Students who have applied for visas to study in the UK already need to pass approved language tests, but the UK Border Agency has now granted additional powers to staff at its visa offices around the world which mean that if immigration officers judge the English of a student to be insufficiently fluent they are permitted to bar them from taking their places at colleges and universities.
The UK Border Agency said that it expects to interview around 14,000 students who are applying for Tier 4 student visas over the next year, which will work out at over 5% of the total number of expected applicants. Interviews will be targeted at students who are from countries where the risk of abuse is deemed higher, and especially at students who are applying to study at colleges or schools not on the UKBA’s “highly trusted student sponsor” list.
UK immigration minister Damian Green has said that “With more interviews and greater powers to refuse bogus students we will weed out abuse and protect the UK from those looking to play the system." The measure is intended to add a new method of detecting and stopping false applicants, but has introduced fears that students might be failed by staff who are not actually qualified and trained language assessors.
With these new measures, which came into power at the end of July 2012, there has never been a better time to choose a highly trusted sponsor for tier 4 students. English language schools like Concorde International provide help and assistance so that students do not need to worry about travelling to study in the UK. It is also worth looking for English courses that will prepare you for the everyday life of speaking English, not just the bare minimum you need to pass the relevant exams.
Get in touch with Concorde International to learn more about how we can help you to master English to help with your studies, professional life or personal development. Choose from a wide range of adult English courses, English classes for young people or even family English study holidays.