Will I be able to study in the UK as a Student Visitor?
Universities all across the UK welcome international students to study. However there can be confusion as to whether you as an international student, have fulfilled the criteria that would enable you to study at your chosen institution. The term ‘student visitor’ is used to classify international students who are not nationals of member state countries in the EU. As a result those who wish to study abroad in places such as the UK, need to apply for a visa. In order to fall under the category of a student visitor, you must have been accepted on to a course of study in the UK. The requirements that the institutions must fulfil is provided below.The institution that provides the course must be:
• A licensed sponsor under Tier 4 of the points-based system. A licensed sponsor is an approved educational provider.
In order to download a register of all the sponsors please refer to the link below:
http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/visiting/student/requirements/
The institution that provides the course must further be:
• Accredited by Accreditation UK or the Accreditation Body for Language Services (ABLS), which offer accreditation service for providers of English Language courses; or
• Accredited by the British Accreditation Council (BAC) or the Accreditation Service for International Colleges (ASIC), which offer accreditation for a range of institutions and courses; or
• Inspected or audited by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), HM Inspectorate of Education (in Scotland), Estyn (in Wales), the Education and Training Inspectorate (in Northern Ireland) or the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI); or
• An overseas higher education institution which offers only part of its programmes in the UK but holds its own national accreditation, and offers programmes of an equivalent level to a UK degree.
For more information referring on student visitors, visa requirements, mandatory documents etc, please refer to:
http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/visiting/student/requirements/