and available
- Practical information about preparing for your destination
Missing or inconsistent documents can cause difficulties, so careful preparation matters. However, it cannot guarantee a visa or any other immigration outcome.
Immigration support has limits. Study With FM is not regulated by the UK Immigration Advice Authority and does not provide regulated UK immigration advice or representation. For UK immigration matters, we provide general information from official sources and signpost clients to appropriate guidance. Anyone needing personalised immigration advice or representation should consult an appropriately authorised professional. For other destinations, any assistance is limited to what local laws and regulations permit.
Visa decisions and processing times remain entirely with the relevant authorities.
6. Arrival and Continued Support
Our support can continue after an offer or visa decision.
If you choose arrival or relocation support, we can help with the practical transition to your study destination. Depending on your package, location and availability, this may include:
- Pre-arrival coordination and airport collection
- Transport to accommodation or an institution
- Accommodation check-in assistance
- SIM-card support and practical local orientation
- Help understanding your immediate arrival arrangements
- Settling-in assistance and continued contact where included
Our aim is to make this transition clearer and more manageable for students and families. Exact arrangements depend on the services agreed and the availability of third-party providers.
What we need from you
Working together
A well-organised application depends on both you and Study With FM playing your part. You are responsible for:
- Providing complete, accurate and truthful information and authentic documents
- Sending requested information and documents within agreed timescales
- Telling us promptly about changes to your circumstances
- Checking personal details and reviewing applications before approval or submission, where required
- Responding to institutions, authorities and our team in time
- Attending required tests, interviews, appointments and biometric enrolments
- Choosing your course, institution and destination and making decisions that are yours to make
- Signing declarations or completing actions that must personally or legally be undertaken by the applicant or parent/guardian
- Paying applicable tuition, application, visa, healthcare, accommodation and other third-party charges, unless expressly agreed otherwise
- Following the requirements of the relevant institution, provider or authority
False, altered, misleading or late information may affect the assistance we can provide and the outcome of an application.
What Study With FM handles
Our responsibilities depend on the service you select. Where included, we may:
- Assess your goals and circumstances and research appropriate education options
- Explain entry requirements, application routes and key deadlines
- Help plan applications and organise required documents
- Review applicant-authored materials and provide feedback
- Support authorised submissions, application tracking and institution communication
- Help you understand offers, conditions and the next steps
- Provide general visa information and practical preparation within permitted limits
- Coordinate selected accommodation, guardianship, pre-departure, arrival or settling-in services
We explain the proposed scope of work, relevant fees and what is or is not included before paid work begins. Written confirmation of the agreed services, responsibilities, fees and exclusions is available on request. If anything is unclear, please ask us before proceeding.
When should you start?
The best time to contact us depends on your destination, institution, programme and personal circumstances. Some services can be completed relatively quickly; school, university, postgraduate and visa-related preparations may need to begin several months in advance.
Where a service page shows a timeframe:
- Typical service timeframe means an estimate of how long our work may take.
- When to start means how far in advance it is advisable to begin planning.
All timings are indicative, not guaranteed. They may change because of your circumstances, document availability, response times, deadlines, tests, interviews, third-party availability, institutional processing or government decisions. A website timeframe is not a promised completion or decision date.
Important to know
The six stages describe the wider Study With FM process; not every stage is included in every service. What we can provide depends on your agreed scope, destination, circumstances and any applicable regulatory restrictions.
Study With FM cannot guarantee:
- Admission to a particular school, college, university or programme
- An offer, academic result or scholarship
- A particular amount of funding
- Visa approval or immigration status
- Any institution’s or authority’s decision or processing time
- Accommodation or third-party service availability
Final decisions are made by the relevant institutions, authorities and providers. You remain responsible for truthful information, required personal declarations and decisions that must be made by you.
Before starting paid work, you can ask us to clarify the services, responsibilities, fees, anticipated timings, inclusions and exclusions that apply to your case. Written confirmation is available on request.
Support that can continue beyond one application
We aim to build lasting relationships with the students and families we support. Some return for guidance at later stages of education or recommend us to relatives and friends.
Our founder, Mahin Shafiei, remains in contact with the first student supported by Study With FM—an example of the long-term relationships we value.
Frequently asked questions
Tell us where you are in your journey
Whether you are exploring your options or already preparing an application, tell us a little about your goals. We can explain which services may be suitable, what information we need and how to take the next step.