SI-UK Company History

SI-UK is the leading provider of free, independent advice and support to international students applying to study in the UK. Since 2006, SI-UK has built a reputation as an industry leader, and each year SI-UK assists hundreds of thousands of international students to join UK universities.

In 2021, our global offices sent over 130,000 applications to UK universities from 45,000 students in over 90 different countries, with a 98% success rate of students receiving their first choice offer.

Learn more about SI-UK's history below and, if you would like to begin your UK university application, arrange a free consultation with SI-UK Hong Kong today.

April 2003

Predecessor company of SI-UK was established in Shinjuku, Tokyo and successfully placed thousands of students from Japan into UK universities and colleges.

October 2006

SI-UK International Co., Ltd. founded in Tokyo, Japan. Head office opened in Takadanobaba, Shinjuku ward. SI-UK sets out a strategy for global expansion of services.
SI-UK Tokyo Language Centre opened offering a wide range of test preparation courses including IELTS, TOEFL, GMAT, LSAT and other university preparation classes.

October 2007

SI-UK Osaka office opened to provide application support to students in the west of Japan.

December 2007

SI-UK Osaka Language Centre opened offering a full range of university preparation lessons including IELTS.

April 2008

SI-UK holds its first UK University Fairs in Tokyo and Osaka. Both attract hundreds of visitors seeking information about courses at UK universities.

August 2008

SI-UK London office opened in Russell Square, next to University of London Campus. SI-UK is the first London-based agency to recruit international students of all nationalities to the UK.

December 2008

SI-UK London creates the first multi-lingual website for international students seeking information on studying in the UK. Languages include English, Japanese, Mandarin, Cantonese, Russian, and Spanish.

February 2009

SI-UK launches a comprehensive online university course search function free of use to all, with over 30,000 university and college courses linking directly to university/college course pages.

June 2009

SI-UK London opens an IELTS preparation centre to help international students gain the required English score to enter university.

April 2010

SI-UK Tokyo opens its second office in the city.
Tokyo and Osaka university fairs now established as the largest UK-only education events in Japan.

May 2010

First SI-UK London university fair with over 80 UK universities attending, making it the largest UK university fair worldwide.

June 2010

SI-UK creates the first online library, containing over a thousand samples of university application documents including personal statements, resumes, reference letters, UCAS and university application forms, for students.

December 2010

SI-UK Hong Kong office opened in the commercial centre of the city.

January 2011

SI-UK Delhi office opens.

May 2011

SI-UK Bangalore office opened.

April 2012

SI-UK Chennai office opened.
SI-UK Manchester office opened.
SI-UK London office relocated to its current location on Regent Street.

July 2012

SI-UK Istanbul office opened.

August 2012

SI-UK Tokyo Language Training Centre moves into expanded, custom-built facilities. With 12 UK-native teachers, the Centre now offers more IELTS courses than any other language school in Japan.

October 2012

Tokyo and Osaka university fairs attract a record 53 universities to Japan.

March 2013

First SI-UK UK University Fair held in Amsterdam.

April 2013

First SI-UK UK University Fair in Manchester.

October 2013

First UK University Fair in Istanbul, Turkey.

November 2013

SI-UK office opens in Bangkok, Thailand.
Over 90 universities attend London UK University Fair, making it the largest SI-UK UK University Fair to date.

December 2013

SI-UK opens in China.

February 2014

SI-UK opens its first office in Lagos, Nigeria.

May 2014

A second Turkish office opens in capital city Ankara.

July 2014

Tokyo office relocates to the prestigious Shibuya district in Japan.

September 2014

A second Nigerian office is opened in Abuja.

October 2014

SI-UK launches its new state-of-the-art website in the UK.
First UK University Fairs held in Abuja and Lagos.

November 2014

New SI-UK website is launched in India and Thailand.
First UK University Fair in Delhi.

September 2015

SI-UK London builds two new IELTS classrooms at Regent Street office.

October 2015

Awarded a grant by the UK government as one of the fastest growing businesses in the UK.

November 2015

SI-UK Delhi hosts India’s largest UK University Fair, with 55 UK universities attending.
SI-UK's first national TV advert premieres on the Star Network, India.
A record 100 UK universities attend the UK University Fair London.

December 2015

UCAS Schools Service launches providing expert services to top boarding schools and A-level colleges in the UK and globally.

August 2016

New Spanish and Vietnamese websites launched.

September 2016

SI-UK relaunches brand with new logo.

October 2016

New office opened in Tehran, Iran.

February 2017

New SI-UK office opens in Doha, Qatar.
New SI-UK office opens in Toronto, Canada.

October 2017

New SI-UK office opens in Nicosia, Cyprus.

May 2018

New offices opened in Pune, India and Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.
New SI-UK office opens in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
New SI-UK office opens in Kathmandu, Nepal.
New SI-UK office opens in Bogota, Colombia.
New SI-UK office opens in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

June 2018

SI-UK India opens new office in Coimbatore.
New SI-UK office opens in Nairobi, Kenya.
Italian language website launched.

December 2018

SI-UK India opens new office in Ahmedabad.
SI-UK Pakistan opens two new offices in Karachi and Lahore.

January 2019

SI-UK Kenya opens second office in Mombasa.

May 2019

New SI-UK office opens in Nicosia, South Cyprus.
SI-UK Pakistan opens fourth office in Peshawar.

June 2019

New SI-UK office opens in Athens, Greece.
New SI-UK office opens in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

November 2019

SI-UK India opens its 8th office in Jaipur.
New SI-UK office opens in Malaysia.

December 2019

SI-UK India opens 9th and 10th new offices in Lucknow and Hyderabad.

February 2020

SI-UK Thailand opens second office in Chiang Mai.
New SI-UK office opens in Uganda.

July 2020

New SI-UK office opens in Sri Lanka.

October 2020

SI-UK Vietnam reopens offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

December 2020

SI-UK Pakistan opens fifth office in Faisalabad.

January 2021

New SI-UK student office opens in Hong Kong.

February 2021

SI-UK Pakistan opens sixth office in Sahiwal.

March 2021

SI-UK India opens additional offices in Chennai and Delhi, and new offices in Kolkata, Kochin, Chandigarh.

April 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Taipei, Taiwan.
New SI-UK office opens in Jakarta, Indonesia.
New SI-UK office opens in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
New SI-UK office opens in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

May 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Casablanca, Morocco.
SI-UK Saudi Arabia opens Riyadh office.

June 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Warsaw, Poland.

July 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Tirana, Albania.
New SI-UK office opens in Pristina, Kosovo.
New SI-UK office opens in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Changsha, China.

October 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

November 2021

New SI-UK office opens in Kyiv, Ukraine.
New SI-UK office opens in Vientiane, Laos.