New visa proposals unfair say CIFE
In reply to the request by the UK Border Agency for responses to its review of current Tier 4 (student visa) arrangements, the Chairman of CIFE , Mrs Fiona Pocock, has written the following letter to Nigel Farminer, Deputy Director, Immigration Policy, UK Border Agency.
"Dear Sir,
Further to your letter dated 17th November 2009 outlining the terms of the Tier 4 Review, I am responding on behalf of The Council for Independent Education (CIFE) to the seven specific questions to be addressed. CIFE is a national organisation of 16 independent colleges which specialise in preparing students, home and international, for university entrance. http://www.cife.org.uk/
We strongly oppose the suggestion that the minimum level of qualification that can be studied by general students through the PBS should be raised from the current National Qualifications Framework level 3. Many of our bona fide international students would be excluded were this proposal to be accepted. Students who have successfully completed 13 years of education in their home country, particularly Russia and China, are not accepted for direct entry to a British university. They therefore apply to study A levels on the general visa route. They are too old to be considered for entry at most boarding schools on a child visa. Students who study for A level at a CIFE member college are often aged 18 or over and therefore travel on a general visa. These students go on to study at prestigious universities, frequently with top A level results. At the organisation's Interim General Meeting held on Friday 20th November in Oxford, we judged candidates for academic awards to be presented in the House of Lords by CIFE's President, Baroness Perry of Southwark. Recipients of CIFE prizes are exceptionally high achievers and we celebrate their success in an iconic British public building, drawing attention to the contribution they have made and will continue to make in sustaining high standards in British education. The economic contribution they make during their education in a CIFE college and then at a British university is substantial, not to mention the impact their success has on positive public relations with their countries of origin. Of our 15 award winners for examination results achieved in 2009, 10 would have been excluded were this proposal to go ahead. This would have a significantly detrimental effect on our colleges, staff, local businesses and all those in the local communities who provide services for our students. The world-renowned education offered by British universities would no longer be accessed by some of the world's most academically-gifted young people simply because they had not come into British education before they were 18 years old! The economic benefits of encouraging talented, ambitious and hard-working bona fide international students to the UK should not be under-estimated. The current rigorous UKBA procedures, adhered to and welcomed by CIFE colleges before an international student is offered a place, can be relied upon to assure that bogus students of whatever age are not accepted.
We broadly welcome proposal 2. CIFE college students who study A levels generally arrive with a level of English language adequate in our judgement to study at this level and this is generally IELTS band score 5.5 or above. On any pre-A level English Language course offered to prepare students for A level study, a minimum entry threshold of IELTS 4.5 is normally required.
We look forward to hearing more details concerning proposal 3. We broadly welcome universal English language testing for international students except where English is already a student's first language, for example with a student from the USA. The mechanism by which the level of English is tested is of more concern to us as we would wish the method to be accurate and reliable. The testing procedure would be welcomed by us so long as the method of assessment is practical, easily accessible and not prohibitively expensive for applicants.
Proposal 4 is unlikely to affect CIFE colleges specifically but in principle, we are opposed to this. We feel that suitable international students should be welcomed to study in the UK either on academic or vocational courses. Certain UK vocational courses, such as for accountancy, hospitality or artisanal services including technical hairdressing and beauty courses attract international students who, in our view, should have access to such qualifications which are not offered in their home country. Similarly, enrichment programmes which may not lead to a specific qualification, in our view should be open to international students so long as the welcoming institution can provide evidence that it is a worthwhile programme that will be of benefit to the student and that the institution upholds its responsibilities in terms of attendance requirements.
We oppose any differential approach between countries of origin as we consider this to be unacceptably prejudicial. We would, however, welcome uniform and strict application of the regulations in force at any one time.
Many CIFE member colleges like students to have the opportunity to work for up to 20 hours a week as it generally broadens their knowledge of British culture, provides an opportunity to practise English and offers a good structure around which to plan study. We therefore oppose point 6 in that we would wish a student to have some right to work, but are agreed that the number of hours of work may be restricted to a maximum of 20.
We cannot see any benefit in proposal 7, requiring students to return to their home country before progressing to a new institution. We prepare students for university entrance and would want them to have the opportunity to progress from a CIFE member college directly to university, should they wish to do so, without an enforced trip home which can be costly and environmentally unfriendly. We would prefer students who are progressing to new institutions to have the opportunity to renew visas in the UK without risk of losing the benefits of acclimatisation to the UK enjoyed during their time with us.
Thank you for requesting our response to these matters which we find concerning, particularly item 1 which could have such a serious impact on our future students and colleges.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs Fiona Pocock MA PGCE Chairman, CIFE
25 November 2009"
