On Saturday 16th March 2019, the UK government announced that it
will be extending the period of post-study leave for international student visas, improving visa processes and supporting employment for international students.
The UK Department for Education said ‘post-study leave period will be extended to six months for undergraduate and master’s students, and a year for doctoral students. This means that international students, after completing their courses in the UK universities, will now be given visa extension for up to a year to look for work.
Currently, students must find a job with a salary of at least £20,800 with an employer with a Tier-2 sponsor licence within four months of completing their course, which most Masters students find difficult to obtain. However, Undergraduate and Masters students will be now given six-month post-study work visa to look for jobs, while PhD students’ post-study visa of one year remains unchanged.
UK currently hosts around 460,000 international higher education students, 30% of whom are African students. This move by the UK government, will raise the number of non-UK students at British universities from 460,000 to 600,000 by 2030.
This is a part of government measures to increase the number of overseas students after Brexit. Brexit, a referendum which was passed by the UK to leave EU in June 2016, is due March 29.
There are still calls for the UK government to go further and extend this opportunity to at least two years. In the meantime, here’s how to get a UK visa.
How to Apply and Study in the UK
Types of UK Student Visa:
What you can and cannot do with the UK Student Visa
You can:
You may be able to bring in family members (dependants).
You cannot:
How To apply: For most thesis-based programs, you must submit your application before 15 January (18:00 UK time) if possible, (or 15 October 18:00 UK time the year before for Oxford, Cambridge or most medicine, veterinary and dentistry courses).
The earliest you can apply for a visa is 3 months before you start your course. You’ll usually get a decision on your visa within 3 weeks. However check the average visa processing times for your country here.
UK student visas are awarded on a points-based system and You need 40 points to apply for a student visa. In order to meet all the UK student visa requirements, you’ll need to provide:
Brexit: what does it mean for you?
If you’re an international student who’s applied/applying to study in the UK, you may be concerned about the recent referendum result, and what it means for you. Simply take a look at what universities are saying about Brexit – you can find this on all UK university websites.
View Scholarships in the UK for African Students
This post was last modified on August 2, 2022 4:39 pm