Immigration policy no deterrant for students

**The Coalition Government’s recent immigration restrictions concerning non-EU international students appear to have had little effect on the desire of those students to come to Warwick.**

This is despite the recent warning from Professor Edward Acton, vice-chancellor of the University of East Anglia (UEA), that “negative rhetoric” from the government regarding immigration was deterring potential international students from choosing the UK as a place to study.

Previously, international students who graduated from UK universities could apply for the Tier 1 (Post-study Work) Visa which would allow them to remain in the UK and seek work for up to two years after graduation.

Since the visa was abolished in April 2012, international graduates now have only three months in which to find work, otherwise they will be forced to leave the UK.

However, Warwick’s enrolment figures for international students show little sign of change.

In 2012-13 there was a drop of less than one per cent in the number of non-EU student enrolments.

“That figure may even continue to fall as postgraduate research students continue to join us throughout the academic year,” said University spokesperson Peter Dunn.

“Warwick’s reputation as a globally connected university and as one of the UK and world’s leading institutions ensures that we continue to attract applications from highly capable and ambitious students from all over the world,” said Mr Dunn.

But the Students’ Union’s education officer James Entwistle thought that even a small decline in international student numbers at Warwick is significant.

“There isn’t a depression in the BRIC [Brazil, Russia, India, China] countries at the moment, so a small decline at a top university is hugely significant,” he said.

Mr Entwistle said that he foresees a greater future decline in Warwick’s international student enrolment.

“Even with the opposition of most of the sector, and even with concerns within the Coalition, David Cameron is committed to reducing net migration from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands, and he’d be destroyed by the right wing press if anything changed,” he said.

“Immigration figures without students are going up, so to meet the policy the attacks on international students have to continue, which will hit Warwick and the UK year after year till he gives up.”

He added that the abolition of the Tier 1 (Post-study Work) visa was “ridiculous”.
“If the Government really cared about supporting jobs and growing the economy, they’d be encouraging more people to stay and work in the UK,” he said.

18-year-old Grace Chan is a Singaporean national residing in Thailand who is planning to study in the UK.

Ms Chan was not previously aware of the new immigration restrictions, but said, “It doesn’t really matter because I was planning on going back to Singapore to work anyway.

“I didn’t choose the US or Canada because firstly, they don’t really have the course I want, and secondly, they’re too far away.”

She added that even if she had been planning on working in the UK, the immigration restrictions would not have put her off.