Dear all,
As you might have seen, over the weekend the Sunday Times reported – incorrectly- that London Metropolitan University had lost its license to sponsor international students. Since then, the Home Office have clearly stated that they have yet to make a decision about the institution's status, which at present is suspended. Regardless of whether this was misreporting by the Times or an incredible act of political kite flying by the home office, the result is the same; international students at London Met have been left in utter limbo over whether they will be studying in the UK in a few months’ time, studying at a different institution or ultimately, made to go home through no fault of their own.
We are working closely with UUK, UKCISA, local MPs and others to raise our strong concerns at the way that this situation has been dealt with, unnecessarily causing a great deal of concern for all of those affected. We are also of course working with London Met Students’ Union as they support their students – whilst we continue to challenge fundamentally the Government’s entire approach to international students.
At this stage, we wanted to clarify the situation for all those who might have seen the story, point anyone concerned (or anyone who approaches you with concerns) towards information and crucially, ask for your help.
Advice for international students at London Met
Currently, London Metropolitan University has had its Highly Trusted Sponsor license suspended. This means that at the moment it is not allowed to recruit any NEW international students to its courses. Those students that are already studying at London Met University still have leave to remain in the UK. If London Met's sponsor status changes this may affect the status of current international students.
Current international students can seek more advice from the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA), either through their helpline: +44 (0) 20 7107 9922 or by reading their briefing.
What happens to students if London Met has its license revoked?
If London Met has its license revoked, which we would emphasise is not the case at present, then it will no longer be able to recruit or sponsor international students. If such a decision is made, international students will then be issued a Letter Of Curtailment. They will then have 60 days from the date they receive the Letter of Curtailment to either be accepted onto a course at a different institution in the UK, or to leave the UK.
If this situation occurs, NUS will issue more detailed information as the outcome for current students is not clear cut. Although it is important to reiterate that no decision has been made on London Met's status, and we may not know until the 5th of September, NUS will be working hard to point out how damaging the current situation is not just to London Met students, but further and higher education in the UK as a whole.
What can you do?
We want to show the Government and the general public just how damaging revoking London Mets Highly Trusted Status could be for education in the UK. We are asking students’ unions to find international students who already contribute so much to the local community (perhaps through volunteering and community projects etc) willing to tell the press whether or not they would have considered coming to the UK if they had known how easily their studies could be taken away from them. If you have international students at your institution willing to do this, please contact lewis.cooper@nus.org.uk as soon as possible.
Please do get in touch with us directly if you have any more specific questions (email Bethan.payne@nus.org.uk) – and we will let you know if and when the situation changes at all. We’ll also be updating the international students’ face book group, which you can join for additional information - https://www.facebook.com/groups/263932437038576/
All the best,
Liam Burns, NUS President
Daniel Stevens, NUS International Students’ Officer