Border Agency decision threatens thousands of international students

[dipsydoodle]

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has revoked London Metropolitan University's power to teach or recruit international students, leaving nearly 3,000 students facing deportation unless they can find another place to study within 60 days.

The university's vice-chancellor, Malcolm Gillies, has warned that the decision to revoke its licence to take non-EU students would create a £30m loss – equal to nearly a fifth of the university's budget – and threatens the institution's future. Of the 30,000 students expected at the university in the new academic year, about 2,700 from outside the EU.

A statement posted on the university's website on Wednesday night said: "The implications of the revocation are hugely significant and far-reaching, and the university has already started to deal with these. It will be working very closely with the UKBA, Higher Education Funding Council for England [HEFCE], the NUS and its own students' union. Our absolute priority is to our students, both current and prospective, and the university will meet all its obligations to them."

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The university's "highly trusted status" for sponsoring international students was suspended last month over fears that "a small minority" of students did not have accurate documentation.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/aug/30/border-agency-international-students-threat

[xchrom]

1. Du rec. Nt

[LeftishBrit]

2. This is INSANE!

[dipsydoodle]

3. Its only that one - not others too.

Announcing the move on Wednesday night, the UK Border Agency said London Metropolitan University had "failed to address serious and systemic failings" identified six months ago.

The Higher Education Funding Council for England said it was an "unprecedented situation which relates only to London Metropolitan University" - which has a total of 30,000 students.

It added: "It will not affect existing or future international students at other universities. No other UK university has had its licence to sponsor international students revoked, and UKBA's decision does not in any way reflect concern about licensing arrangements at other universities in the UK."

The university's Highly Trusted Status (HTS) was suspended last month while the UKBA examined alleged failing, preventing it from being allowed to recruit overseas students.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-19419395

Looks like they had adequate warning - 6 months.

[LeftishBrit]

4. It's true that LMU is rather inclined to get itself into messes due to poor organization....

This is not the first time it's had some major administrative mess-up.

However the government's response does seem to be a drastic over-reaction, and I hope the students are not too badly affected.

[fedsron2us]

5. My snout in the world of FE tells me the following institutions are runners in the banruptcy stakes

London Met University
London South Bank University
University of West London
University of Wolverhampton
University of Derby
Cumbria University
University of Bolton

London Met was always favourite to fail first. Its rather lax approach to policing educational visas is not unconnected to its tottering financial viability. While the situation sucks for genuine foreign students caught up in this fiasco my source says there have been more than a few blind eyes turned to immigration abuse because the institution was desperate for cash. While in the short term this decision may damage the reputation of UK institutions with foreign students at the end of the day those who are looking for degrees are as concerned about the quality of the educational institution and its degrees as the visa rules.

On edit - And here is what the Student Room thinks about it

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2104965

The view of a fair few is that it actually degrades the term 'University'

[dipsydoodle]

6. UK Border Agency criticised over student visas

The UK Border Agency faces intense criticism from MPs for causing chaos in the student visa system with a "poorly planned and ill thought-out" change in the rules for overseas students.

The agency's failings meant an extra 50,000 people abused the system, coming to Britain to work rather than study, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said.

The committee of MPs said in a report published on Monday that the UKBA had enforced new rules for overseas students in 2009 before controls were in place. The result was a "difficult and costly" three years as the agency tried to amend the rules to clamp down on abuse.

It removed controls such as spot-check interviews of students entering the country, the PAC says. But it did not make the new electronic system, showing a student had been sponsored by a licensed sponsor, mandatory until 2010. Instead, it and relied on sponsors' letters that were "easily forged".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/sep/04/ukba-student-visa-rules